Leader1221a

SATURDAY | December 21, 2013 | Vol. 60 | No. 7 | www.theleadernews.com | @heightsleader

Inside Today: Find out what the youngsters are asking of Santa • Page 1B

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THE INDEX.Public Safety 2AHipstrict 3ATopics 4AObituariesCouponsPuzzles 7ASports 5BClassifieds 7B

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For Shepherd Park Terrace resident Annette Wells, preparations for the Christmas holiday started before Hallow-een. First, her son Chris helped her get all of her holiday decorations from the storage facility she rents. Then, the work truly begins.

“I do as much as I can in October with-out being intrusive,” she said. “It’s my fa-vorite season of the year. I love it and I always have.”

The pinnacle of her interior decora-tions is a Christmas village display of

hundreds of houses which she has col-lected over the years from Old Town Spring and Edelweiss Collectibles. She

also blankets the downstairs with various displays. “I go as far as [my husband] will let me.”

Husband, Calvin, takes care of the out-side and said that although it’s the time of year to celebrate the season, the deco-rating gets harder the older he gets.

Gloria Dennis, the civic club president for Shepherd Park Terrace, which in-cludes almost 400 homes, said that in the 1980s, the neighborhood would get bus-es coming through and that “you could hardly get in here.”

Along with Shepherd Park Plaza and

The Gulf Coast Rail District (GCRD) is having preliminary discussions about the implementa-tion of passenger rail transportation in Greater Houston, which would include two potential lines in the Heights and Oak Forest neighbor-hoods.

GCRD, which was created by the City of Hous-ton, Harris County and Fort Bend County under the authority of the state’s transportation code, faces several obstacles.

The most obvious is funding for nine poten-tial commuter rails that would connect to down-town Houston, including one along U.S. Hwy. 290 and another along Texas Hwy. 249.

“There isn’t an agency in this region that has funding (for the project) right now,” Crocker said.

One option that was considered in the past was using existing rail used by freight trains.

But that’s become difficult due to the increase in freight traffic as a result of a strong energy-based economy.

A more viable option would be building adja-cent to the current freight tracks, but that would involve cooperation with the railroad companies, which has been a challenge at times for GCRD.

Finding Right of Ways (ROW) has been a chal-lenge, too, but members of the GCRD’s Passen-ger Rail Committee discussed ways to collaborate with the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), METRO and railroad companies to make passenger rail a reality. Public-private part-nerships are also an option.

GCRD executive director Maureen Crocker said the need for passenger rail is present, and will be amplified when Greater Houston’s popu-lation grows exponentially over the next 20-to-40 years.

There is no campfire, but the members of the Houston Sto-rytellers Guild who trade tales once a month at their story swap maintain just as rapt an audience. Participants do not have to be pro-fessional storytellers – outgoing Guild President and U of H Pro-fessor of Communication Studies Hank Roubicek said that everyone has a good story, it’s just a matter of bringing it out.

“My grandmother Rose was the consummate storyteller,” he said. “She was a Holocaust survivor, and a person of great wit and wisdom. I, like all humans, have always told stories. But it was when I started keeping journals in 1987 I realized all of the episodes worth sharing. The Guild is a group of intelligent, fun, challenging people who be-lieve that human expression isn’t just important, it’s everything.”

On a recent November evening, U of H Downtown student Ka-tie Galloway had Guild members

hooked with the story of why her House of Pies menu was a signifi-cant item in her life. Adjunct U of H Professor Jay Stailey retold a Carl Sandburg story he presented recently at a story telling festival in Ireland. Jim Blake told a morality tale about a dung covered bird.

The stories, just like the people involved in the organization, run the gamut. Blake, who suffered a stroke six years ago, was looking

SPT neighbors won’t let lights dimby Betsy Denson

[email protected]

Howard Johnson, center, is passing along his tips for Christmas decorations to grandsons Chase, left, and Caleb, right. (Photo by Betsy Denson)

Want to see more lights? Take a drive down Donovan Street this week.

Heights storytellers find creativity, companionship through craft

Guild member Tom Yeager tells his story for the group. (Photo by Betsy Denson)

by Betsy [email protected]

Medina’s TriumphClifton student beats cancer,

team pushes him across goal line

Oak Forest resident Michael Me-dina scored the biggest two-point conversion of the season in the Texas Football Association varsity Super Bowl.

And the fans of Medina’s team – the North Houston Oilers – as well as the rival Northwest Tigers, all ap-plauded loudly for this monumen-tal play on Dec. 8 at Delmar-Tusa Stadium.

But this wasn’t any ordinary two-point conversion.

Just three months earlier, Medi-na, the 12-year-old Clifton Middle School sixth grader, had been di-agnosed with a medulloblastoma, a

highly malignant brain tumor.The tumor, which was the size of a

plum, has been removed, and Medi-na’s cancer now is in remission. His mother, Mary, said if the tumor had been removed three months later, it would have been inoperable.

Oilers head coach Steve Ayarza-goitia called Medina’s parents, Mary and Leroy, before the game and told them to bring Michael to the game in uniform and full pads, because he’d be part of the pre-game coin toss.

He was part of the coin toss, but his parents didn’t find out until the fourth quarter that Ayarzagoitia and

see Medina • Page 9A

by Michael [email protected]

Michael Medina beat a rare form of cancer, thanks to therapy and his teammates.

Passenger rail considered for Heights, OF

by Michael [email protected]

Because the freight line traffic

has increased, officials say the

best option may be building new rail lines adjacent to the current ones.

see Stories • Page 9A

see Rail • Page 9A

see Lights • Page 9A

Some will seek RR peace and quiet in 2014

The 34th Street Quiet Zone issue has been well, quiet, since last summer, but neighborhood leaders are plan-ning on moving it forward in 2014.

“Trains are quite intrusive, and for many neighbors from Garden Oaks, to Oak Forest, to Independent Heights, a quiet zone would be a significant improvement to the quality of life in this area,” said Mark Klein, president of Super Neighborhood 12 and the Garden Oaks Civic Club.

A Quiet Zone modifies railroad crossings so trains can pass through without sounding their horns. It puts the gates down before the train arrives and requires that federally approved devices and signage be installed at each crossing to keep motorists and pedestrians safe.

Klein said 34th St. is next on the city’s list of quiet zones to complete, but there’s no money available for it at the time and there may not be until 2015. He said the possibility of a public-private partnership may be one way to accomplish it.

Oak Forest resident Chris Lombardo plans to contact local businesses with hopes of gaining their support for the project.

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See More, Page 7B

Page 2A • The Leader • December 21, 2013 • @heightsleader

DEC. 3Theft 6:40 PM 900-999 DURHAM DR

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TON AVEBurglary 9:50 PM 2300-2399 BRON

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PINEMONT DRTheft 8 PM 400-499 OXFORD STBurglary 7 AM 1300-1399 CORTLANDAssault 8:45 PM 2100-2199 18TH STTheft 6:45 PM 7400-7499 WASHINGTON Theft 5:30 PM 1300-1399 43RD STBurglary 3:45 PM 4000-4099 WATONGA Theft 6 PM 1000-1099 TEMPLE ST

DEC. 11Theft 10:43 AM 1800-1899 YALETheft 12 AM 1400-1499 11TH STRobbery 5:29 PM 800-899 34TH ST

Theft 8 AM 4300-4399 SHEPHERD DRTheft 6 PM 6200-6299 WASHINGTON Theft 7 AM 2500-2599 NORTH LP W SERTheft 12:30 PM 4400-4499 DIRECTORS

ROWTheft 8 PM 1600-1699 BONNER STTheft 7 PM 900-999 12TH STTheft 7 PM 1100-1199 12TH STBurglary 1 PM 1300-1399 FOXWOOD RD

DEC. 12Theft 12 PM 1500-1599 DURHAM DRTheft 10:08 AM 900-999 N. LOOP WTheft 12 PM 2600-2699 BEVIS STRobbery 2:30 PM 4100-4199 MAINAssault 2:26 AM 2600-2699 WHITE

OAK DRTheft 12 AM 5000-5099 KATY FWYTheft 1 PM 1400-1499 LAIRDTheft 6 PM 1000-1099 20TH STTheft 7:30 PM 1500-1599 BEALL STAssault 9:10 PM 1400-1499 NORTH LP

SERTheft 8:15 PM 3000-3099 WHITE OAK Theft 3 PM 1400-1499 SHEPHERD DRTheft 9:11 PM 6500-6599 WASHINGTON Theft 10 AM 2500-2599 NORTH LP WTheft 10:22 PM 1500-1599 WASHING-

TON AVETheft 11:25 PM 1300-1399 CROSSTIM-

BERSTheft 7:30 PM 600-699 DELZ STAssault 12:30 AM 300-399 34TH STTheft 12:15 AM 1700-1799 BEVIS STTheft 12 AM 3000-3099 NORTH LP W

DEC. 13Theft 12:30 PM 2300-2399 SHEPHERD Theft 3 AM 2300-2399 SHEPHERD DRTheft 12:52 PM 900-999 SHEPHERD DRTheft 3:30 AM 1300-1399 STUDEMONTRobbery 10:07 AM 5100-5199 SHEP-

HERD DRRobbery 9:43 AM 3400-3499 MANGUMTheft 10 PM 4300-4399 WATSONTheft 10 PM 1300-1399 23RD STTheft 6:15 PM 4100-4199 WASHINGTON Theft 6 PM 4600-4699 WASHINGTON Theft 4:30 PM 100-199 HEIGHTS BLVDTheft 8:39 PM 6200-6299 WASHINGTON Theft 11 PM 1900-1999 WASHINGTON Theft 11:30 PM 1100-1199 HENDERSON

DEC. 14Theft 2 AM 3400-3499 SHEPHERD DRTheft 9 AM 4100-4199 CENTER STTheft 8:30 AM 2200-2299 NORTH LP

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Neighborhood IceHouse

Chill Toys For Tots/Toy Drive: Bring new unwrapped toys

HOLIDAY PARTYDecember 20th 7pm

Live Music from The Mean 44’sNew Year’s Eve

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December 31, 2013SAVE THE DATE!

Checkout local food Truck Thurs/Friday

Announcing

Ryland HomesIN TOWN

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Homes fromthe $360’s713-301-4702

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David W. Robinson, Michael Kubosh, Brenda Stardig and Zeph Capo were victorious in their re-spective runoff elections last Sat-urday.

For City Council At-Large po-sition 2, Robinson defeated in-cumbent Andrew C. Burks Jr., 51 percent to 49 percent. Robinson, an architect, recently served as the president of the Super Neighbor-hood coalition.

