You may not know it, but there’s some star power fueling the arts and cultural scene in deep South Texas that’s “bad” in the absolute best possible way. R.J. Mitte, the actor whose breakout role as Walter White Jr. in AMC’s Breaking Bad cemented his status as a Hollywood celebrity, has a little-known connection to the Rio Grande Valley — one that is reaping rewards for the region’s largest city, Brownsville.
And at the center of Monday’s celebratory news conference was R.J. Mitte, the president of the Mitte Foundation, a philanthropic non-profit that offers scholarships to students, as well as grants to organizations that aim to improve the quality of life for Texans. The foundation was founded by Mitte’s grandparents, Roy F. and Joann Cole Mitte in 1994.
Though the Mitte Foundation primarily serves communities in Central Texas, it has partnered with the city of Brownsville for a number of years in honor of the childhood that Roy Mitte spent in the city.
Roy Mitte’s “desire to give back to his hometown of Brownsville helped create the Mitte Cultural District … and the establishment of the Mitte Cultural Education Center, which houses the Children’s Museum of Brownsville and the Costumes of the Americas Museum,” reads a biography of the elder Mitte on The Mitte Foundation’s website.
Though the elder Mittes founded the nonprofit more than 30 years ago, it is their grandson who now carries the foundation’s mission forward. On Monday, he celebrated seeing another project launched in his grandfather’s hometown.
“This has been an amazing project to see come to fruition,” Mitte said in a news release. “On behalf of my family and the Mitte Foundation, I am honored to celebrate the launch of The Mitte and to witness the transformation of the arts museum into a cultural center for all.”
The rebranded museum space will be “reimagined” to include rotating art exhibits, live performances, and educational programs suitable for audiences of all ages, Brownsville officials said. The Mitte Cultural District will help jumpstart the transformation by investing $2.5 million that will be used to fund improvements over the next 18 months.
In all, the revamped cultural center will be part of a collaborative effort by several beloved Brownsville institutions, including the children’s museum, the Gladys Porter Zoo and the Revival of Cultural Arts, city leaders said.
“The forthcoming Mitte Arts and Cultural Center is poised to become a cornerstone of creativity, education, art and tourism,” Brownsville Mayor John Cowen said in a statement. A date for the grand opening has yet to be set.