‘Bone Collector’ star to appear at outdoor fest: Page 2
WEDNESDAY • JUNE 13, 2018
Fort Bend / Southwest • Volume 41 • No. 42
Stafford High School pitcher Dylan Smith was drafted by the San Diego Padres. He must now choose between Major League Baseball and his commitment to play college ball. See the story on Page 6.
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FBISD contemplates $1 billion bond By Theresa D. McClellan THERESA@FORTBENDSTAR.COM
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As the Fort Bend ISD Board of Trustees gathered data during a seven-hour workshop Monday night on their needs for a bond proposal request that could reach $1billion this year, board members started questioning decisions made
last month and indicated they could rescind some matters when they take action at the full board meeting next week. While Superintendent Charles Dupre was reluctant to call out the actions of some parents in the school district, board Vice President Addie Heyliger didn’t mince words in explaining difficulties of addressing overcrowding in one
section of the district while dealing with under-utilized schools in the same district. “I’m looking at recommendations and I’m a bit challenged. We have two under-utilized high schools so how are we being fiscally responsible looking at a new high school for Ridge Point?” she asked. Dupre said the district is trying to resolve issues that need to be re-
solved on a state level. “People choose to live where they choose to live,” he said. He added that parents have said they are not going to send their students to Willowridge or Marshall. “It’s their choice, I’m not going to be evaluative,” Dupre said.
SEE BOND, PAGE 11
Hospital leaders discuss healthcare in Fort Bend Gourmet Hot Dogs Bar-B-Que Tues- Friday 11-2 & 4-7 Sat. 11-7 Sunday 12-3
Available at The Alamo Café inside The Texas Gun Club. 206 Brand Lane Ste 100, Stafford more information at www.tmd30.com That’s My Dog 832-539-7243
Police Chief Eric Robins
Robins named Sugar Land’s chief of police From staff reports FOR THE FORT BEND STAR
Assistant Police Chief Eric Robins has been promoted to the top post in the Sugar Land Police Department. A native Houstonian who has spent almost his entire career with SLPD, Robins most recent assignment as assistant chief included direct supervision and leadership of patrol, criminal investigations, traffic, special impact teams, crime analysis, SWAT and crime scene investigations. He replaces Doug Brinkley, who was promoted to an assistant city manager position. “During the past several years, we’ve focused on developing leaders within our department,” Assistant City Manager Doug Brinkley said while making the announcement Monday. “Throughout this rigorous and extensive selection process, Eric excelled at demonstrating leadership, strategic foresight and a visionary approach to building on the recent achievements of our department and charting a path for future sustained success.” Robins’ many accomplishments have included strategies and programs that directly contributed to Sugar Land achieving a crime rate for 2017 that was the lowest on record after hitting a 20-year low in 2016. Industry experts recently credited SLPD as one of the best-run agencies they’ve evaluated in the nation. Robins implemented initiatives to increase police visibility and expand crime analysis to identify resources necessary to address criminal trends. He also managed and created special enforcement teams to target and handle specific high-crime patterns throughout the city, efforts that directly contributed to the low crime rate. Robins led technology initiatives such as red light cameras that have resulted in a 58 percent reduction of accidents at targeted intersections and a network of license plate recognition cameras that resulted in the arrests of more than nine criminals so far this year. Under his leadership,
SEE CHIEF, PAGE 14
By Joe Southern JSOUTHERN@FORTBENDSTAR.COM
Although they may have been preaching to the choir, five leaders of area hospitals spoke about the state of healthcare during an annual healthcare luncheon hosted by the Fort Bend Chamber of Commerce May 31 at Safari Texas Ranch. The five panelists – Rob Heifner of CHI St. Luke’s Health Sugar Land Hospital, Richard Ehlers of MD Anderson Cancer Center, Greg Haralson of Memorial Hermann Sugar Land and Southwest hospitals, Joe Freudenberger of OakBend Medical Center, and Chris Siebenaler of Houston Methodist Sugar Land Hospital – were each given a topic to address and also answered questions at the end of the presentation. The topics were given by Fort Bend Chamber of Commerce Chair Malisha Patel, who is also replacing Haralson on Aug. 1 as CEO of the two Memorial Hermann hospitals. Haralson is being promoted to CEO of the Texas Medical Center campus. Heifner of St. Luke’s went first and was asked to discuss generational impacts on healthcare. That led him to talking about the baby boomers. “An interesting thing de-
The panelists for the Fort Bend Chamber of Commerce State of Healthcare luncheon are, from the left, Rob Heifner of CHI St. Luke’s Health Sugar Land Hospital, Richard Ehlers of MD Anderson Cancer Center, Greg Haralson of Memorial Hermann Sugar Land and Southwest hospitals, Joe Freudenberger of OakBend Medical Center, and Chris Siebenaler of Houston Methodist Sugar Land Hospital. (Photo by Joe Southern)
mographically is their life expectancy is longer than what their parents were. However, when you look at relative healthcare, relatively speaking, they’re sicker and have more issues,” he said, noting that the health issues relate from lifestyle choices made decades ago. “They have more diabetes, more heart disease and they’re living longer, so that actually is potentially