Kubosh, who owns a bail bonds company, defeated Roy Morales, a retired Air Force veteran and former mayoral candidate, 53.3 percent to 46.7 percent, for City Council At-Large position 3.

Stardig, a former council mem-ber, defeated freshman incumbent Helena Brown, 51 to 49 percent.

For Houston Community Col-lege District 1, Capo defeated in-cumbent Yolanda Navarro Flores,

53 percent to 47 percent. Navarro Flores came within two percent-age points of winning the seat last month.

Robinson, Kubosh, Stardig and Capo win runoff elections

Police arrested Rolston Vincent Fromen, 46, at 3:20 p.m. on Dec. 7 in the 700 block of E. 20th St. and charged him with aggra-vated assault with a deadly weapon.

Fromen alleg-edly pointed a gun at a 66-year-old woman, demand-ing she open the door to her vehicle. There were no injuries.

Suspect charged with terroristic threat

Police arrested Nazarus A. Willis and charged him with terroristic threat, a misdemeanor, at 12:30 a.m. Dec. 12 in the

300 block of E. 34th St.Willis, 45, and his 50-year-old wife got

into a verbal argument, and he allegedly grabbed a knife and threatened to kill her with it. At that point, the victim left the residence.

There were no injuries.

Robbery on N. ShepherdA 25-year-old female victim said a

suspect grabbed her, pushed her to the ground and stole her purse at 8:45 p.m. on Dec. 7 in the 4100 block of N. Shepherd. She described the suspect as a black male in his late 40s/early 50s, 5-foot-10 and 230 pounds.

Apartment robberyTwo male victims in their late 20s were

approached by two suspects, described as Hispanic males in their early-to-mid 20s

at 5:30 p.m. on Dec. 11 in the 800 block of W. 34th St.

The suspects, one of whom pointed at gun at the victims, demanded their wallets, and the victims complied. There were no injuries.

Aggravated robbery on Winnie

Albert Ybarra, 25, was arrested and charged with aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon at 2:55 a.m. on Dec. 7 in the 400 block of Winnie.

Ybarra allegedly stole a bicycle owned by a 44-year-old man. He allegedly struck him in one of his legs with a hammer.

The victim was taken to the hospital for treatment.

Shell Station robberyThree suspects robbed a Shell Station,

3301 Pinemont, at 11:25 p.m. on Dec. 10.A 34-year-old male said the suspects

threatened him, damaged property and stole several bottles of perfume and cologne from a display case inside the service station.

The suspects were described as two black males (one in his early to mid 20s, 6-foot, 160 pounds, the other, 6-foot, 180 pounds, early to mid 30s) and one white female (early to mid 30s, 5-foot-7, 150 pounds).

HPD will look at the surveillance tape for evidence.

Fromen charged with assault of 66 year-old woman

FromenYbarra


350 W. 19th St. | Houston 77008

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ull menu available, with additional entrée and dessert

creations from the kitchen of Executive Chef Antoine Ware,

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Y O U R N E I G H B O R H O O D M A R K E T , K I T C H E N A N D B A R

On Friday, Dec. 20 MAX’s Wine Dive will be celebrating National Ugly Sweater Day. When you sport your ugliest holiday sweater you will receive 15 percent off any food purchase and have the chance to win big prizes. The contest begins at 9:30 p.m. with prizes being awarded to fi rst and second place winners.

If your sweater is itchy and you don’t want to wait, make your reservations ahead of time by visiting http://www.maxswinedive.com/ or calling 713-880-8737. MAX’s Wine Dive is located at 4720 Washington Ave.

Christmas Blowout at Rudyard’s British Pub

At 9 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 21., Rudyard’s British Pub will hold the fourth annual Christmas Blowout, featuring Project Grimm, Clouded and and Linus Pauling Quartet.

They will also be holding the second an-nual festivus party at 8 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 28., hosted by Connoisseur’s Club of Smoking and Drinking (CCSD). The band lineup will include Nick Gaitan & The Umbrella Man, Super-Robot-Party, The DeadEnd Cowboys, and Chain Reactor.

The festivities will include the Airing of Grievances, and Feats of Strength where you’ll be competing for bar tabs. Drink specials will be announced the day of the party. Cover is $10 at the door. Rudyard’s British Pub is located at 2010 Waugh Dr. Find more information on Facebook.

Creeks Open on Christmas Day

Cedar Creek, Onion Creek and Canyon Creek will be open on Christmas Day, 5 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 25.

Cedar Creek Café, Bar and Grill has a full bar, over 30 beers on tap and an excellent breakfast, lunch, and dinner menu. There is incredible outdoor seating, a huge patio

and outside bar with several fl at screens to watch the game at 1034 W. 20th St.

Onion Creek is the original trend-setting Heights coff eehouse, bar, and lounge, located at 3106 White Oak Blvd. Canyon Creek is located at 6603 Westcott.

Vintners Own Winery Tasting Room Open

Vintners Own Winery serves award-win-ning wines right in the Houston Heights. Call ahead to reserve your spot, or book space for an intimate setting among the barrels. They hold all sorts of events and adventures, including tours and tastings, weddings, networking events, educational events, pairings, chef dinners, and more.

They are also able to come to your home or venue for wine tastings and share information about wine or wine making. It is a great way for you to bring a great experience to your guests.

Vintners Own also off ers the opportuni-ty to adopt a barrel or have custom labels created for your bottle of wine, which makes for great holiday gifts.

Vintners Own Winery is located at 3482 W. 12th St., Ste. A. For more information, visit http://vintnersown.com, call 713-880-3794 or email [email protected].

Don’t Stop Believin’ Party benefi ting YTAC

The 10th Annual Don’t Stop Believin’ Party will be held from 8 p.m. to 2 a.m. on Saturday, Dec. 21, at Jackson’s Watering Hole. The party will benefi t Young Texans Against Cancer (YTAC), an independent, nonprofi t organization comprised of young men and women who have been aff ected by cancer and are seeking to become more actively involved in the cancer community.

For more information about the Hous-ton Chapter of YTAC, visit http://houston.ytac.org/. Jackson’s Watering Hole is located at 1205 Richmond.

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It’s not that I used to forget the name of one of the best Mexican restaurants in the Heights; it’s just that Leader Eater couldn’t re-member how to say it properly. I could defi nitely get the beginning: Teo. And the ending came easily: huacan. But stringing “Teotihua-can” together always seemed to be a struggle for this Spanish-strug-gling anglophone. In fact, every time I heard someone pronounce the name of the popular Airline Drive Mexican restaurant, all my ears heard was “Christopher Walken.” Yes, the identical syllabic cadence and rhyming namesake of the creepy-eyed fi lm actor best known for his yearns for “more cowbell” is what came to mind when I myself yearned for au-thentic Tex-Mex.

The more I think about it, Teo-tihuacan is really the Christopher Walken of our neighborhood’s Mexican restaurant scene. Walken is never really going to be a lead-ing man in a blockbuster fl ick, just like this indiscreetly located restaurant is never going to be an A-lister like Ninfa’s, Lupe Tor-tilla, El Tiempo and even Span-ish Flower, which overshadows Teotihuacan from just down the street (although our friends on Airline did get a high-profi le nod in Texas Monthly’s 50 Best Mexi-can restaurants a few years ago). In our end of town the restaurant has become a cult classic, much like the characterization of mov-ies on Walken’s acting resume (don’t forget “True Romance”), with a packed dining room and fi lled open-air patio most nights of the week. And every time

Leader Eater has come through Teotihuacan, I’ve never been dis-appointed, which is the same that I say most times about Walken’s performances, no matter the fi lm or show.

And my latest stop by Teoti-huacan brought the same review. I have for years now been bee-lin-ing straight to the menu’s Mixed Plate offerings and have gotten stuck to this varied sampler of Tex-Mex. I have always wanted to make a run at a Teotihuacan Paradilla, the hulking table top version of fajitas that makes even the staunchest carnivore sweat, and the place’s celebrated Snap-per al Cilantro. But this time I instead veered off towards the House Specialties and landed on the Carnitas de Puerco, a pork chop platter with all the fi xins. I was overwhelmed by the size and quality cut of the three ample pieces of carnitas, usually meat designated as less-than-desirable. (My inability to get even a third of the way through the carnitas can be directly attributable to my pre-meat feast on Teotihuacan’s

irresistible verde salsa and their addictive Flameado, aka “the real deal queso.”) The chops were de-livered on a sizzling cast iron fa-jita plate and were sporting a light crusting, mainly around the edges, which gave the meat a charming taste profi le beyond just the fl avor of pork. I could have enjoyed the carnitas on its own but couldn’t resist breaking one of them up for proper positioning along the cen-ter of a warm corn tortilla. The side arms of avocado, sour cream, charro beans and a tangy toma-tillo sauce were piled into the tor-tilla and would have been excep-tional being consumed just like that. But the kicker for this Lead-er Eater-made taco came when a thick strip of the nearly-hardened Monterey Jack cheese from the Flameado joined the party, giving the ensemble of ingredients that last bit of chemistry to make it all work. Come to think of it, that’s what I fi nd myself saying about a certain character actor who al-ways fi nds a way to make a scene that much better.

Review: Teotihuacan a cult classic of authentic Tex-Mex

Teotihuacan1511 Airline Dr.

www.teomexicancafe.com

Starters: $4.99-$10.99Sandwiches and Burgers: $6.99-$35.99

Postres: $2.99-$3.99Kid Friendly: Plenty of high chairs and bouncing booths in Teotihuacan

LE’s Favorite: Carnitas De Puerco Ugly Sweater Day at MAX’s Wine Dive

Fat Cat CreameryFat Cat Creamery has fi nally

opened! And while the cold weather may dilute your desire for ice cream, Fat Cat’s fl avors will probably make you change your mind. Located at 1901 Shepherd St., their menu is centered on local products and seasonal fl avors. Using eggs and dairy from Texas farmers Fat Cat Creamery has developed a de-vout following. The store, their fi rst brick and mortar location opened this past weekend. Fans will still be able to fi nd their favorite fl avors in the Houston area stores that already carry Fat Cat, but should check out their new store front for specialty items and fresh scoops of creamy goodness. The store will offer 10 different fl avors, fi ve classics and fi ve seasonal, as well as novelty items like shakes, sodas and ice-cream sandwiches. Fat Cat will be serving creamy concoctions Sunday through Wednesday un-til 10 p.m., Thursday until 11 p.m. and Friday and Saturday until midnight.

