VOLUME 3, NO. 02 (#55) www.northchannelstar.com

Serving all of the North Shore -- Channelview, Sheldon, Galena Park, Jacinto City

NORTH CHANNEL✯STARYour News, Your Newspaper

CHANNELCHATTER

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 14, 2015

CONGRESS UPDATES:Rep. Gene Green named RankingMember of Health Subcommittee

NORTH CHANNEL CHAMBER:Art Rascon to speak at North ChannelChamber’s Annual Gala

Emmy Award winning Re-porter Art Rascon will be thespeaker at the 38th AnnualNorth Channel Area Chamberof Commerce Annual Awardsand Membership Gala. TheGala will be Saturday, Janu-ary 31, 2015 at Marriot Hous-ton Lobby, 9100 Gulf Freeway,Houston, TX. 77017. SocialTime from 6:30 - 7:30 pm anddinner at 7:30 pm.

Rascon joined ABC-13 inSeptember 1998 to serve asanchor of the evening news.He has covered major newssuch as wars, conflicts in Iraq,Tsunami in Indonesia andHaiti eartquake as well as U.S.Presidential elections.

Rascon has reported frommore than 50 countries, 5 con-tinents and nearly every state

(Washington, DC) – On Thursday,January 8, Representative Gene Greenwas elected by unanimous consent toserve as Ranking Member of the Com-mittee on Energy and Commerce’s Sub-committee on Health for the 114th

Congress.“It is an honor to serve in leadership

on the Health Subcommittee on behalfof our District and all Americans,” Greensaid. “We’ve made great strides in healthcare reform, but some of our nation’smost vulnerable citizens still lack accessto the care they need. This Congress, oneof our top priorities will be to addressthese gaps and foster a better systemthat will provide accessible, world-classcare for all, regardless of age, gender, orincome.”

During the 113th Congress, Rep. Greenwas an active member of the Health Sub-committee and worked to address press-ing health care issues. In 2013, heauthored legislation to fund trauma caresystems, and legislation to spur the de-velopment of treatments that combatdrug-resistant bacteria. In 2009 and2010, he was a strong supporter of healthcare reform legislation, including theHouse passage of the Affordable HealthCare for America Act and the enactmentof the Patient Protection and AffordableCare Act. He has also introduced andsupported legislation on the Energy andCommerce Committee to expand accessto quality health care, and pursued op-portunities to improve access to cover-age, including Medicaid expansion.

The Health Subcommittee has jurisdiction over pub-lic health, hospital construction, biomedical researchand development, health information and technology,the Department of Health and Human Services, theFood and Drug Administration, the Centers for Dis-ease Control and Prevention, and medical malpracticeand medical malpractice insurance.

Rep. Gene Green

Rep. Gene Greento host Town Hallmeetings

(Houston, TX) – CongressmanGene Green is hosting a series oftown hall meetings throughoutthe 29th District of Texas in Janu-ary and February. He will also hosta Senior Citizens Issues Forum,Healthcare Enrollment Forum, E-waste Collection Drive, and a Pay-ing for College Workshop.

“We’re really looking forwardto hosting these events,” Greensaid. “Many of our constituentskeep in contact with us through-out the year by writing or calling-in, but there’s no substitute forface-to-face conversation. Ourtown halls give me an opportuni-ty to hear directly from my con-stituents and listen to their ques-tions and concerns.”

He added, “During our SeniorIssues and Healthcare Enrollmentforums, we connect our attend-ees with experts so they can re-ceive personalized, one-on-oneassistance. This year we’re alsohosting an E-waste CollectionDrive where residents can recycletheir unwanted electronic items.Our goal is to provide real, help-ful services to our communities.We hope to see a lot of peopletaking advantage of these eventsand forums.”

The event times and locationsare listed below for Galena Parkand Jacinto City area.

•Thursday, January 22 at 7:30p.m. In Conjunction with FreewayManor Civic Club. St. StephenPresbyterian Church, 2217 ThetaStreet, Houston, TX. 77034

Health Care Forum•Thursday, February 5 at 6:30

p.m. at the North Channel BranchLibrary, 15741 Wallisville Road,Houston, TX. 77049

E-waste Collection•Monday, February 9 at 6:00

p.m. In Conjunction with GreaterMagnolia/Pineview Place CivicClub at Magnolia Multi-ServiceCenter, 7037 Capitol Street, Hous-ton, TX. 77011.

The FBI needs the pub-lic’s help identifying a bankrobber who threatened tohave a bomb during a mid-morning robbery of a Bankof America branch locatedinside an office building at12605 East Freeway inHouston, Texas. Surveil-lance photographs of thebank robber are being re-leased and a Crime Stop-pers reward of up to $5,000is being offered for informa-tion leading to the bankrobber’s identity and ar-rest.

At approximately 10:05a.m., the man entered thebank and approached a tell-

Issue #55 of the STAR Pineforest Jewelry p. 3YMCA - Be Healthy, p. 6

East Freeway bank robberthreatens to have bomb

er. He passed the teller anote threatening to have abomb. Tellers gave them a n a n u n d i s c l o s e damount of cash which heplaced inside a blue vinylzippered bag. He left withthe cash bag in his hands.Several customers were in-side during the bank rob-bery , but no one wasphysically hurt.