a disaster because we don’t have the resources to take care of this population,” he said. “Then on the other side of the equation, are the providers. When you look at the average age of nurses, they’re on the tail end of that demographic, so as they start to exit the workforce we’re starting to see a deficit of providers to take care of a cohort that now is growing exponentially. As a system
we need to determine how are we going to have these hard discussions about how to take care of these people.” Ehlers from MD Anderson was asked about healthcare reform. “We’re moving toward an era of value-based healthcare,” he said. Ehlers said there are two parts to consider. The first is the political one of funding health care and providing
A Veterans Day of their own Texas Women Veterans Day honors Fort Bend County women By Donna Hill FOR THE FORT BEND STAR
The Texas Women Veterans Day event in Houston on June 12 celebrated women who served in all branches of the U.S. Armed Forces. Honored at the event were three special women – U.S. Army veterans Dorothy Stroud and Isabelle Conner, and U.S. Air Force veteran Marion Bell. The honored veterans reside in Greatwood at Sugar Land – a retirement home in Fort Bend County. Altogether, the women served in World War II, the Korean War, and during peacetime. They have been a part of history. One of the veterans was issued the Croix de Guerre (The Cross of War), a military decoration from France, which is awarded to military personnel allied to France during World War II for “distinguishing themselves by acts of heroism involving combat with enemy forces.” During her career with the Army, Dorothy Stroud was the recipient of one such award. A message clerk assigned to the War Department after basic training, eventually being transferred to the administration office in France, she wrote up the necessary paperwork to order ammunitions, which American and French troops needed for one of the most historic battles, the Battle of the Bulge, from 1944-1945. She served one tour, and then went back to school. The military, however, had other plans for her. They
Dorothy Stroud, Marion Bell, and Isabelle Connor currently reside in reside in Greatwood at Sugar Land, but in their youth they served in the U.S. military. (Photo submitted by Christa Nolazco)
called her back into the Army in 1949 for the Korean War. Eloquent and steadfast, Stroud said the military offers “wonderful opportunities.” While her tour at the time was considered a temporary assignment in the Army, Stroud said, “There was never any talk of retiring from the military, it was all volunteer. Now women go in and spend 20 years on active duty, and they get a full retirement. I think it’s a wonderful opportunity for them.”
At 21, most of her family was against her signing up, except for her mother. “I was the youngest of seven,” she said. “My family kept telling me ‘you don’t want to do that,’ or ‘you don’t know where you’d end up or who you’d be living with.’ This was 1942, right after Pearl Harbor. So I went to my mother, who, almost by herself, raised all seven of us, because my father died early, looked at me and smiled and said ‘go for it.’ And I thought, well my mom has a lot of courage, so I do,
too. And I went and I’m glad I did it.” Assigned to Paris during the war, she spent winters where there was no hot water, (coal mines were behind enemy lines), and the city was kept dark, hidden behind blacked out windows. Remembering those days still bring a mixture of emotions for Stroud, and it’s heard in her voice as she recalls the end of World War II. “I was in Paris when the war ended. And when the lights came back on and we got hot water back again, that was a very happy memory,” she said. She spent her 24th birthday (Bastille Day, July 14), in France after the war ended. “It was the first Bastille Day since the German army was taken out of there,” she said. “There was a big celebration. With my 97th birthday coming up, I keep thinking how exciting that birthday was and so much was going on. The war was over – finally.” Her daughter, Leslie Woods, sais she has one amazing mom. “She was always encouraging us to try new things, go do new things, learn new things. I have friends who say ‘if my mom could only be just a little bit of your mom.’” U.S. Air Force veteran Marion Bell, now 90, struggled to find work during the late 1940s and found the military was her dream chance to see the world. The world was not at war at the
SEE VETERANS, PAGE 10
for the uninsured. The second was the quality of care, as the public demands more and newer services even though they may not be medically necessary. He said some of the technologies hospitals have, “may not add value to healthcare but that’s what’s being marketed.”
SEE HEALTHCARE, PAGE 12
Sugar Land appoints redistricting committee From staff reports FOR THE FORT BEND STAR
Sugar Land City Council recently appointed a redistricting advisory committee to ensure the city’s single-member City Council districts comply with federal law. The annexation of Greatwood and New Territory increased the city’s population, requiring the city’s four single-member City Council districts to be adjusted. Single-member Council districts must be of substantially equal population with a maximum deviation no greater than 10 percent between the most populated and least populated council member district. Sugar Land’s citizen redistricting committee includes Chairman Randy Garbs, Councilmember Himesh Gandhi, Tina Gibson, Dr. Mary Harrell, Russell Jones, Louis Manuel, Apurva Parikh, Sapana Patel and Councilmember Bridget Yeung. Committee meetings will be held from June 25 to Aug. 10. Outside legal counsel will prepare several redistricting plans based on state and federal law as well as guidelines adopted by City Council. City Council also approved resolution 18-19 that establishes criteria for use in the 2018 redistricting process, creates a framework to guide redistricting plans and
SEE DISTRICTS, PAGE 14