Piatto RistoranteThe Carraba family is open-

ing a third Piatto Ristorante at 1111 Studewood St. The Ital-ian Restaurant will be opening early next year, bringing their traditional Italian menu to the Heights. The menu features ap-petizers like the favorite Aspara-gus Speciali and entrées ranging from pasta, to pizza to seafood. Piatto Ristorante also offers ca-tering services and boxed lunch-es for those on the go or feeding a crowd. There is an extensive

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Leader Nibbles

see Nibbles • Page 8A

Thirsty Explorer is getting ready for New Year’s. Send your events to [email protected]

1308 W. 20th Street, Houston, TX 77008Reservations required for parties of six or more

www.houstoncorkscrew.com713-230-8352


PROUD NEWSPARTNER WITH

THE READER.

This is a great time of year. A song proclaims it the “most wonderful time,” and I don’t know of another

month when radio stations stop what they’re doing and put “Jingle Bell Rock” on an endless loop.

I love this time of year for the same reason many of you do. I love that churches are full. I love my wife’s decora-tive prowess (we have screech owls on our Christmas tree, and they frighten me). I love the smell of douglas fir, the taste of endless chocolates, and I really love that, every year, our newspaper asks youngsters from our schools to send us their letters to Santa.

In today’s edition of the paper, begin-ning on Page 1B, we’ve published most of those letters, and I really hope you’ll take the time to read through them. Of course, if you’re a parent of one of these children, you’ve already completed this exercise. For the rest of you, I really think reading these letters offers something so much more than just a wish list.

Through these short sentences – many of them misspelled – you’ll find the honesty of children that most of us lost a long time ago. You’ll also find touching letters that none of us can answer. And if nothing else, you’ll laugh until your nose

turns red.I pulled out some of my favorites this

year and wanted to share them with you, mainly because it shows the goodness of children.

“Dear Santa,” wrote a young lady named Katia, “I have been nice to others and been good. Can you please bring me a guitar, my brother Caleb an Elf on the shelf and my mom and dad days off.”

It’s easy for the mind to run wild when you read letters like this, but I can see Katia sitting in her classroom, trying to figure out what she wants most this year. At the top of her list is a request that her parents not have to work so much. As a new father, I don’t think I’ll forget that one.

Then there’s Aubrey who asked Santa,

“All I want for Christmas this year is to see the other part of my family. Especially my mom...”

We live in a world of divorce, and though we seem to accept the sanctity of marriage as an option these days, try telling that to Aubrey or Lisa, who wrote the following:

“Dear Santa, I want you to get my mom and dad back together because I miss my dad and I don’t like to go back and forth with my dad. Please, please Santa help me.”

There are so many wonderful single mothers and fathers out there, but it’s hard to argue that having a family is pretty important to children.

Other letters in this year’s batch offered some hope that maybe we are raising a generation of children who care about others.

“Dear Santa,” wrote Kassidi, “I hope when you bring us our presents you are wearing your glasses. I would like a pair of black boots and I would also like for every kid in the world to get a present.”

Nancy, another of our writers, de-cided she didn’t want to write Santa. She wanted to write to all the other children.

“Dear Kids, do not be selfish just be-cause you want presents. Other kids don’t

get presents at all. Do don’t put a lot on your list.”

Good for you, Nancy. If I had to place a wager, I’d bet she’ll contribute to our society one day – even if she doesn’t win the second-grade popularity contest.

And that leads us away from the seri-ous context of some of these letters to the sheer joy of reading others. In what we can only dub the “hilarious” category, we actually have three sub-categories. We have the “beggars,” the “confessioners” and the “boasters.”

From the Boasters, we have Savannah: “Dear Santa Clause, I have been a very good this year as a seven, eight old girl. I’ve done good in class. I’ve been so good that I could get a present right here, right now.”

Good for you, girl. Just don’t be a smarty-pants like Angus: “Dear Santa, I know I’ve already sent a letter to you so this letter is a reminder so you know what I want for Christmas.”

Yeah, we got it, Angus. Go ahead and send a reminder email, just in case.

From the Beggars, Elisa cut to the chase: “Dear Santa, thanks for everything you did for people. Oh and Santa your the best! Santa how is Mrs. Claus? Santa, I’m sorry for being bad. I hope you for-

give me. Oh Santa can you still give me stuff for Christmas. I want fake nails...”

But the best sub-category of all has to be our “Confessioners.” Sam gave us a glimpse into this sort of letter-writer.

“Dear Santa, This year I have been goodish sometimes. I just mess up. I have improved but not that much. This year I want a new bike, new books and a new lego set. I also would like a big rocket that had a control that makes the rocket launch off into the sky. Finally, I want a Samsung tablet. Thank you for keeping me on the good list.”

I don’t know, Sam. Have no idea what the big guy is going to tell you. But I think I know what he’s going to tell Randi.

“I have not been very good at all but, I’m sorry. I have been talking too much in school. For Christmas I would love a new harmonica.”

This from the youngster who can’t stop talking in school? Randi, I think your teachers are placing a quick call to Santa.

These letters are fun to read each year, and I hope you’ll enjoy them as much as I did. As for us grown-ups, I wish you peace, joy and the miracle of Christ dur-ing this wonderful time of the year.

Email [email protected]

JONATHANMCELVY

Publisher

Dear Santa: Please keep Sam on the good list anyway

Historic Struggle – Another opinionDear Editor:When my wife Susan and I purchased our first home

in the area now called the Houston Heights East Historic District in 1976, historic character was pretty low on the list of reasons to be in the Heights. At that time, houses were less expensive in the Heights than in the suburbs and the character of the Heights could be described as anything but “historic”. The area was “red-lined” and only Heights Savings and Marcella Perry would loan money to new homebuyers. Crime was high and schools were rated low.

The first change in direction came in the late 1970s as the “Church’s-Chicken-On-Heights-Boulevard” protest to try to save the “Crown Jewel” of the Heights, Heights Boulevard, from losing its historic character. Susan and I could already begin to see our residential character disappearing before our very eyes. In the meantime, the Heights was designated as a “Multiple Resource Area.” You can still see some of the street signs. It didn’t mean a lot. Mostly, that our area didn’t have enough history left to be completely historic.

Something had to be done or pretty soon there would be no neighborhood left. The first effort, in the 1980s, was to implement deed restrictions. In most new subdivisions in the suburbs, deed restrictions are put in place for the entire subdivision, every house. Since the Heights was older, that was not possible but instead we had to go door-to-door to try to get existing homeowners to sign deed restrictions on their property, one by one. In some parts of the Heights, a significant proportion of the properties became deed restricted but in others it just didn’t happen. The deed restrictions kept the single family use but did little else to keep the existing character.

Just about the time Susan and I thought we were working our way back up to a better neighborhood, a massive 2-story brick mansion was built right next to our little, one-story bungalow. Even though we added on a one-story bedroom and a bathroom, in a manner that today would be considered historically compatible, the scale of the monster next door was just too much and we moved about 2 blocks away. Our daughter went to public schools. We, like many others in the Heights, sent our children to our local public schools because we were committed to improve both the educational standards and the quality of life in the neighborhood.

In the mid 1990s, the builders and developers really came to town, literally. All of the sudden, we were lambasted by non-residential land uses, modern architectural styles, and the demolishing of the one-story bungalows. It was easy. Make an application for demolition, get denied, and just wait 90 days and demolish it anyway, regardless of the condition of the house or what it did to the neighborhood. That’s the key. It’s the neighborhood. It’s the wide streets, the large trees, the sidewalks and the houses set back a little from the street. That’s what makes the “Heights”. It got to the point that there were good bungalows being demolished at the rate of 4 or 5 a WEEK! Some were saved. Yes, they were moved in the dead of night out of the Heights to less “expensive” land. So, there goes the neighborhood.

To help appease the outcry at that time, the City of Houston implemented the Prevailing Lot Size and Prevailing Setback ordinance. Now called the Minimum Lot Size and Minimum Building Line process. This was for the areas of the City that were not 100 percent deed restricted. As the original Heights did not have front building setbacks on the subdivision plat, anything was acceptable. So the new houses got closer and closer to the street and the lots got smaller and smaller, significantly changing the scale and character of the area. So we set about trying to get the minimum lot size and minimum building line established for blocks of homes in the Heights. Again, there were some areas that struggled very hard to get the regulations and there were some areas that it just didn’t happen. And the bungalows kept going away, week by week. We even began to believe that our property values were going to go down because we had lost so much of our character. We were all going to become townhouses like Rice Military. We could see the writing on the wall. Without a major shift in direction, the Heights would become 3 to 4-story townhouses, six feet away from the sidewalk, more apartments and divided lots, trees cut down, in-frastructure overburdened, and green space eliminated; a lot like the edges outside of our historic district look today. That was our destiny.

Then with a new administration at City Hall, we and our neighbors finally began to see a light at the end of the tunnel. “No Means No” became our battle cry in our struggle to reduce the number of demolitions and try to save what little was left of our special neighbor-hood, still like nothing else in the City of Houston. We

all jumped into the trenches and fought for 3 years to get some teeth in the Historic Ordinance, to remove the 90 day waiver. Finally, our struggle began to take hold and we could save what was left with the passage of the new Historic Preservation Ordinance. Mind you this just happened 5 years ago and Rome wasn’t built in a day. But the bottom line was, even with the struggle to understand the compromised ordinance, we just might have a chance and something left for future generations to admire and continue.

Even now, without constant involvement and strug-gles to see that Certificates of Appropriateness are just that, it’s a day-to-day effort. I know. Every month on the 15th day before the monthly Houston Archaeologi-cal and Historical Commission meeting, I request public records to get copies of Certificates of Appropriateness applications that have been submitted for the Houston Heights East Historic District. I review the applications, usually 4 to 8 per month that can total 150 pages of applications, to be informed and make a concerted effort to voice my opinion about the applications. I have even got other homeowners to join me in an ad-hoc Development Review Committee to provide input, from the homeowner’s perspective, about the applications. Again, another struggle. I go to the monthly meet-ings and if I don’t think something is right, I stand up and say so. That’s what it takes ñ a continued struggle and commitment for the last 37 years. It’s not just me. Many other homeowners have helped along the way with the struggle, knocking on doors, talking with their neighbors, showing up at meetings in the evening away from their families. Now that’s a historic struggle!