The bank robber was de-scribed as a Hispanic male,about 5’3” – 5’5” with astocky build. He wore adark colored leather-typejacket with a grey hoodedsweatshirt underneath, ablue colored knit hat, read-

ing glasses with wiredframes, and one white glovecovering his right handduring the robbery. He alsocarried a blue vinyl zip-pered bag into the bank andleft with the bag full ofcash.

Crime Stoppers is offer-ing up to $5,000.00 for in-formation leading to thecharging and arrest of thisrobber. If you have infor-mation about this case,please call the Crime Stop-pers tip line at 713-222-T I P S ( 8 4 7 7 ) , o r t h eHouston office of the FBI at713-693-5000.

Suspect wanted for bomb threatened in Bank of Americarobbery.

Art Rascon

in the Union. He has beennominated for 25 Emmys andhas won 19. He also has re-ceived other local and nation-al reporting awards.

The National HispanicBusiness Magazine namedRascon one of the 100 mostinfluencial Hispanics in Amer-ica. And in 2008 he was namedHouston Father of the Year; in2010 he was honored with theprestigious Paul Harris Fellowaward from Rotary Interna-tional.

Rascon was born in El Paso,Texas and raised in Denver,Colorado. A graduate ofBrigham Young Universitywith additional studies of Eu-ropean Politics in Madrid,Spain.

For reservations, pleasecall 713-450-3600.

WALKING OUT –– Galena Park commissioners Juan Flores, right, Lois Killough, city attorney Jim DeFoyd,and city administrator Robert Pruett stand and prepare to leave the special called council meeting, afterarguments about how the meeting was being run by Mayor Moya brought the proceedings to anunproductive halt. Monday’s special meeting had been called to resolve the problem created when theMayor’s special counsel, attorney Edgardo Colon, had issued a letter to Galena Park’s bank ordering thechecking accounts to be frozen.

Rancor continues in Galena Park; Council walks out

See COUNCIL WALKS, page 8PHOTO COURTESY OF KPRC

Mayor attempts tofreeze bank checks

GALENA PARK – A specialcalled city council meeting dis-solved into near chaos on Mon-day afternoon, when membersof the city commission or coun-cil, and the Mayor were unableto resolve a dispute over au-thority to sign checks for cityobligations.

This is the latest disagree-ment that Mayor Moya hashad with council members andthe city administrator RobertPruett.

The mayor has claimed,since taking office in January,that the council and adminis-trator have been conductingcity business in a way that vi-olates the city charter. She haspresented copies of the char-ter at council meetings, high-lighting instances ofnon-compliance.

Mayor Moya also claims hersignature was illegally re-moved from the accounts, butcity officials say she refused toput her name on the docu-ment.

The bank, Comerica, re-quires checks to have two au-thorized signatures to behonored and paid. In order forthe city to continue paying itsbills, Council voted a resolu-tion in July to allow the may-or-pro tem, Danny Simms, tosign the checks in lieu of themayor. This arrangement wasapproved by the city attorney,Jim DeFoyd, and accepted bythe bank. The city secretarymust also sign, or as a back-up the city administrator.

Moya’s attorney, EdgardoColon, sent a letter to the bankon January 2, demanding thatthey not honor city checkswithout Moya’s signature. Af-ter several discussions be-

NORTH CHANNEL✯STARPage 2 WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 14, 2015

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Page 3WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 14, 2015 NORTH CHANNEL✯STAR

SCHOOL NEWS

NORTH CHANNEL✯STAR5906 STAR LANE, HOUSTON, TX 77057

(713) 977-2555 FAX (713) 977-1188email: northchannelstar@gmail.comwebsite: www.northchannelstar.com

Gilbert Hoffman .................................................Editor & PublisherMei-Ing Hoffman ...............................................Associate PublisherLewis Spearman .............................................. Advertising DirectorJulieta Paita ................................................................. Staff ReporterLuis Hernandez ................................................................ ProductionPedro Hernandez .....................................Circulation/Mail Director

Published each Wednesday by GrafikPress Corp. Any erroneous statement which mayappear will be corrected when brought to the attention of the publisher. Liability forerrors is limited to the reprinting of the corrected version. Submissions are encouraged,in person, by mail, by Fax, or by email, to: northchannelstar@gmail.com

Member Texas Community Newspaper Association Member North Channel Chamber of Commerce

Member Texas Press Association

JANUARY

North ChannelLibrary events-Saturday, Jan. 17, 10am - 3pm Scrapbooking with Mia; 2pm, Faithful Paws.-Monday, Jan. 19, LIBRARYCLOSED.-Tuesday, Jan. 20, 10:30 am,Toddler Time; 1:30 pm,Polliwog Club-AnimalsUnderground.-Wednesday, Jan. 21, 4:30 pm,Afterschool Craft.-Thursday, Jan. 22, 10:30 am,Baby Time.COMPUTER CLASSES:-Intermediate Excel, Lecture,Jan. 26, 1-3 pm.-Intermediate Excel, Practice,Jan. 28, 1-3 pm.*Requires registrationCLASES DE COMPUTACION:-Intermedio Excel, Lectura, Jan.27, 10am - 12 pm.-Intermedio Excel, Práctica,Jan. 29, 10 am - 12 pm.*Se require registrarse.

Library is located at 15741Wallisville Rd., Houston, TX.77049. Call 281-457-1631 formore information on other class-es.

