The annual McDonald's Texas Invitational Basketball Tournament gets bigger and better every year, and this year is no exception as the tournament is going regional with the help of the Pearland Area Chamber of Commerce, Pearland ISD and the Pearland Convention and Visitors Bureau.

"We are very excited about working with all of the folks in Pearland and know that the partnership will add greatly to our tournament success," said tournament chairman Ben Meador. "We see a long-term relationship developing here."

Pearland Convention and Visitors Bureau Vice President of Tourism Bryan Roller joined the tournament's steering committee recently, and he said the city is excited to be involved in such a great tournament.

"The Pearland Chamber of Commerce, the Convention and Visitors Bureau and Pearland ISD are all strong supporters of working regionally for the betterment of our area," Roller said. "I think a strong alliance between our cities, our chambers and our school districts will equate to success for all the entities involved. It takes a lot of resources to pull off a first-class tournament of this size, and by combining our talents and efforts, we can really showcase our region."

The tournament hosts the most talented 48-boys' teams and 32-girls' teams from across the state and is sponsored in large part by McDonald's, the City of Pasadena and the Pasadena Chamber of Commerce. The tournament serves as the primary fundraiser for the Pasadena ISD Education Foundation, which provides $100,000 in grants every year to help fund innovative educational programs districtwide that cannot be afforded through regular operating budgets. Last year, the tournament made a record $100,000 donation to the foundation.

"The quality of talent in this region and from across the state makes this one of the top tournaments in the nation," Roller said. "Pearland will bring tremendous energy and a potential for growth to the tournament. Our energy, resourcefulness and determination combined with our commitment to showcase Pearland, will help us achieve this goal."

Pearland's involvement in the tournament started with the need of another facility to be used as a game site since Pasadena High School's gym will be undergoing renovations at the time of this year's tournament, which will be held Nov. 20-22. Pearland ISD's Pearland High School will be a new site at this year's tournament.

"This will be good for the tournament because Pearland ISD has a great facility," Meador said. "Their people are very nice to work with and have always been great supporters of our tournament. They will also be able to play a student game there as well as have several pool games there."

In addition to providing additional facilities for games during the tournament, Pearland will also be involved in securing sponsors and selling advertisement space in the tournament's program. With 50 percent of Pearland's secured income going back to the city, Meador said he believes the positive trends of the tournament's past five years will continue to grow for Pasadena ISD's Education Foundation.  

"All sponsorship funds and program advertising funds raised from Pearland will be shared equally with the city, its school district and the tournament," Meador said. "The addition of the Pearland chamber and the people in that community just expands our capabilities and will allow us to derive more funding and be in a position to exceed the donation made to the foundation last year."

Pearland will also be responsible for securing volunteers at the Pearland game site and for helping promote the tournament and gain attendance at games at the Pearland site.

Roller said he believes the City of Pearland and its school district will benefit tremendously from being a part of this tournament because of the large economic impact special events such as this one brings into the cities in which they are held.

"From the city's standpoint, I think the continued efforts to bring first-class athletic events to Pearland assists us in branding our city and our region as a destination for sports or student-related events," he said. "Teams, parents and friends travel to support those teams meaning new revenue is brought into our community by way of hotel, gas, food and retail purchases. It will also help our schools with fundraising through booster clubs that run the concession stands at these various events."

Meador said some future goals of the partnership include expanding the tournament to include more teams and utilize more facilities in the Pearland area.

"With Bryan on board our steering committee, we will be soliciting Pearland's ideas and opinions as we move forward to explore all of our options," Meador said. "They are great people to work with and we look forward to a longstanding and very successful relationship."

Meador said he thinks it's important for organizations in surrounding cities to get involved in this event and that he is looking forward to the success of this year's tournament with Pearland's participation.

"This is not just a Pasadena event," Meador said. "We have long had the opinion that anything that happens in southeast Harris County is good for every city located here. The success of this tournament has sent a clear message that says our people are enthusiastic and energetic enough to stage a major undertaking such as this event; our business community is very generous; and those who work the event have the planning and visionary capabilities to improve the event and make it better each year. When we begin to think about what can be rather than just what is, then we begin to see the possibilities."

For Pearland area businesses interested in becoming a tournament sponsor, please contact Roller at 281-485-3534. For Pasadena area businesses interested in sponsoring the event, please contact Rita Townsend, tournament executive assistant, at 713-986-0527. Visit www.texasinvitational.com for more information about the tournament.