So, let’s talk about the process. Sure it’s not perfect but I can count on one hand the number of demolitions in the Houston Heights East Historic District in the last 3 years but let’s keep one thing in mind. The total land area for ALL of the historic districts combined in the City of Houston in only about 2 percent of the city. The other 98 percent is not in a historic district. Can’t we keep just 2 percent? Now mind you in some cities being in a historic district means you can’t even change the color of paint much less add on to your existing house. I don’t subscribe to that, but I do want to try to save the street view and the scale along the street. That is what makes up most of our character. So the location of second-story additions related to the distance to the street is important. Without some kind of setback for the new second-story, the street scale is destroyed. I, too, believe that the new move-in generation needs a little additional room, more than the 1500 square feet in my first Heights house, but some of the new additions in our historic district are approaching 6000 square feet total building area, including the original 1500 square foot bungalow. That’s what is driving the out-of-scale size of the new construction. What can you do with 6000 square feet? Why does it have to be in the 2 percent of Houston?

Yes, it is a struggle, a historic struggle. I am certainly empathetic with Scott and Brie Kelman and all of the struggles they have gone through to get what they want. There is no question that the current process can be streamlined and clarity improved. It takes time and effort. But think of the struggle we long-time Heights homeowners have gone through just to keep what we have to get it to this point. Would there be any reason why the Kelmans would work so hard if there was no protected historic district? To quote the late Nelson Mandela, “The Struggle Continues”.

That is the rest of the story.J. Kent Marsh

Dear Editor:Ms. Powell is a realtor in the Heights and formed

a group called Responsible Historic Preservation for Houston with two other Heights area realtors. They did

not form a group to inform the public about the changes to the ordinance. They formed a group dedicated to opposing the changes to the ordinance. They have championed a lawsuit seeking to have a judge set aside the historic ordinance. They circulated a petition that asks the City to remove homeowners from historic districts. They will always deny it as a motivation, but the simple fact is that the real estate business is way more profitable without the historic ordinance than with it. Before the ordinance was changed to make HAHC denials binding, builders just had to wait 90 days to demo historic buildings. The Heights was losing dozens of historic buildings every year and some parts of the neighborhood were no longer recognizable as being the Heights anymore. it is many times more profitable to tear down a bungalow and build a lot line 4400 square foot replacement than to try to renovate and work through the regulatory process with HAHC.

HAHC has had the uneviable task of balancing the interests of builders/realtors who want to fill every lot in the Heights with as much square footage as possible with those of residents who want to preserve the char-acter of the historic architecture of the neighborhood. Initially, HAHC was too lenient and let what Swamplot readers call “humper houses” proliferate in the Heights. Recently, HAHC has tried to stand up for concerns of resi-dents about these out of scale additions. The process has been difficult as every time the HAHC takes a stand, the long time opponents try to turn it into a reason to scrap the ordinance. People just looking to do an addition are getting caught in the crossfire.

But, the process before HAHC can be improved and does not need to be eliminated as so many with an economic interest in real estate in the Heights would love to see happen.

And to set the record straight, I am toasty and warm with my thermostat set at 72 degrees in my 1920 bungalow. The original windows can be retrofitted with insulation. The Sash Guy has been doing that for Heights residents for years. Foam can be pumped in between the shiplap to add insulation and can be sprayed under the building to do the same. Wood siding just needs to be painted and inspected for termites. Hundreds of homes in the Heights have maintained the original wood siding for coming up on 100 years.

Name withheld

Leave the mascots aloneDear Editor:What a shame that this is seen as cultural differ-

ences. Once again the vocal minority (o’ I’m sorry this might offend someone) Let’s stop using that word also. I experienced this change from the Stingarees to the Vipors and the school pride was lost since you cannot remove what is in past and present student’s minds. How about let’s change the Cowboys since they are seen as a cultural icon. You would think the American Indian would be offended by the name Cowboys more so that Indians. What about the Pirates, Vikings, and many oth-ers. I guess that if we consider all equal, as we should, then when we change these schools let’s also change all names that depict any sort of group or icon. I do not see the name say Native Indians, so is anyone from India offended? Now let’s take Warriors. This term has been around way before the American indian. The one that battles, say the US military are called Warriors. Roman soldiers called Warriors, and on and on. I am tired of being silent, so called majority. There is a term that was used for years on the radio that we all need to listen to. STAND UP AMERICA I am sorry that there are groups that are now using this STAND UP AMERICA.

It is just a name and is in all cases considered by the school’s population and all others as a sign of respect and pride. SCHOOL PRIDE. Leave the mascot and names alone.

CW

THE RESTAURANT – One of the joys of this booming economy is being able to go out to eat more often. Eh? You say the economy is still in the pits? Then what are all these people doing in this eatery? The place is so packed that I’m making dinner reservations for Easter. Before eating, let’s all say grace and give thanks for fracking.

Texans love to eat out, especially in our larger cities. Indeed, a Za-gat Survey restaurant guide, which is the bible for us gourmets (pro-nounced gore-METS), says Hous-tonians eat out more than residents of any other American city: 4 times a week, Dallas is close behind with 3.6 per week, Los Angeles comes in at 3.4 times per week and New York City at 3.0.

It used not to be this way. Grow-ing up in Texas, the best cooking was at home because there weren’t many restaurants in the Lone Starve State and even fewer good ones. All that changed when BYOB was replaced with liquor-by-the-drink. In quick order restaurants put in bars, their profits went up, more places opened and eventu-ally we have what we have today: A lot of really good places to eat. Here, for example, is Le Choke & Puke, a fine restaurant with good food, fine service and, uh, would you please speak louder? I can’t hear a word you’re saying.

This leads to my first suggestion to restaurateurs: Keep it quiet, not library or funeral home quiet, but silent enough so guests can com-municate without having to shout or pass notes written on napkins. One Saturday night I made the mistake of going to dinner with some friends at a close and splen-did restaurant. I finally had to go outside – no kidding – to rest my ears. When you have to point to items on the menu because the waiter can’t hear you, that’s loud. Remember Rule Number One around here is don’t complain about a problem unless you have a solution. No, wait. That’s Rule Number Two. Rule Number One is what’s in it for us? Back to Num-ber Two. So here’s my solution. Just as there are state and local health standards for eateries, each one should be required to have a decibel register available on-line. Before making dinner plans, go on-line and check the location, prices, roach ratio and the cur-rent or average decibel level. That would save you a lot of shouting.

In addition, the establishment should have on its website the cur-rent or average temperature. Have you ever reached for a glass of water and it sticks to your hand? That’s cold. As we have discussed before, the cooks in the kitchen and the racing, overworked wait-ers and the busboys who use the same wet rag to wipe off every table in the room, it is they who set the thermostat at 35 degrees. They’re hot and sweaty while the customers are getting frostbit. So-lution: see above about the web site. Check the temperature.

It is very European to bring pet dogs into restaurants. This ain’t Paris. You can tell because our waiters aren’t surly. Some res-taurants are now allowing dogs into their establishments. Solu-tion: Some restaurants don’t get my business. Of course, seeing-eye dogs have long been allowed almost everywhere, but I have a question: These businesses have a

sign by the front door: “No dogs allowed except seeing-eye dogs.” Exactly who is that sign for?

Few restaurants in Texas allow smoking inside, so that is a moot point. The change was gradual. In olden days virtually every eat-ery allowed smoking. Go back far enough and they had spit-toons. But slowly the health police moved in to prohibit smoking in the dining room while allowing it in the adjacent bar. Then someone pointed out that having smoking and non-smoking sections was like having a swimming pool with peeing and non-peeing sections. Today most dining establishments won’t even allow guests to smoke within 20 feet of the front door. That’s the solution.

At this point you are asking why we should care about our eating establishments. Well, as noted ear-lier, Texans eat out a lot. Accord-ing to the Texas Restaurant Asso-ciation (TRA), in 2011 there were 39,296 eating and drinking places in Texas. This year the TRA proj-ects they will have $40.8 billion in sales and account for 828,500 di-rect jobs, add wholesalers, bounc-ers, etc., it comes to 1,074,200 jobs – 10 percent of the state’s work-force.

One final suggestion. Wait. Three kids are having a food fight at the next table. Now they are running through the restaurant shouting, “I found a rusty nail in my escargot! Get my lawyer!” A nice segue. Eli Gau and Lillian Maliti were at an Applebee’s in Katy dining with their sons ages 3 and 1. The manager warned Gau, and finally called the Harris Coun-ty Sheriff ’s Office because, he said, the children were “overly active,” which probably means they were loud brats. Gau admitted to a local TV reporter that the two children were high-energy, probably no more than your average Visigoth. It gets better. Gau then called the police to say he felt threatened. A deputy arrived and only gave the family a citizen’s information card, whatever that is. I would arrest the parents.

None of this would have hap-pened if, instead, the family had gone to La Fisheria in Houston because they couldn’t get in. Kids under nine are banned after 7 p.m. The move landed on ABC News. At McDaina’s in Monroeville, Penn., kids under six are not allowed. A new sushi restaurant in Del Ray, Va., rules “no patrons under 18,” and the manager says business is booming. Luigi in Hicksville, New York, has been banning kids under 14 since it opened almost 20 years ago. You see the solution to this problem.

Where was I? Oh, yes. Waiter, what’s shark’s bladder salad? Huh? Sorry, I can’t hear you.

Ashby dishes it out at [email protected]

Please make decibel levelsmandatory at restaurants

ASH BYAT

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All is calm, all is bright (finally)

It’s been three months since my humans did the unthinkable: brought a dog into MY home. While it hasn’t been all catnip and Fancy Feast, we’ve done surprisingly well. There were several things that my humans did, that I think contributed to our assimilation and I wanted to share them here with you, in case you’re faced with a similar dog/cat introduction.

First, my humans made sure that my feline housemate (Simon) and I had safe places to go to escape from the dog. They used baby gates to section off parts of the house, where we could flee and rest

comfortably, knowing that the giant, slobbering beast wasn’t waiting to pounce at any given moment. Now, all of the partitions are gone and we’re all peace-fully co-habitating--it’s like a Christmas miracle.

Secondly, the dog sleeps in a crate at night and stays in the crate when no one is at home. This makes Simon and myself feel safer, knowing that she’s unable to get to us when the humans aren’t around to protect us. Also, we’ve fully enjoyed sauntering back and forth, flicking our tails at her, while she’s confined to the crate (and also while we’re doing such naughty things as jumping onto the coun-ters and nibbling on the cheese that some bonehead human left on the table.)

Third, the humans make sure to give Simon and me our own special cuddles and attention. Simon, the sell-out, has already begun snuggling up with the beast at times, but I don’t foresee myself ever sinking that low. I make sure to jump into a human lap when I’m feeling needy and they’ve been good about indulging me my cats-only cuddle time.

The most important thing to remember is that, aggressive cats can hurt a dog badly (hello, claws!) and, obviously, a dog can hurt a cat rather easily--whether intentionally, or in play. Until you’re sure that everyone can get along nicely, please keep the animals separated unless you’re

right there with them. With a little pa-tience and some supervision, your critters can make peace and live in harmony in no time at all.