JANUARY

Galena ParkLibrary events-Monday, Jan. 19, Martin LutherKing Day, Library CLOSED.-Tuesday , Jan . 20 , 1 pm,Mecanografía; 4 pm, Typing.-Wednesday, Jan. 21, 11 am,Story Time.-Thursday, Jan. 22, 11 am, BabyTime.Please call the library at 713-450-0982 for more details.

The library is located at 1500Keene St. Galena Park, TX.77547.

COMMUNITYCALENDAR

FREE PARENTTECHNOLOGYTRAINING!

Galena Park ISD is offering FREEtechnology training for parents whohave children in one or more GPISDschools!

Registration: Call 832-386-1038Monday-Friday from 8:00 a.m. -4:00 p.m.

Training Topics include WordProcessing and Internet Tools.

There will be snacks and FREEbabysitting for children under 12.

Training is being offered in bothEnglish and Spanish. Training willtake place at Joyce Zotz EducationCenter, 13801 Holly Park, Houston

Training Dates/Times: Selectone training week (Monday-Thurs-day)

February 9-12 (5:30 p.m. - 7:00p.m.)

February 23-26 (5:30 p.m.-7:00p.m.)

NORTH CHANNELBUSINESS DIRECTORYCall 281-328-9605 to Advertise YOUR Business

in this Directory. 10,000 readers Weekly

Channelview ISD recognizes Board MembersThe contributions of seven community leaders in the Channelview Independent School District who

give their time to help children are being recognized in January as part of School Board RecognitionMonth. “Local school board members work tirelessly and devote hundreds of hours to lead our studentsto success. Setting aside time in January is one small way to celebrate their service to our community,”said Greg Ollis, Channelview ISD superintendent.

The board members serving Channelview ISD include Board President Kyle Campbell, Steven Dennis,Secretary Greg Johnstone, Parliamentarian Keith Liggett and members Raquel Dobbins, Patrick Lacy andAlex Ybarra.

“Our school board members are a vital link between the community and the classroom. They have acommitment to serve their community and ensure that all students are given every opportunity to excelthrough education. We appreciate our board members for giving of themselves and caring so muchabout every child enrolled in our schools,” Ollis said.Joe Stephens, GPISD Board of Trustees Vice-President; Bernice

Hernandez, Lee Brown, Cloverleaf Elementary Principal; and Dr. AngiWilliams, Superintendent of Schools.

Channelview High School’sScience National Honor Soci-ety inducted several newmembers at a special ceremo-ny recently in the campus Lec-ture Hall.

Participants included Pres-ident: Mary Elliott, Vice Pres-ident : Adr iana Aguirre ,Secretary: Judy Truong, Trea-surer: Rubi Escamilla, Report-er: Abraham Elizarraras, andnew inductees; Zachery An-

The Channelview ISD Cur-riculum and Instruction De-partment will provide a publicviewing of proposed instruc-tional materials for the 2015-2016 school year from 8 a.m.-4p.m., Feb. 5 in the Board Roomof the Joyce Hendrix Educa-

CHS Science National HonorSociety inducts new members

gell, Jessica Cortes, LeslyCruz, Jorge Martinez, CesarPerez, Erika Richey-Carson,Victor Sandoval, Erik Solis,Jessica Telles, Andrea Tellez,Elizabeth Tenorio.

Through their outstandingcommitment to academic ex-cellence in all coursework, es-pecially in the area of Science,these students have earnedspecial recognition by being

nominated and being accept-ed by the Channelview HighSchool Chapter of the ScienceNational Honor Society.

In addition, CHS facultymembers Mary Toothaker andJanelle Million were recog-nized as Honorary Inducteesto the organization. SNHSSponsors are Karen Hebertand Jose Escutia. CHS Prin-cipal Cindi Ollis was also inattendance at the ceremony.

New members of the Channelview High School’s Science National Honor Society.

GALENA PARK

School volunteer recognizedat school board meeting

Bernice Hernandez, a vol-unteer at Cloverleaf Elemen-tary School, was recognized forher service at the GPISDBoard of Trustees meeting onJanuary 13, 2015. For threeyears, Mrs. Hernandez hasbeen an active member of the“Mama Bears,” a group of par-ent volunteers who daily visitthe campus to assist teachers

with their projects. She alsoassists with translating. “Mrs.Hernandez is a very specialperson on our campus. She ishere daily to answer phones,communicate with other par-ents, and is always ready toassist in any way,” said JoanLeBlanc, principal’s secretary.The impact of the volunteersis felt on the campus.

Public viewing forinstructional materialsscheduled at Channelview

tional Support Center, 828Sheldon Rd.

Under Proclamation 2015,instructional materials underadoption are grades K-12 So-cial Studies, grades 9-12Mathematics and some FineArts. For more information,call 281-452-8018.

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NORTH CHANNEL✯STARPage 4 WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 14, 2015

OPINION PAGE

AUSTIN — Signaling hisintent to promote transparen-cy and accountability in the84th Texas Legislature, HouseSpeaker Joe Straus on Jan. 9announced that in the comingweeks the House would re-lease a budget proposal de-signed to strengthen oversightof state agency contracts. TheLegislature convenes Jan. 13.

Agencies or institutions ofhigher education, under theproposal, would have to meetnew reporting requirementsprior to awarding a contract ormaking a purchase worthmore than $10 million, Straussaid. Requirements also wouldapply to contracts and pur-chases worth more than $1million and which do not gothrough a competitive biddingprocess, he added.

