Kush Rao and his family moved to Southlake in 2015 because of the award-winning schools and attractive city amenities. But what made him stay was the people. After organizing a small community celebration of Diwali in his neighborhood, Kush launched a large-scale festival in 2018 that attracted over 2,000 attendants.
“We wanted to showcase our culture — share who we are with the town,” Kush says. “We brought our idea to [city] council, and we got the go-ahead to hold it in town square. We didn’t know how the city was going to react, but they welcomed us with open arms.”
And he didn’t stop there. In 2019, he founded the Southlake Foundation with like-minded friends and spearheaded even more local initiatives, including Celebrate Southlake, the United We Run color marathon and candidate forums during every election cycle. He even helps organize appreciation lunches for city and school staff to thank them for everything they do.
“I want to give visibility to these people — to make sure everyone in the community feels seen, heard and recognized,” Kush says. “There’s so much positivity in this town. I’m just trying to share it.”