Don your ugly duds for aniMeals on Wheels

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est holiday sweater? Join the good folks at The Boneyard (8150 Washington Ave.) on Thursday, Dec. 19 from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. for their Winter Bash. Bring your pups, come play in the snow and support aniMeals on Wheels. Go to: https://www.facebook.com/boneyardhouston to learn more.


Ratliff with Grace, Mared Oro-zco with daughter Sofia; Steve Sims; Stephanie Koteras; Tanya Makany-Rivera; Jennifer Hess; Charlsie Idol; Darla Smith; Elys-sa Horvath; and Brenda Thomp-son. Mark your calendars for next year’s event on Dec. 13, 2014.

Birthday in Vegas for the Patels

What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas ... some of the time! Courtney and Sne Patel, owners of area real estate firm Houston City Living, enjoyed a magical holiday getaway with dear friends Daniel and Peggy Weigand in Las Vegas recently. While the trip was planned to celebrate Dan and

Peggy’s birthdays (both on Dec. 15), both couples felt like kids in a candy store, had a blast and filled every minute with adventurous fun. The two couples stayed at the Venetian, walked the strip, saw the Mirage volcano and the breathtak-ing Bellagio fountains, met Mi-chael Jackson (wink), and toured the Hoover Dam. Courtney men-tioned that the sight of the mighty Hoover Dam made their hearts fill with pride to be Americans. One of the best memories of the trip is the evening Courtney and Dan belted out 1980’s band Journey’s song Don’t Stop Believin’ as they strolled up and down the strip.

Garden Oaks Montessori Mag-net School welcomed Santa Claus at its monthly PTO meeting one very chilly evening last week. Principal Lindsey Pollock, PTO President Devin Olivares-Reed and PTO Board Member Cheryl McCosh graciously welcomed parents and students. After enjoy-ing some tasty milk and cookies, a flood of children, starting with the youngest first, calmly lined up and each took his or her turn sitting on Santa’s lap and answering his ques-tions, “Have you been good? Well, what do you want for Christmas?” Numerous wide grins indicated a good time was had by all.

OFHA Breakfast with SantaThe Oak Forest Homeowners’

Association’s Breakfast with Santa was a big hit this past Saturday with 100 families participating. Neighbors from Oak Forest, Can-dlelight, Garden Oaks and a few other neighborhoods came to visit Santa and enjoyed out of this world breakfast tacos from Frida’s Mexi-can Restaurant, meltingly delicious donuts from Shipley’s Donuts, and coffee from The Brew House. San-ta was a jovial character with twin-

kly blue eyes who mysteriously re-sembled an area daddy and house builder who shall remain name-less. Santa’s Secret Service Agent, a handsome and dashing nutcracker driving a radical silver and blue vehicle named “Tough” (which is a cross between a Gator, a jeep and an armored tank) was none other than Johnny “Big Beer” Rojas. The OFHA would like to thank the vol-unteers who made the event possi-ble: Lucy Fisher Cain, Greg Cain, Nora Loera, Tracy Brandon, Car-oline Altomare, Abby Villarreal, Lucia Valdez, Justin Gordon, and Johnny Rojas. The OFHA would also like to thank all the sponsors who made Breakfast With Santa a success: Diana Davila with Fri-da’s Mexican Kitchen, The Brew House, Shipley’s Donuts, HEB and City Councilwoman Ellen Cohen. Special thanks to Frida’s for providing extra breakfast tacos when the first 150 were gone! A few of your neighbors in search of the jolly old elf were: Anna Gor-don, Terry Webb; Ginny Ledwell and her little son Joshua; Cath-erine deBlieux and her two chil-dren Sofia and Magnus; Adella and Jesse Flores along with their children Lucas, Matthew, Isa-bella, and Julia; Zara Labardini with Krista; Crystal and Adam

TEXAS COMMISSION ON ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY

NOTICE OF APPLICATION AND PRELIMINARY DECISIONFOR AN AIR QUALITY PERMIT

PERMIT NUMBER: 19851

APPLICATION AND PRELIMINARY DECISION. International Paint LLC, 6001 Antoine Drive, Houston, Texas 77091-3503, has applied to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) for an amendment to Air Quality Permit Number 19851, which would authorize modification to the paint manu-facturing facility located at 6001 Antoine Drive, Houston, Harris County, Texas 77091. This application was submitted to the TCEQ on September 25, 2013. The existing facility will emit the following contaminants: organic compounds, hazardous air pollutants, and particulate matter including particulate matter with diam-eters of 10 microns or less and 2.5 microns or less.

The executive director has completed the technical review of the application and prepared a draft permit which, if approved, would establish the conditions under which the facility must operate. The executive director has made a preliminary decision to issue the permit because it meets all rules and regulations. The permit application, executive director’s preliminary decision, and draft permit will be available for viewing and copying at the TCEQ central office, the TCEQ Houston regional office, and the Collier Regional Library, 6200 Pinemont Drive, Houston, Harris County, Texas, beginning the first day of publication of this notice. The facility’s compliance file, if any exists, is available for public review at the TCEQ Houston Regional Office, 5425 Polk Street, Suite H, Houston, Texas.

PUBLIC COMMENT/PUBLIC MEETING. You may submit public comments or request a public meet-ing about this application. The purpose of a public meeting is to provide the opportunity to submit comment or to ask questions about the application. The TCEQ will hold a public meeting if the executive director determines that there is a significant degree of public interest in the application or if requested by a local legislator. A public meeting is not a contested case hearing. You may submit additional written public comments within 30 days of the date of newspaper publication of this notice in the manner set forth in the AGENCY CONTACTS AND INFORMATION paragraph below.

RESPONSE TO COMMENTS AND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR ACTION. After the deadline for public comments, the executive director will consider the comments and prepare a response to all relevant and ma-terial or significant public comments. Because no timely hearing requests have been received, after prepar-ing the response to comments, the executive director may then issue final approval of the application. The response to comments, along with the executive director’s decision on the application will be mailed to everyone who submitted public comments or is on a mailing list for this application, and will be posted electronically to the Commissioners’ Integrated Database (CID).

INFORMATION AVAILABLE ONLINE. When they become available, the executive director’s response to comments and the final decision on this application will be accessible through the Commission’s Web site at www.tceq.texas.gov/goto/cid. Once you have access to the CID using the above link, enter the permit num-ber for this application which is provided at the top of this notice.

This link to an electronic map of the site or facility’s general location is provided as a public courtesy and not part of the application or notice. For exact location, refer to application. http://www.tceq.texas.gov/assets/public/hb610/index.html?lat=29.852777&lng=-95.473611&zoom=13&type=r.

MAILING LIST. You may ask to be placed on a mailing list to obtain additional information on this appli-cation by sending a request to the Office of the Chief Clerk at the address below.

AGENCY CONTACTS AND INFORMATION. Public comments and requests must be submitted either electronically at www.tceq.texas.gov/about/comments.html, or in writing to the Texas Commission on Envi-ronmental Quality, Office of the Chief Clerk, MC-105, P.O. Box 13087, Austin, Texas 78711-3087. If you com-municate with the TCEQ electronically, please be aware that your email address, like your physical mailing address, will become part of the agency’s public record. For more information about this permit application or the permitting process, please call the Public Education Program toll free at 1-800-687-4040. Si desea información en Español, puede llamar al 1-800-687-4040.

Further information may also be obtained from International Paint LLC at the address stated above or by calling Ms. Laura Micklitz, HSE Specialist at (713) 684-5858.

Notice Issuance Date: December 13, 2013

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Always call your Vet if you have any concerns or questions

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FAIRBANKSANIMAL CLINIC

Hit The Trail New research has found obesity and in ammation have a direct and complex relationship that effects overall health. The more weight pets and people gain, the more our joints hurt, we become less active and gain more weight. New research also con rms the best treatment to reverse this vi-cious cycle remains eating correctly and gradually becoming more active. Dogs love to walk and play, people need encouragement. Too often resolutions and unreachable exercise goals lead to disappointment. A pleasant walk with an enthusiastic partner can warm your heart and reverse the aging process. Compliance is easy. A daily walk will give you purpose to get up, go outdoors and make someone else happy. That wagging tail is a natural anti-depressant. Even though walking will increase longevity and stave off disease, there are risks. Be aware of these when and where you walk. Also an annual health exam is essential for everyone. Dogs can acquire diseases and parasites along the trail. They must be properly vaccinated and given prescription parasite preventive monthly. Also, be responsible and scoop the poop with plastic bags. Houston’s climate and crowded population provide a haven for parasites and contagious disease. So hit the trail today. Plan ahead and make it a fun routine you can’t miss. It will add years to your life while adding life to your years.

Family/owned/operated

281-741-8611Caring & Professional • est 2003

houstonpetcremationservices.com

from $5500 up

Pet Cremations

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Mon-Fri 7 am - 6 pm, Sat 8 am - 3 pm

1765 W. 34th • 713-682-8785

Alterations & Dry Cleaning

Chris’ Since 1978

Lowell Jane Cieslewicz, 75, died Dec. 10. She was a devoted mother. She is survived by her sons Richard, Charles and Robert Cieslewicz, six grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren.

Rudolf “Rudi” Imrecke, 89, died Dec. 12, surrounded by his loving family. A native of Germany, he loved to hunt and fish and was a true family man. He was preceded in death by his wife of 35 years, Edith Johanna Imrecke, and his brother, Manfred Imrecke. He is survived by son, Ralph Imrecke and two grandchildren.

James Patrick Kelly, born April 8, 1930 in Philadelphia, died Dec. 8. Kelly served as a First Lieutenant in the U.S. Army in Korea. After serving his country, he went on to have a successful career with Shell Oil Company moving numerous times around the country and finally set-tling in Houston. He was a member of St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church for 43 years serving on the Parish Council, Finance Committee and the Stewardship Council as well as a Lector, Religious Education Instructor, Catholic Youth Mentor, Mar-riage Preparation Sponsor, Minister of the Eucharist and a member of the Serra Club and the Men’s Club. Kelly was a coach at the Northwest YMCA, a Meals on Wheels Volunteer, a Civic Club Representative and a member of the Citizen Patrol. He

is survived by children Mary Ann Kelly, Patrick Kelly, Eric Kelly and William Kelly, and eight grandchildren. Memorial con-tributions may be made to Boy Scouts of America and the Houston Food Bank.