At least 30 days prior tomaking such an expenditure,a state agency issuing a con-tract would have to notify theLegislative Budget Board, gov-ernor, state auditor, chair ofthe House AppropriationsCommittee, chair of the Sen-ate Finance Committee andchairs of any other committeeswith jurisdiction over con-tracting. Along with that noti-fication, an agency, beforefinalizing such a contract,would provide to the Legisla-tive Budget Board and the oth-ers:

• Information about thenature of the contract and thevendor awarded it.

• A certification by theagency’s executive directorthat the process used to awardthe contract or make the pur-chase complies with the state’sContract Management Guide,State of Texas ProcurementManual and all applicablelaws.

• A certification by theagency’s executive directorthat the agency can verify ven-dor performance and deliver-ables, payment of goods andservices only within the scopeof the contract, and other in-formation.

Furthermore, Straus said,the next state budget “willmake clear that the statecomptroller should not allowthe expenditure of funds if theLegislative Budget Board saysthe requirements listed abovehave not been met.”

AG Paxton is sworn inKen Paxton of McKinney

was sworn in as Texas’s 51stattorney general on Jan. 5with Gov. Rick Perry, Lt. Gov.David Dewhurst, U.S. Sen. TedCruz, governor-elect Greg Ab-bott, lieutenant governor-electDan Patrick and Texas Su-preme Court Justice Don Wil-lett, family and friendspresent for the Senate Cham-ber ceremony.

Paxton, a McKinney Repub-lican who served as a statesenator from 2012 to 2014 andas a member of the TexasHouse from 2002 to 2012, suc-

The Highlands Star Founded 1955The Crosby Courier Founded 1958

Consolidated with the Star 1961SERVING HIGHLANDS, CROSBY, HUFFMANAND NORTHEAST HARRIS COUNTY, TEXAS

Editor & Publisher .......................................Gilbert HoffmanAssociate Publisher ............................. Mei-Ing Liu HoffmanAssoc. Editor/Advertising Manager ............. Lewis SpearmanAssistant Editor ..................................................Julieta PaitaProduction Manager .................................... Luis HernandezIT Technical Manager ............................... Pedro HernandezAdvertising Representive ...................... Richard HernandezEntered as Periodicals Class at Highlands Post Office, Highlands, TX 77562. Under the Act ofCongress of March 3, 1879. Published 50 weeks per year, on Thursday, by Grafikpress Corp.,5906 Star Lane, Houston, TX 77057. Opinions in this paper are those of the authors, and notnecessarily this newspaper’s. Any erroneous statement which may appear will be corrected whenbrought to the attention of the publisher. Liability for errors is limited to the reprinting of thecorrected version. Submissions are encouraged, in person, by mail, by Fax, or by email, tografikstar@aol.com.

GRAFIKPRESS is publisher of community newspapers, including Highlands STAR-Crosby COURIER;Barbers Hill Dayton PRESS; Northeast NEWS; North Forest NEWS, North Channel STAR. Combinedcirculation of these newspapers exceeds 50,000, Readership exceeds 110,000 according to in-dustry standards. We also print dozens of school, ethnic, and government publications on con-tract. Call for information to 713-977-2555.

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STATE CAPITALHIGHLIGHTS

By Ed Sterling

✯

Proposal would put contractsunder increased scrutiny

ceeds governor-elect Abbott asthe state’s chief law enforce-ment officer.

“We must be vigilant andstand our ground, guardingagainst the complacency thatcould erode everything thatwe’ve worked so hard to build,”Paxton said after taking theoath of office. “We will remainsteadfast in our dedication toprinciples and values thathave made Texas great.”

Ag chief Miller takesoath

Sid Miller of Stephenvillewas sworn in as Texas’ 12thcommissioner of agriculturebefore a crowd of family,friends, supporters and col-leagues during a ceremony atthe Capitol on Jan. 5.

Gov. Perry, who served asagriculture commissionerfrom 1991-1999, administeredthe oath. Present were Lt. Gov.Dewhurst, lieutenant gover-nor-elect Patrick, three formerTexas agriculture commission-ers, several legislators andother state officeholders.

“Agriculture touches thelives of every man, woman andchild in Texas more times aday than any other industry,”Miller said. “It doesn’t matterwhether you live on a farm inHockley County or in the sub-urbs of Houston. Life doesn’twork without agriculture.”

Miller, a cattle rancher,farmer and owner/operator ofa commercial nursery busi-ness, previously served sixterms as member of the TexasHouse of Representatives.

3 races require runoffsSpecial elections were con-

ducted Jan. 6 for one stateSenate seat and two stateHouse seats. No candidate re-ceived more than 50 percent ofthe vote in any of the contests,

so runoffs will be held in thenear future between the toptwo vote-getters in each elec-tion.

In Bexar County, State Rep.Trey Martinez Fischer, a Dem-ocrat, received 43 percent ofthe vote in a five-candidaterace to fill the Senate District26 seat vacated by Leticia Vande Putte. State Rep. Jose Me-nendez, also a Democrat,placed second, receiving 25percent of the vote. The win-ner of the runoff will finish outthe remainder of Van dePutte’s four-year term, whichexpires in 2017.

In five-way race to succeedTim Kleinschmidt as the staterepresentative for House Dis-trict 17 the top two vote-get-ters were Republicans JohnCyrier, who received 46 per-cent of the vote, and BrentGolemon, who received 26 per-cent. The district includes Bas-trop, Caldwell, Gonzales,Karnes and Lee counties.Kleinschmidt resigned fromthe House in November to ac-cept a position as generalcounsel for the Texas Depart-ment of Agriculture.

