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Making health programming accessible for residents in the northeast portion of the Greater Houston area has been an ongoing goal for the Northeast Hospital Foundation for almost 40 years, said Brooke Baugh, director of development and programs for the Northeast Hospital Authority & Foundation.

Through offerings such as free breast cancer screenings and wellness lunches for seniors, the foundation continues to honor that mission, she said.

The history: Fifty years ago, in 1976, the Northeast Hospital Authority was created with the goal of bringing a hospital to the northeast Houston region, Baugh said. The authority created the Northeast Medical Center, which opened Oct. 7, 1977.

About one decade later, in 1987, the Northeast Hospital Foundation was launched to help fundraise for various programs offered by the Northeast Hospital Authority, Baugh said.

Measuring the impact: Currently, the foundation’s main program is Project Mammogram, which provides free breast cancer screenings to uninsured and underinsured patients, Baugh said. In the last 25 years, Project Mammogram has provided services to more than 13,000 people.

The Humble eatery formerly known as LanDreaux's Creole & Cajun Seafood celebrated the launch of its rebranded name Dreaux's Creole & Cajun Seafood with a June 19 ribbon cutting event, owner Andrew Landry confirmed in a June 11 post on the business’s Facebook page.

On the menu: Landry, who previously owned Juicy Heads & Spicy Tails in Humble, said Dreaux's Creole & Cajun Seafood offers a variety of Cajun cuisine, including seafood gumbo, fried fish, red beans and rice, crawfish and seasoned Cajun seafood.

• 8009 FM 1960 Road E., Humble

As the Fourth of July holiday approaches, local officials are encouraging residents to know how to safely use and dispose of fireworks after the festivities end.

What residents need to know: However, residents are allowed to use fireworks in the unincorporated areas of Harris, Fort Bend and Montgomery counties. As part of the Fourth of July holiday, first responders are encouraging the safe use of any fireworks by following several safety tips, including:

• Only light one firework at a time
• Have ready access to a water source
• Never relight fireworks after use

• Sound of fireworks
• Firework restriction information
• Abandoned firework debris

The Electric Reliability Council of Texas operates the state power grid, overseeing the flow of electricity to over 27 million customers. Yet ERCOT does not directly participate in Texas’ electric market or own any of the facilities that deliver power across the state.

The big picture: Power generation plants, transmission facilities and distribution lines are owned by outside companies, meaning that local power outages are typically isolated and handled by individual companies, rather than ERCOT.

How it works: In 1999, Texas legislators passed a law deregulating the state’s retail electric market. The law was designed to “introduce competition in Texas’ electric market by allowing consumers to choose their retail electric provider,” according to ERCOT.

Previously, most Texas utility companies owned all aspects of the electric supply chain, including generation, transmission and the delivery of power to customers.

Today, approximately 85% of electric customers in Texas can choose their retail electric provider, including those across the Houston and Dallas-Fort Worth regions. Customers in Austin and San Antonio get their electricity from municipally owned utilities.