Virginia “Louise” Marshall, born Oct. 11, 1925 in Glasgow, Ky., died Dec. 4. Marshall had passions for music, gardening and travel. She enjoyed being in the band in high school and playing her guitar. She is survived by her son Dr. Larry Marshall, daughters Linda Whitney and Laura Marshall, and one grandson.

Denise Ann Lewandowski Turner, 47, born Oct. 18, 1966 in Houston, died Dec. 16. Turner was a gradu-ate of St. Pius X High School and obtained her dental hygiene degree from Wharton County Jr. College. Denise was a hygienist for more than 25 years and was presently employed with the Brenham State School. She is survived by her husband Scott Turner, parents Sigmund and Florence Lewandowski, and brother Ronald Lewandowski.

Verna Mae Billeaud Vantreese, 90, born Feb. 11, 1923 in Lafayette, La., died Dec. 5. She is survived by her sons Glen, Darrell, Terry and Robby Vantreese; daughters Brenda Galla and Carolyn Story, 13 grandchildren, and 20 great-grandchildren.

OBITUARIES

Neighbors – Santa pays a visit to GO Montessori School

by Molly Sue McGillicutty

MollyDiaries

The

Looking for a handsome cowboy to sweep you off your feet and kiss you on command? Well, Cowboy, the two-year old pit bull is your man. A favorite among all who’ve gotten to know Cowboy since his rescue, this poor buckaroo has been in boarding for too long and is desperate for a home on the range (but any home will do!). Find out more at: www.scoutshonor.org.

Choose Me

by Elizabeth [email protected]

Garden Oaks Elementary students enjoyed a visit from Santa. (Submitted photo)


CURLSFOR GIRLSEdie’s

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3712 AlbaGarden Oaks

between Shepherdand Ella

713-692-CURL713-692-2875

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HAIR STYLISTWe can help you

with the newest cuts, perms and coloring.

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713-864-2621 Fax: 713-864-2622

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(Between Ella & T.C. Jester)

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HISD’s final vote on mascot issue set for Jan. 9The Houston ISD Board of Ed-

ucation voted 8-0 to ban offensive or culturally insensitive mascots on Dec. 12.

But in order for the board to change policy, it must go to a sec-ond vote, which will take place at its Jan. 9 meeting.

The proposed policy affects Hamilton Middle School in the Heights (Hamilton’s mascot is the Indian).

Earlier this month, Hamilton principal Wendy Hampton had a meeting with parents at which the mascot issue was discussed. She said “there was no huge opposition

to change” among the parents.The ban would also affect the

Lamar High Redskins, the West-bury High School Rebels, and the Welch Middle School Warriors. It would go into effect at the begin-ning of the 2014-2015 school year.

“The time has come for the Houston Independent School District -- the most vibrantly di-verse school district in the nation -- to acknowledge that some deci-sions made generations ago need to be reconsidered,” HISD super-intendent Terry Grier said. “Tradi-tions are important. But kindness matters more. HISD must retire,

respectfully, school symbols that no longer reflect the values of who we are — inclusive, sensitive, forward-thinking and committed to instilling character and social awareness in our youngsters.”

The new policy would allow schools to respectfully retire their existing mascot while also ac-knowledging the important role their related traditions and sym-bols have played in their commu-nity.

Each school will be required to follow district policy in selecting its new mascot.

Donation approvedThe board approved a $12,000

donation from Oak Forest resi-dent Justin Gordon, owner of Justin Gordon Homes, for a new electronic marquee at Stevens El-ementary School.

Garden Oaks vote in JanuaryThe board will vote on a plan

to change the name from Garden Oaks Elementary to Garden Oaks Montessori at its Jan. 9 meeting.

Field Mural encourages readingField Elementary Principal John

Hendrickson thought it would be a great idea to have a mural of a mountain painted on a wall of the school to show the students’ prog-ress in the Accelerated Reader (AR) program. In the AR program, stu-dents take a test to determine their level of reading and then choose the books to read at that level, be-fore taking comprehension tests and eventually moving to the next reading level.

When Friends of Field - a neigh-borhood grassroots organization which supports the school - heard the idea, they wanted to help. Vol-unteer Ashley Zuelke coordinated a competition in which the stu-dents were able to vote on their favorite picture of a Texas moun-tain by using their spare change as votes. The monies raised were matched by a donor and all funds

went to buy new books for the school library.

Zuelke also enlisted the help of her artist friend and former Heights resident, Madeline Do-nahue. Donahue currently lives in New York and volunteered her time during her recent visit to Houston over the Thanksgiving holiday. Maria Franco, daughter of Field science teacher Veronica Trevino, also volunteered to assist in the painting of the mural.

The result of this collaboration is a whimsical mural at the main entrance of the school, 17 new books for the library and another reason for the kids to get excited about reading. And with Field’s recent purchase of the bilingual version of AR, now every student in grades 1-5 can participate as mountain climbers.

Artist and former Heights resident Madeline Donahue painted a mural for Field students. (Submitted photo)

WHS teacher appreciation

The Waltrip High Alumni Asso-ciation hosted a teacher apprecia-tion luncheon for Waltrip’s faculty on Monday afternoon. Volunteers served food from Cyclone Anaya’s to the faculty.

The food was donated for the event by Waltrip alums Freddy Jones (‘72), Billy Hartman (‘74) and Vienna Valencia Molder (‘78).

The WHS band provided the musical entertainment at the event.

Waltrip High Alumni Associa-tion volunteer Amanda Cormier, right, serves lunch to a Waltrip High teacher during a teacher appreciation luncheon on Monday in the school’s cafeteria. (Photo by Michael Sudhalter)

SUDOKU

CLUES ACROSS

The Puzzles.Solutions in this issue’s classsi ed section.

1. Birds of prey 2. Fastest land animal 3. Judge’s moniker (abbr.) 4. Part of Uttar Pradesh 5. Italian crooner Perry 6. Syringe 7. Articles t to eat 8. Replace spent bullets 9. International metal polish 10. New Mexico artist town 11. Elf (Brit.) 12. Glowing gas element 14. Break suddenly 15. Blue colored 18. Br. children’s author Blyton 20. Limicoline bird 24. Burn plants 26. Gulf of, Aegean Sea inlet 27. Clysters 29. Leguminous fruit 31. Large tub 33. Member of U.S. Navy 35. Having physical sensation 36. Colors clothes 38. Plural of 33 down 39. Grouped by twos 41. Fence bar 43. Cherry brandy 44. Pixies 46. Canadian yers 48. Emit coherent radiation 50. Lot 51. Area units 52. Russian space station 53. Tools for holes 57. 5th sign of the zodiac

21. Capital of Yemen 22. Local area network 23. Belgrade River 25. Straight or bobby 26. Tennis player rank 28. Helped (archaic) 30. Lounges 32. Dove sounds 34. Int’l relief organization 35. Planted crops 37. Gobblers

1. Reverberation 5. Sonny’s ex wife 9. Drives elephant 11. High-spirited tomboy 13. Plans 15. Gather materials together 16. Brew 17. Discovery child star 19. Stalk of a moss capsule

CLUES DOWN

39. Animal companions 40. Firth of Clyde city & river 42. Korean writer Mogeum 44. 007’s creator Flemming 45. Ursine animal 47. Voyage 49. Pageant title 54. A woman’s undergarment 55. A treeless grassy plain 56. Anarchic 58. Gun dog 59. Coat of wool 60. These (old English) 61. Somalian shilling

ACROSS Cont...

J. Black, Z. Graham

exchange wedding vows

Jennifer Michelle Black and Zane Peter Graham Jr. were

united in marriage March 5 in Ocho Rios, Jamaica.

The bride is the daughter of Jeanette Black and the late

Joseph Black, and the granddaughter of the late Sam Todaro

Sr. and Ann Todaro of Garden Oaks. Jennifer is a graduate of

St. Pius X High School in Houston.

The groom is the son of Zane and Deb Graham of South

Lake Tahoe, California, and the grandson of the Crawfords

and the Santos families of Hawaii. Zane is a graduate of South

Tahoe High School in South Lake Tahoe, California.

The bride’s sister, Jacquelyn Black, was maid of honor and

Ashley Blackburn was matron of honor. Serving as brides-

maids were Nikki Klander, Sharra Galik, Alicia San Felipe

and Betsy Assad.

Gary Graham, brother of the groom, was best man. Johnny

Klander served as groomsman.

After a beautiful wedding on the beach in Jamaica, cel-

ebrated with many friends and family, the couple now resides

in Jersey Village.

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LEADER OF THE YEAR

$500 Scholarshipis giving away a

to a local highschool student in honor of their committment to our community.

Discover the winner and more in next week’s issue.

December 28, 2013


MORNING AND EVENING PRAYERPrayer can be unplanned and spontaneous, and sometimes

the spontaneous prayer that ows out of an abundance of spirit is exactly the right prayer for the moment. But,

more often than not, it is best to have a prayer routine. People who take their spirituality seriously usually have set times when they pray. Morning and Evening prayer are perhaps the most common times, but many also add a midday prayer. Praying shortly after arising in the morning and shortly before going to bed “bookends” our day with the sacred. It also helps to have a prayer book or some systematic way to pray. If you have never done this, invest in a prayer book and try it for a month or two. Most prayer regimens are fairly simple and need not be very time-consuming. Five or ten minutes each morning and evening will be time well-spent. So, perhaps you could check out your local Christian bookstore or ask your Pastor for guidance with this. You will be amazed at how regular prayer will improve the quality of your life.

Church Guide MESSAGE OF THE WEEK

“The Heart of the Heights”1245 Heights Blvd.

Sunday School . . . . . . . 9:30 AMSunday Worship . . . . . 10:45 AM

Nursery ProvidedReverend Hill Johnson, Pastor

Grace UnitedMethodist Church

713 862-8883Food Pantry, Thurs. 2-4:30 PM

www.graceintheheights.org

Preschool Program • Mon. - Fri. 9-2 p.m.www.gethsemanelutheran.org

4040 Watonga • 713-688-5227

Member of MANNA

Worship Services 8:00 a.m. & 10:30 a.m. (Nursery Provided)

Sunday School & Bible Classes 9:15 a.m.

GETHSEMANE LUTHERAN CHURCH

Reverend John Cain, Pastor

Sunday School - 9:30 a.m.Sunday Worship - 10:30 a.m.