Six candidates competed inthe special election to succeedstate Rep. Mike Villarreal inthe San Antonio House Dis-trict 123 seat. Democrat DiegoBernal received 47 percent ofthe special election vote and inthe runoff will face RepublicanNunzio Previtera who received21 percent. Villarreal, like Vande Putte, is a candidate formayor of San Antonio.

By Matilda Charles

Whether you plan to stayin your home forever or sellit and move to smaller ac-commodations, getting ridof clutter can make your lifeeasier and safer.

Here are a few very goodreasons to declutter:

• Fewer opportunities totrip and fall. Consider whathappens when a senior fallsand breaks a bone: hospital,rehab and the question ofwhere to go afterward. Canthe senior go home and liveindependent ly again?Sometimes the answer isno.

• Organizing makesthings easier to find.

• Clutter can be danger-ous. If emergency serviceshave to come to your house,will they be able to get toyou? Or are pathways inrooms too narrow? Taken toan extreme, holding on totoo many possessions canbe called hoarding, andsometimes social serviceswill step in to deal with it.Your best bet is to declut-ter long before it gets tothat point.

Here are some ideas toget you started:

• Magazines and news-papers: Allow yourselfthree of each. When afourth monthly magazineor daily paper arrives,throw out the oldest one inthe stack.

• Keep incoming bills orcorrespondence in one spot,perhaps a basket or folderon the dining-room table,until you write checks orreply.

• Instead of viewing it asan overwhelming task,work on decluttering for anhour a day. Sort clothes youdon’t wear anymore, tacklestacks of paperwork, makea list of items to give awayor donate, such as memora-bilia, books or tools. Thenarrange for pickup of yourdonated items.

• If things have accumu-lated on the floor, startthere.

• Ask for help if you needassistance with lifting orhauling things away.

Decluttering is a process.Expec t t o have t o gothrough things more thanonce before you reach yourgoal.

Matilda Charles regretsthat she cannot personallyanswer reader questions,but will incorporate theminto her column wheneverpossible. Send email tocolumnreply2@gmail.com.

GettingRid ofClutter

www.facebook.com/StarCourier

(NAPSI)—According to arecent Nielsen report, ifyou’re like most Americans,you spend 11 hours a daywith electronic media. Fort e e n a g e r s a n d y o u n gadults, the numbers arelikely even higher. Datafrom Pew Research indicatethat mobile Internet accessis even more commonamong American teensthan adults.

People are increasinglyconnected digitally—andit’s altering the way we live.As a report published bythe University of Michiganputs it, “The fabric of realcommunities in Americanlife is slowly being rebuiltwith virtual threads in on-line communities. Today,our individual identitiesexist within two types ofcommunities—the physicaland the virtual. Our desirefor connection sets up ourmedia experiences in to-day’s world as proxies for‘community,’ providing thedepth of experience and in-terpersonal connections wecrave.”

The United States De-partment of State says,however, “Technologies canfacilitate social change, butnot create it. People are stillin the driver’s seat.”

Exploring the effects oftechnology and how fami-lies and individuals dealwith them is an insightfulnew movie called “Men,Women & Children.”

Bridging TheTech Divide

Academy Award-nomi-nated director Jason Reit-man’s film follows a groupof teenagers and their par-ents as they attempt to nav-igate their relationships inan era of social media andonline exchanges. A provoc-ative snapshot of modernlife, “Men, Women & Chil-dren” holds a mirror up toour society and posesthought-provoking ques-tions about whether tech-nology is indeed bringingthe world closer together ordriving us farther apart.

“This film clearly reflectsthe complexities of our re-lationship to technologyand how that affects our re-lationships with one anoth-er,” said Dr. Larry Rosen,an internationally recog-nized expert in the psychol-ogy of technology andauthor of five books on thetopic, including his latest,“iDisorder: UnderstandingOur Obsession With Tech-nology and Overcoming ItsHold On Us.” “As the filmshows, technology can, infact, help bring people to-gether. But by not choosingto miss out on their virtualsocial world, many peopleare missing out on the realsocial world that’s in frontof them.”

“Men, Women & Chil-dren” is available on Blu-r a y , D i g i t a l a n d O nDemand and stars JenniferGarner, Adam Sandler,Ansel Elgort, Kaitlyn Dev-er and Rosemarie DeWitt.

OPINION✯

Page 5WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 14, 2015 NORTH CHANNEL✯STAR

LIFESTYLE

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Pride only breeds quarrels, butwidom is found in those whotake advice. Proverbs 13:25

All of them were filled with theHoly Spirit and began to speak

in other tongues as the Spiritenabled them. Acts 2:4

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OBITUARIES✯

✯LITTLE

BIDDY BITSBy Danny Biddy

Glen Edwin Muldrow, age80, of Highlands went home tohis Heavenly Father Saturday,the 10th of January, 2015, athis home surrounded by fami-ly. He was born on the 9th ofAugust, 1934, in Houston, Tex-as to Hynes Stockton Muldrowand Blanche Denny Muldrow.

Glen graduated from LeeHigh school in 1952, he served2 years in the Army and was aMaster plumber at M.S. YoungPlumbing for 33 years, oftenvolunteering his plumbingskills for community organiza-tions and those in need. Glenmarried Frances Arlene Irwinin 1953 and enjoyed 62 yearsof marriage. They had 3 chil-dren, 18 grandchildren, and 5great-grandchildren. Glen was

HUMBLE 3/2/2. Living area open to kitchen& dining. Nice open concept, great forentertaining! Spacious master bed & bathw/large closet. Fully fenced backyard w/patio. Call Terry.