Nursery ProvidedMinistering to the Oak Forest

Community since 1948

(713) 682-25561576 Chantilly @ Piney Woods

OaksPresbyterian

Church

Reverend Noelie Day

Gospel Truth Church

1624 W 34th • 713-686-7689www.gospeltruthchurch.org

Sunday 10:30 amWorship and The Word

Children’s ChurchWednesday 7:30 pm

Life Equip classes for all ages

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Sunday - Bible Study For All Ages .. 9:30am Morning Worship ............ 10:45am Age Graded Zones ...........6:15pmWed. - Prayer Meeting & Missions Organization .....................6:15pm

Dr. John W. Neesley - Senior Pastor

713-864-14701822 W. 18th

Member of MANNA

1216 Bethlehemat Ella Blvd.

(713) 688-7761Sunday School 9:30 AM

Morning Worship10:45 AM

��(Disciples of Christ)

Pastor Don Joseph

www.oakscchouston.orgVisit us on FaceBook

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Rev. Herschel Moore, PastorA House of Hope and Prayer in the Heart of Houston

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to

God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds inChrist Jesus.”

Philippians 4:6-7

Ad # D

Prepared as a public service to promote better dental health. From the office of: Chase Baker, D.D.S.,

3515 Ella Blvd., 713-682-4406.

H ow do other people see you when you open your mouth to speak or smile? For that matter, how do you look when your

mouth is closed? To find out, give yourself the mirror test. Study your expressions, and take a close look at the appearance of your — hopefully — pearly whites.

Are your teeth out of alignment? Are there gaps that show from missing teeth? Do you have any discolored teeth or unattractive fillings? All of these conditions can be corrected and improved. If there’s a problem with your gums, they can also be made healthier. This will also help save your teeth from further deterioration.

An attractive mouth and smile are always an asset. When your teeth and gums not only look good but are healthy too, the satisfac-tion goes even deeper. Ask your dentist what he would recommend to improve the appearance of your mouth and smile. You may be pleasantly surprised to find that some problems may even be cor-rected in one office visit.

Chase Baker, D.D.S.

GIVE YOURSELF THE MIRROR TEST

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Candlelight Communion service at St. Stephen’s

St. Stephen’s United Method-ist Church, 2003 W. 43rd St., will hold Candlelight Communion services at 4:30 p.m. and 7 p.m. on Christmas Eve. All in the commu-nity are welcome. The nursery will be available for both services.

The GriefShare Grief Support Group will take a holiday break and begin a new series of sessions at 6:30 p.m., Thursday, Jan. 9, in Room 101. All men and women grieving the loss of a loved one are welcome to attend.

Call 713-686-8241 or visit www.stsumc.org for information.

Arts and crafts sale at St. Ambrose

Come and do last minute Christ-mas shopping at the arts and crafts sale being held after each Mass Dec. 21-22, in the narthex at St. Ambrose Catholic Church, 4213 Mangum.

Call 713-858-1613 for informa-tion.

Christmas services at Heights Christian Church

Heights Christian Church, 1703 Heights Blvd., will have special holiday music during its 10:45 a.m. worship service Dec. 22. A Christmas Eve Candlelight Service and Communion will be 6 p.m. Dec. 24.


Christmas in full swing at St. Matthew’s

Three Christmas services will be available. The Longest Night/Blue Christmas for those who have lost loved ones recently will be at 5 p.m. Dec. 22. Two services on Christmas Eve include a 5 p.m. service for those with young chil-dren and at 7 p.m. a traditional service. All services will include communion.

Starting next week, St. Mat-thew’s will offer family and in-dividual counseling sessions by Brandon Wheeler, a licensed mari-tal and family therapist.

An opening for the posi-tion of part-time secretary has been posted. Anyone interested in the position should forward a resume and cover letter to [email protected].


Come celebrate Christmas at St. Mark’s

Christmas Eve Candlelight, car-ols and communion services will be held at 7 p.m. and 11 p.m. Dec. 24, at St. Mark’s United Method-ist Church, 600 Pecore. The choir and a string quartet will perform special music at both services in honor of the Christmas season.

In contemplation of the New Year, receive a blessing and take Holy Communion from 6-8 p.m. (come and go) Dec. 31.

For information call 713-861-3104 or visit www.smumc.org.

MANNA needs volunteers Make a difference in the com-

munity by volunteering just a few hours, one day a week. Ministry Assistance of the Near Northwest Alliance (MANNA), a coalition of churches and community part-ners, provides social services in near northwest Houston, is seek-ing volunteers for the Assistance Program, Vision Center, Food Pantry and Resale Store.

Students at least 16 years of age are welcomed. All volunteers must attend a training and orientation session.

For information call Patricia Dornak at 713-504-5486 or email her at [email protected].

The shopping whirlwind con-tinues for many – I, however, love this time of year for the events as much as family and friend gather-ings.

There is a fairly new to Houston event Thursday evening that that proves tech-nology, and i n g e n u i t y, have caught up with the holiday spir-it. Imagine hundreds of people walk-ing together, holding up their mo-bile phones, or tablets, all playing one of four tracks of music simultaneously, written just for the occasion. Bound to make you smile, yes? That is Unsilent Night.

You could call it caroling to the extreme, with a friendly flash mob, a few food trucks mixed in, and tasty beverages. You’ll have a good time for the whole family. Consider yourself lucky because prior to smart phones everyone used boom boxes. More on this cool event below. Also, three more artsy markets for you to check out this weekend and open studios.

Have a safe and happy holiday, Merry Christmas!

Thursday, Dec. 19Unsilent Night, 6 p.m. 150

Sabine St. UH Cynthia Woods Mitchell Center for the Arts, is

collaborating with Buffalo Bayou Partnership and Musiqa for a free interactive holiday event, Unsi-lent Night. New York composer, Phil Kline, created this 43 min-ute piece, written specifically to be heard outdoors in the month of December. It takes the form of a street promenade in which the audience becomes the performer. Each participant gets one of four tracks of music that can easily be downloaded on your smart phone – you will be downloading the app once you arrive. When partici-pants play their different “parts” simultaneously, it helps create the special sound of the piece. Revel-ers will walk a carefully chosen route along Buffalo Bayou’s Sabine Promenade with holiday stations along the way including cookies and hot chocolate.

Free Parking at Lot H (off of Memorial Drive at the Sabine Street exit, just before Houston Avenue) The musical event begins at 7 p.m.

Saturday, Dec. 21Winter Wonderland: A White

Oak Block Party, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Onion Creek Coffee House, 3106 White Oak Dr. Curated selection of local makers, sample holiday seasonals by local brewers. Fea-turing: Bad Santa photos all day, an ugly Christmas sweater com-petition at 5 p.m. Bring canned and dry dog food, paper towels, bleach, or dog biscuits and treats to donate to Tiny Paws Rescue and enter their raffle. Hosted by Height of Vintage, Velvet Goldmines, &

Pop Shop HoustonHardy & Nance Studios, 3rd

Saturday Open Studios, 902 Hardy St.

Fantasy Art Land, Group ex-hibition, noon-5 p.m. JoMar Vi-sions, 902 Hardy St.

Discovery Green Flea, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Discovery GreenPark, 1500 McKinney. This market has a focus on recycled/up-cycled, an eco-friendly art market.

Houston Re-Market, 4302 Harrisburg, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. A week early - the goal of Houston Re-Market is to foster responsible consumerism. The market features approximately ten very affordable vendors who use recycled and re-used materials and other sustain-able practices in their craft. Visi-tors are encouraged to bring their recycling and swap items too. Of course you’ll find a food truck or two and live music to entertain.

Sunday, Dec. 22Where The Girls Are Holiday

Party and Open Jam, 6-10 p.m. Last Concert Café, 1403 Nance St. Featuring The Atomic Nightin-

gales at 7 p.m. Bring a new pack of socks and underwear for tots. Benefitting Search’s House of Tiny Treasures: Houston’s first nation-ally accredited early childhood development center dedicated to serving homeless children and families.

Did you know? There is a work-ing mosaic studio, gallery and classroom in the Heights? Nizza Mosaic Studio & Gallery is located at 1331 Studewood St. and is open Tuesday-Saturday. If you drop in unannounced, there is a good chance you’ll find owner Roxana Nizza and her team hard at work on a fine art or architectural com-mission. The gallery showcases work from award winning local artists and the classroom offers a wide array of beginner to ad-vanced mosaic classes, as well as other mediums. http://www.niz-zamosaicstudio.com

Cohen is the founder and man-ager of First Saturday Arts Market. Contact him at [email protected] or visit him on the web at Art-Valet.com

State Representative Dwayne Bohac (R-Houston) hosted a press conference at the Texas Capitol to raise awareness for the State’s new Merry Christmas law (HB 308) that allows parents, teachers, stu-dents, and school administrators to celebrate the traditional winter holidays of Christmas and Cha-nukah in public schools without fear of censorship, or litigation.

Before the press conference, Bohac appeared on Fox & Friends to highlight the law and encour-age other states to pass similar legislation.

“Our school officials and teach-ers have enough on their plate without having to worry about frivolous lawsuits for acknowl-edging Christmas in our public schools,” Rep. Bohac said. “This bill simply offers protection for

and guidance to school officials and teachers by codifying Su-preme Court precedent and pro-viding ‘bright lines’. This bill is ul-timately about bringing ‘fun, joy and magic’ back into our schools during the Holiday Season.”

Joining Bohac at the press con-ference was his son, Reagan.

Reagan’s story of decorating a “holiday” tree with “holiday” or-naments and being discouraged from referencing “Christmas” in his local school was the impetus of the bill.

“HB 308 was signed into law by Governor Perry in June, the heart of summer, and with Christmas right around the corner, it’s im-portant that we raise awareness for this law to avoid censorship of Christmas in our public schools,” Bohac said.

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Bohac promotesMerry Christmas Bill

NEWS FROM YOUR PEWS

Mitch CohenArts Columnist

Art a la Carte: Get ready for Unsilent Night

food, and the happy hour is 4-7 p.m. for wine and drink specials. The current locations at the Gal-leria and Royal Oaks are open 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Mondays, until 9:30 p.m. Tuesday through Thurs-day and Friday until 10 p.m. Their weekend opening hours vary by lo-cation, but are open until 10 p.m. Saturday. There is a special Sunday brunch buffet at Royal Oaks. You can get more info at www.piattoristorante.com.

Ninja RamenProprietor Christopher Huang’s

wants your order at his upcoming restaurant to be simple. Huang ex-plained his concept for Ninja Ra-men to Eater Houston, including the likelihood of no menu and ro-tating ramen flavors. Huang said he “wants customers to walk in, sit down and say, ‘I want the ramen.’” Ninja Ramen is slated to open next year on Washington Ave., but the

idea for the restaurant has long been in the works.

A Houston native, Huang wants to let his hometown serve as the stage for ramen that can “compete with the national scene.” Huang has been working on the tradi-tional tonkotsu ramen with cus-tomizable broths.

“We’ll rotate special flavors like spicy, garlic and miso,” Huang said.

When you order your ramen, don’t expect the salty, packaged variety. Huang promises an au-thentic experience, complete with the Japanese beer Hitachino. Ninja Ramen will include a full bar with Asian-style cocktails and Japanese whiskey. The space will be at the former home of The Dubliner and Lava Rock, at 4219 Washington.

Nibbles • from Page 3A

Phil Kline’s Unsi-lent Night in NYC 2011 (credit Taylor Davidson)


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Candlelight Plaza, the neighbor-hood was written up in Metropol-itan Magazine some years back as having one of the best Christmas light displays in the city. But while those other two neighborhoods have seen an influx of young fam-ilies, Shepherd Park Terrace skews older and that’s made it more of a challenge for them to keep their tradition alive.

Lonnie and Mary York are neighborhood leaders in their 80s who still decorate every year with their Disney figures along with Santa and his reindeer.

Lonnie still does the ground level work himself but hires someone to help with the roof because he can no longer climb the ladder.

He said that they’ve been in the neighborhood for about 20 years and joined in with their neighbors in the decorating tra-dition. “Everybody was doing it. We wanted to get it the way the neighborhood people wanted it,” he said.

According to Dennis, an addi-tional blow to the neighborhood’s display was a tornado that came through about 10 years ago and destroyed the big lighted arches that many of the streets had.

Donovan Street, ground zero for the Shepherd Park Terrace

light display, still has the arches, as do some other streets. Den-nis also led the charge to sup-ply neighbors with some smaller arches which they use over their front walks.

After the official lighting, which this year was on Dec.14, there is a competition for the neighborhood with prizes for the best blocks, as well as a Christmas Gala at the Crown Plaza.

Dennis, who has lived in the neighborhood since 1976 and re-tired from HISD in 2004, main-tains a full plate with her duties as president and as a volunteer at the Hardy Senior Center where she teaches a computer class.

She took on an expanded role in the civic club because she be-lieves in the area and is looking forward to expanding on the tra-ditions as new families move in.

“The neighborhood has main-tained its integrity,” she said. “I’m trying to get a home tour going for next year.”

For more information about Shepherd Park Terrace, please visit http://shepherdparkterrace.org/. And for a Christmas lights driving tour, don’t miss the 1000 and 1100 blocks of Donovan Street. There won’t be any buses, but there is still plenty of Christ-mas cheer.

for a way not to be so isolated. Kay Tobola, a former teacher and a science education specialist at NASA, got tapped to participate in a partnership with the International StorytellingCenter in Jonesborough, Tenn., to make science more relatable to a general audience.

“I quickly saw how much story defines the way I take in information and share it,” Tobola said. “After a few months, I realized that it had been my teaching style for 26 years in the middle school classroom - to create a learning journey that is a story.”

Now she’s organizing a new storytelling festival in Round Top. “Hopefully it will be a place that people come to craft and share stories as well as listen to story,” she said.

Established in 1986, the Guild was founded by a group of people who wanted to promote storytell-ing as a craft. They meet the third Tuesday of every month at St. Andrews House on Heights Boulevard with other events throughout the year, like the No-vember Tellabration and the Liar’s contest in April.

The 200 – of which 70 are currently active – mem-bers pay $25 in dues a year ($15 if you are a student) and attend meetings as their schedule permits. A few members share a story each meeting if they are so in-clined. Some prefer just to listen.

“I have never told a story at the Houston Guild

meeting,” said Tobola. “I told one the other night at the Austin Guild meeting. It was part of my space rock stories that I have shared many times in work-shops or at exhibits. Telling it to a guild audience was a starting place for me.”

Although storytellers are limited to about 10 min-utes during meetings, the members are quick to stress that there is no time constraint for a storyteller - it’s all about the story itself. And there are places, like Jonesborough, where they have a National Storytell-ing Festival in October and the more convenient Tex-as Storytelling Festival in Denton each March, where people travel many miles for a good, long yarn.

For a quick story fix anytime, listeners can tune into KPFT’s ‘So, What’s Your Story,’ which has been Roubicek’s radio baby since 2007. He brings story-telling professionals and plenty of novices who can tell any 5-6 minute story they want on air. Although people sometimes tell fables or fairytales, Roubicek said that “original stories are especially encouraged.”

It’s not the tale but the act of telling it that mem-ber Jim Blake thinks is most important. “Storytelling used to be the way we communicated. We should get back to it. It enriches us all.”

For more information about the group, visit www.houstonstorytellers.org. To listen to radio clips of ‘So, What’s Your Story’ visit http://archive.kpft.org/.

Tigers head coach Shane Johnson Sr. had planned to get Medina in the game, regardless of what the situation would be.

“Michael lifted everybody’s spirits – not just the team, but the whole league,” Ayarzagoitia said.“The players didn’t know about (Michael going into the game) until after we called the timeout.”

The Oilers led 29-0, and defen-sive leader Miguel Serna Jr. helped carry Medina out of his wheelchair and into the end zone.

“I picked him up and gave him the ball,” Serna said. “It was an honorable feeling. We all support him with all of our hearts. It was all because of him. At the begin-ning of the season, we had noth-ing to play for. Then, we had ev-erything to play for.”

Football the cureMedina had never played foot-

ball before this season, but his par-ents, Mary and Leroy, believe that joining the Oilers may have helped save his life.

During football practice, Me-dina, 12, would have trouble with balance.

Despite an outstanding game in the season opening win, Medina’s balance issues persisted and not long after, he fell down the stairs at school in early September.

His parents decided to take him to the pediatrician where he was diagnosed with medulloblastoma.

The pediatrician phoned his friend, renowned neurological surgeon, Dr. Robert C. Dauser, the director of Cerebral Neurovascu-larization at Texas Children’s who successfully performed the surgery seven hours later – a rarity consid-ering many patients have to wait days or weeks for their surgery.

Dauser removed the entire tu-mor from the back of Medina’s

head.After the surgery, Medina

lost balance on his left side and has spent the past three months re-learning basic motor skills through physical therapy, occupa-tional therapy and speech therapy at Texas Children’s Hospital.

Before surgery, doctors inform families about the patient’s risk. It can be anything from paralysis to full recovery.

Medina is expected to make an

80 percent recovery by next sum-mer, Mary said.

Through his entire recovery, the Oilers have supported him through encouragement, prayer and fundraisers to help his family.

At their postseason banquet on Dec. 12 at Heights Church, Me-dina was presented several awards, including Most Valuable Player, Most Inspirational and Dedicated & Hard Working.

Leroy, along with a few team-

mates, helped Michael to the front of the room to accept each award.

“Thank you for everything,” Mi-chael said to the 250 people giving him a standing ovation.

Leroy fought back tears as he addressed the crowd that night, saying “you people are great...you helped us so much. God bless ev-ery one of you in here tonight.”

During the banquet, Heights Church pastor Tim Ennis ac-knowledged Medina’s excellent feat.

“It was awesome to see Mike take those last points across the goal,” Ennis said.

Mary said the banquet was “amazing and touching” and de-scribed it as “an emotional night.”

Now the recoveryMedina won’t be able to play

football again, but his parents are confident he’ll be able to enjoy a normal childhood. Mary said she hopes her son can return to Clif-ton Middle for seventh grade in the fall. Medina was released from Texas Children’s on Nov. 19, a day before his birthday, and he got to enjoy Thanksgiving at home with family.

He has a long road to recovery and spends five days per week at Texas Children’s, before heading home each respective evening.

Medina went through Pro-ton Radiation at MD Anderson Cancer Center from Oct. 8-Nov. 18. The Proton Radiation is less harmful for the body of a young person.

The reason for Proton Radia-tion and a six-week Chemothera-py, which will begin Dec. 26, is to kill any potential cancerous cells.

Medical experts have said those cells will re-appear if they are not removed via Proton Radiation and Chemotherapy.

After the treatment, Medina will

return to the hospital for regular check-ups for the next five years.

Houston ISD sends an instruc-tor to Texas Children’s twice per week to teach classes, where Me-dina is enrolled.

Medina has come a long way from shortly after the surgery when he could only say four words – ‘yes, no, OK, and hurt’.

“His brain is learning to func-tion as a normal brain,” Mary said. “The tumor may have been there for as long as 18 months.”

When he’s at home, Medina watches television and plays video games.

“I want him to have a normal life (despite) going through all of this,” Mary said.

The family has allowed Texas Children’s, M.D. Anderson and Baylor College of Medicine to study Medina’s tumor so that someday they’ll find a cure.

“If it can prevent one other per-son from going through it, (it’s worth it),” Mary said.

Medina • from Page 1A

Mike Zientek, a communica-tions officer with TxDOT, echoed those sentiments during a 290 construction project presentation to the Oak Forest Homeowners Association earlier this month.

“(At some point), you can’t put down more concrete,” Zientek said. “You’ve got to be able to put people somewhere else. At some point, the road can’t get any big-ger.”

Regular sized-trains, as planned by GCRD, are an option for the Heights and Oak Forest, but light rail is out of the question for the foreseeable future.

A METRO representative said that the entity’s current plans are to build the light rail lines as ap-proved by voters in the 2003 refer-endum. None of those lines are in the Heights or Oak Forest.

A regular passenger train would have stations every three or four miles -- farther apart than light rail.

Dr. Carol Lewis, a member of the Passenger Rail Committee, said a passenger line along the Westpark Tollway may be the easi-est option to begin planning. She said “290 is complicated” due to right of way issues.

The 290 project, Lewis said, may involve elevated rail. Most of the development along 290 is on its north side, while most of the right of ways are on the south -- another challenge to light rail along 290.

The Hwy. 249 corridor is part of a potential high speed rail program that would see a passenger train between Houston and the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. That could help quicken the progress of that line. There’s also the potential for a Houston-Austin high speed rail train.

Leonard Scarcella, a Passenger Rail Committee member who’s been the Mayor of Stafford in Fort

Bend County since 1969, said the GCRD doesn’t have to “re-invent the wheel” to produce a successful passenger rail system.

He said other large metropoli-tan areas, most recently D-FW, have accomplished it, but the com-munity and agencies need to show the effort. He said it’s possible that Greater Houston doesn’t have the will to put forth such a program.

Stories • from Page 1A

Lights • from Page 1A

Rail • from Page 1A

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Annette Wells has

so many Christmas

decorations she rents a storage facility to

house them all. (Photo by Betsy Denson)

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Michael Medina was helped onto the field and off of his wheelchair to score a 2-point conversion in the North Houston Oilers’ final game of the seasons. It’s the last time Medina will play football. (Submitted photo)

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