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Viola Risinger (Hablo Español)832-641-8175

14026 FM 2100 • Crosby

ADORABLE 3/2 home located in LakewoodHeights. Well Maintained, open plan. Oversized lot w/fenced backyard. Located oncul-de-sac street within walking distance toschools. $135,000. Call Terry.

1.5 story located in Indian Shores has beenrecently remodeled. Great open plan w/soaringceilings. 3 bdrms down, loft up. Kitchen w/custom cabinets, granite counters. Oversizedpatio. Call Terry.

BEAUTIFUL 2 STORY w/many upgrades.Located on approx 1 acre. Great open planw/soaring ceil ings, gourmet kitchen,spacious master suite, media room. Locatedin Saddle Creek Farms. Call Terry.

Mandy Darr713-248-7395

Penny Adams713-203-2089

Terry Haydon281-455-8595

NEW LISTING! Nice size lot in Huffman ISDready for your new home! No mobiles perdeed restrictions. $13,000 Call Viola.

Amazing Waterfront home on Lake Houston.Open concept kit/living area w/large glasswindows & doors maximizing the view! Somerecent updates. Covered patio, bulkhead w/slip boat dock. Call Terry

Your Neighborhood is in DemandThere is a very high demand for homes in our area right now.

If you are thinking of selling your current home, we would love to talk to you.Rates are still great, making it a great time to purchase a new home.

Either way, we can help! Call for a free assessment of your home’s value.

a loving husband and fatherand was affectionately knownas Pepaw to his grandchildren,great grandchildren, and oth-er young people that lovedhim.

Glen was a faithful visitorof the sick and elderly. He en-joyed gardening, hard physicalwork, 3:00 coffee with LarkinMcKay, Thursday morningbreakfast with close family, lis-tening to his granddaughtersplay the piano, spending timewith great-grandchildren, andtraveling throughout Texasvisiting his out-of-town fami-ly and friends. His loved onesinclude his wife, Frances;daughter Shirley and son-in-law Larry Maddox of NewHome, son Kevin and daugh-ter-in-law Sandra Muldrow ofHighlands, son Gene anddaughter-in-law Becky Muld-row of Highlands; grandchil-dren Emily and Mary Maddoxof Corpus Christi, Amy Bakerand husband Tim of Lubbock,David and Ben Maddox ofLubbock, Sarah Hudson andhusband Patrick of Austin,Bryan Muldrow and wife Jac-quie of Mont Belvieu, Britta-ny Ramsey and husbandRussell of Mont Belvieu, Adamand Nathan Muldrow of Hous-ton, Katie, Stephen, Melanie,Julie, Kristin, Michael andJason Muldrow of Highlands,and Dianna Muldrow of Aus-

tin; great-grandchildrenMeredith and Ellie Hudson,Bennett and Sutton Muldrow,and Easton Ramsey; brotherRobert Muldrow, sisters BettyKing, Ann Tisdale and CarolSmith, and many cousins.

Remembering him will al-ways bring a smile to each ofus. He is preceded in death byhis parents Hynes andBlanche Muldrow and sisterMarie Rawls.

In lieu of flowers, share thegift of your time to visit andcheer an elderly friend, neigh-bor, or widow that you know –perhaps taking a gift of pe-cans, oranges, or somethingfrom your yard or garden, asGlen often did.

For those desiring to makea memorial gift, we suggestHouston Hospice a non-profitwhich provided our familywith compassionate care. Thefamily will receive friendsfrom 5:00-8:00 on Monday,January 12th at Sterling-WhiteFuneral Home. The servicewill be at 10:00A.M., Tuesday,January 13th at First BaptistChurch Highlands, withgraveside service following atSterling-White Cemetery.

God is very gracious, and wehave peace and comfort know-ing that Glen had put his faithin Jesus Christ and is now cel-ebrating eternal life in Heav-en with him.

Crosby Yard of theMonth

The Crosby-Huffman ChambersBeautification Committee would like to

acknowledge and say Thank You to FranksCollision in Crosby for keeping Crosby

Beautiful. It takes a lot of effort to keep up agreat looking facility and the Chamber

appreciates the hardwork and dedication to our Community. Theyare located at 13313 FM 2100 @ Highway 90,or visit their web site at www.frankscr.com, or

give them a call 832.434.4619

Glen EdwinMuldrow

BIBLE TRIVIA1. Is the book of 2 Thessalo-

nians in the Old or New Testa-ment or neither?

2. In Song of Solomon 2:1, theShulamite calls herself twokinds of flowers, the rose andthe ...? Daisy, Lily, Cinnamon,Sage

3. From Titus 1, Paul wrotethat unto the pure all things are“what”? Gold, Righteous, Wor-thy, Pure

4. What archangel is men-tioned by name in the book ofJude? Gabriel, Silas, Michael,Melchizedek

5. In 1 Kings 21, who forbadeNaboth to give his vineyard toAhab? The Lord, Jezebel, Ab-salom, Balaam

6. In Psalm 103:5, what bird’syouth is renewable? Dove, Ea-gle, Raven, Swallow

ANSWERS: 1) New; 2) Lily;3) Pure; 4) Michael; 5) The Lord;6) Eagle

House CleaningMy wife and I have sepa-

rate closets. I call mine my

“man cave.” When Dana sug-gested one day that we cleanout my closet I said, “Wellwhat about yours? You havestuff in yours from the 70’s!”

She just looked at me,smiled and said, “Well, youhave DIRT in yours from the70’s.”

In Matthew 7:5 Jesus said,

“You hypocrite, first take thelog out of your own eye, andthen you will see clearly totake the speck out of yourbrother’s eye.”

Danny R. Biddy, Pastor ofthe Church on Old River since1977.www.oldriverbaptist.com

Precinct2Gether celebrates 40 yearsPrecinct2Gether is celebrating 40 years at Crosby Community Center at leftdepicted is the Staff with their annual Christmas Holiday Decorations “A WinterWonderland.”Crosby Community Center is located at 409 Hare Road, Crosby 77532. Officehours are Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. For more informationregarding classes or other Center programs please call (281) 462-0543.

NORTH CHANNEL✯STARPage 6 WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 14, 2015

CLUBS, ORGANIZATIONS

North Shore Rotary donates to CHS JROTCThe North Shore Rotary Club recently presented the Channelview High School Army JROTC with a $2,000donation. CHS Principal Cindi Ollis and the JROTC cadets are shown accepting the donation from RotaryPresident Dr. Allatia Harris.

Over the holiday break, the Channelview Elles participated in helping the Houston Food Bank packagefood for the hungry in Houston. The Elles were humbled and excited to give back to the communitythrough their service. Students that represented Channelview High School were Julissa Aleman, KierraBoyer-Young, Kenya Brooks, Rykea Brooks, Alexis Bryant, Keyona Carpenter, Adryanne Coleman, TiffanyConrad, Adriana Daniels, Tyzae Gaines, Kennedy Garrison, Kennedi Herderson, Tearlysa Johnson, AshleyJones, Keondria Matthews, Sonserae Matthews, Chelsea Page, Brea Richardson, Breah Rogers, RavenScott, Phillia Starghill, Kamryn Webb, Sharde Willis, Cayce Winnfield and Adeana Young. Sponsors for thegroup are La Kwanta N. Wheelock and Dorcassia Richard-Lewis.

ASK DIAMOND JIM

Channelview Elles volunteerat Houston Food Bank

Rep. AnaHernandez’sstatement on thePresident’sproposal forCommunity CollegeAffordabilityAust in, TX –

January 9, 2015- “Today, theP r e s i d e n tproposed aplan that wouldinvest in the potential of youngAmericans and entrust them withthe economic future of ournat ion . By work ing w i thTennessee Governor Bill Haslamon a national proposal to makecommunity college affordable fora new generation of students, wewould not only create anopportunity ladder that wouldhelp fulfill the promise of theAmerican Dream, but also give theUnited States a distinct skillsadvantage in an increasinglycompetitive global labor market.

Texas is a national leader in manykey industries- import/export,energy p roduct ion , andhea l thcare . I t f inds i t se l fincreasingly competitive in high-skilled sectors such as softwaredevelopment and research. TheHouston metropolitan area is anexus for each of these keyindustries, and the communities Irepresent have been blessed bythe increase of good-paying jobstied to technical career paths inour region. Whether a student isseeking a maritime certification towork at the Port of Houston or isstart ing an academic pathtowards a master’s degree inpet ro leum eng ineer ing ,community colleges open doorswhich may be unavailable forsome s tudents . Mak ingcommunity colleges an affordableoption to all not only helps fillcritical industry needs, butdelivers on our promise of Texasas a land of opportunity. As the President further details hispolicy proposal this month in hisState of the Union Address, I lookforward to working proactivelywith my col leagues in theLegislature to build on Texas’scommi tment to enhanceworkforce development andeconomic growth.”

Garnet, the birthstone forJanuary, signifies eternalfriendship and trust and is theperfect gift for a friend. Gar-net, derived from the wordgranatum, means seed, and iscalled so because of the gem-stone’s resemblance to a pome-granate seed. References tothe gemstone dates back to3100 B.C., when the Egyp-tians used garnets as inlaysjewelry. Garnet is the name ofa group of minerals that comesin a rainbow of colors, from thedeep red of the pyrope garnet

Diamond Jim...Whatis the Januarybirthstone?

to the vibrant green of tsavor-ites. Today, the most impor-tant sources for garnet areAfrica, Sri Lanka, and India.

Diamond Jim is a diamonddealer and precious metalsbroker of NTR Metals.

If you have questions per-taining to jewelry, watches, di-amonds, precious stones,precious metals, and otherquestions related to the jewel-ry industry, email jmills@pineforestjewelry.com.

See more at:www.pineforestjewelry.com.

Page 7WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 14, 2015 NORTH CHANNEL✯STAR

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NOTICE TOCREDITORS

Notice is hereby giventhat Original LettersTestamentary for Dock-et No. 434963 Estate ofJACK W. RUSSELL, De-ceased; In ProbateCourt No. 3, of HarrisCounty, Texas, De-ceased, were issued onDecember 9, 2014

CARLA A. ADCOCK

The residence addressof the administrator is inHarris County, Texas.The mailing address is:

c/o Weston Cotten5223 Garth Rd.

Baytown, TX 77521

All persons havingclaims against thisEstate which is current-ly being administeredare required to presentthem within the time andin the manner pre-scribed by law.Dated this January 13,2015

by WESTON COTTEN Attorney for the Estate

LEGAL NOTICE

NORTH CHANNEL✯STARPage 8 WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 14, 2015

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Waste Pits meeting eyes “Bring the Money Back”

Harris County attorney Rock Owen, and Environmental activist JackieYoung, made presentations and answered questions at thecommunity meeting.

Sam Sledge, standing, and Bud Hall, seated at left, made suggestionsand asked questions regarding the disposition of the $29.2 millionproceeds from the fines levied at the trial.

HIGHLANDS – Concernedresidents of this town met onTuesday evening at the Com-munity Center, to hear an up-date on the trial of allegedpolluters in the San Jacintoriver, that have endangeredthe health and economy of thetownspeople.

Making presentations wereHarris County attorney RockOwen, and Environmental ac-tivist Jackie Young, represent-ing TexansTogether and SanJacinto River Coalition.

Owen had been the lead at-torney at the two month trialthat ended in November, withthe result that $29.2 milliondollars in fines were assessedby the Harris County courtagainst Waste Managementand its predecessor disposalcompany, McGinnis. Thesecompanies settled with thecounty by agreement. Howev-er, Owen said that the thirddefendant company, Interna-tional Paper, was acquitted bya jury on a 10-2 vote of any re-sponsibility for the pollution.Owen said the County is plan-ning to appeal this decision,because many facts were ex-cluded from the deliberationsby the presiding Judge Caro-line Baker.

Owen and County AttorneyVince Ryan have said that theproceeds, $29.2 million, will besplit between the legal fees,the state general fund, and the

county general fund. Howev-er, the purpose of this meet-ing was to get public input onsuggestions for a better use forthe monies, with the idea thatcommissioners court, and per-haps the state, would returnthe monies to the communityif worth while projects couldbe proposed. At present, theCounty Commissioners havediscretion on how the moneyis used for their share.

A number of suggestionswere made by the audienceand some specialists that werepresent. These included:

1. Land conservation on theriverfront, a set-aside to buff-er further pollution problemareas;

2. Water supply to High-

lands, from a more trustedsource such as the City ofHouston;

3. Dissemination of healthinformation, warnings, andeducational outreach regard-ing the dangers of the pollu-tion in the river;

4. Remediation of other ar-eas in addition to the knownwaste pits;

5. Provide sell testing andmonitoring of private wells,which cannot now be paid forby public monies;

6. Water supply to areasthat now only have wells;

7. Health Surveys, such asa complete epidemiologystudy;

8. Further testing of sedi-

ment and water quality in theriver, over a period of time,and after storms.

Owen pointed out that un-der current law, the countycannot pay expenses of indi-viduals who have sufferedhealth problems or injuries.However, he noted that sever-al private lawsuits were beingpursued with this goal. Henoted that groups have a bet-ter chance than individuals towin this type of lawsuit.

Owen also said that countyattorney Vince Ryan was com-mitted to having the toxic ma-terials removed completely

from the river and the commu-nity. Besides the county law-suit, there is also a federalEPA Superfund Site proce-dure, and private lawsuits stillto be adjudicated, he said.

Owen noted that looking ata larger picture, it is possiblethat the state legislature willtry to limit local authoritiesfrom being able to sue on en-vironmental issues, whichwould not be in the best inter-ests of area citizens.

Owen said that the countyat present has no tools or au-thority to deal with people whoare already sick or hurt by pol-

COMMUNITY NEWS

lution. Only private suits canbring any type of relief orcompensation at the presenttime.

Questioned on how long allof this will take to resolve,Owen said years or longer.The EPA is not planning to is-sue a final decision until Sep-tember 2015. Resident BudHall stated that there is anurgency for a few people thatare already sick, and whohave been “significantlyharmed.”

Municipal water in High-lands is currently piped bythe HCWICD from BaytownArea Water Authority, whichis supplied from the TrinityRiver. However, many homesare on wells, not the watersystem, and may be subject topolluted water in their wells.

Chara Bebee, who has ason Christopher that had can-cer, said “we should never for-get the people here who havesuffered, and were injured ordied.”

Bob Allen, who works forHarris County Pollution Con-trol, told the group that theTexas Health Departmentwas planning a study of thearea, to survey birth defectsand cancer rates. However,this is not a full epidimiologystudy, which would requireadditional funding.

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tween DeFoyd, Colon, andthe bank’s attorney, ShirleyHalas, all parties agreedthat it would be better tohonor the checks and settlethe matter through “the ju-dicial and political process-es.” However, the politicalprocess did not seem to workfor the parties, as the coun-cil meeting on Monday

COUNCIL WALKS,Continued from page 1

turned into a “circus atmo-sphere” according to one of theparticipants. The meeting onlylasted about 12 minutes, be-fore the councilpersons decid-ed that they couldn’t be heardor recognized by the Mayor,and it was fruitless to contin-ue. A large audience, filledmostly with the Mayor’s sup-porters, shouted commentsand tried to speak althoughnot officially recognized.

The bank, Comerica, addedin their comments that they

had “never placed any typeof restraint/hold on any ofthe City’s bank accounts.There should be no disrup-tion to payroll from ourend.”

Councilman Juan Flores,obviously distressed at theevents, said “she’s playingRussion roulette with cityfinances. I think it’s wrong.”

Council will meet againon Tuesday night at 6:00p.m. at city hall, to continueto work on the problem.