Mahesh's bringing Indian Fusion to Sugar Land - Page 7
WEDNESDAY • JANUARY 11, 2023 JEANNE GREGORY REALTOR®, CRS, GRI, ABR
Fort Bend / Southwest • Volume 48 • No. 15 • $1.00
Woman shot, killed in Sugar Land home By Ken Fountain KFOUNTAIN@FORTBENDSTAR.COM
SOUTHWEST
713-854-0923 Each Office Independently Owned & Operated
Fagan elected to trafficking board for area Staff Reports
Fort Bend County Sheriff Eric Fagan was recently elected as the Houston High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas Executive Board Vice Chair. Fagan has been an executive board member since he took office in 2021. The mission of the HIDTA Program is to “disrupt the market for illegal drugs by dismantling and disrupting drug trafficking and/or money laundering organizations, and to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of HIDTA initiatives," according to a news release. The Houston HIDTA executive board is comprised of 20 representatives including local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies. The executive board assesses the drug trafficking threats found in the Greater Houston region, develops strategies to address the threats, and proposes funding needed to carry out the mission. “It's been an honor serving as member of the executive board and representing Fort Bend in a greater scale,” Fagan said in the release. “As vice chair, we will continue to put a stop to drug related crimes, in efforts to keep our communities safe.” "It's been a great asset to have had Fort Bend County Sheriff Fagan as a Houston HIDTA Executive Board member for the past two years," Houston HIDTA Director F. Mike McDaniel said in the release. "He's brought valuable input to the executive board, especially in light of his many years of law enforcement experience. I am even happier, Sheriff Fagan was selected as the vice chair, with the chair position to follow next November."
Fagan
Visit www.FortBendStar.com
Wendy Duan
Sugar Land police are searching for a suspect in the shooting death of an Alief ISD teacher at her Sugar Land home in what police say was a domestic violence incident. Doug Adolph, spokesman for the City of Sugar Land, confirmed that police found Wendy Duan, 29, with multiple gunshot wounds in the backyard of her home 1100 block of Oxford Mills Drive in New Territory. They were responding to reports of gunshots at 9:50 p.m. Saturday. Paramedics arrived and pronounced Duan dead at
the scene. Duan, who was unmarried, was the owner of the house. She was the sole person at the house when police arrived. Adolph said Sugar Land police have identified a suspect who is not in custody. They are not releasing any information about the suspect out of concern that it could hinder his apprehension, Adolph said. According to police, the shooting was the result of a domestic violence incident, although no details were given. A statement released by Alief ISD on Monday confirmed that Duan had been
employed at the district since 2017. "We are deeply saddened to learn about the tragic passing of Alief ISD employee Wendy Duan. She was a third grade reading and writing teacher at Boone Elementary. Our thoughts and prayers are with her family during this difficult time," the statement read. "To assist students and staff members in the grieving process, the crisis counseling team was at Boone Elementary this morning and will remain at the campus as long as needed," the statement read. This is a developing story.
Always teaching
Laura Piland, a former teacher turned children's author, pictured at her family's property just outside Beasley, has just recently published her first book for children. (Photo courtesy of Jillian Lee Photography)
Former educator, area resident launches children's book series By Ken Fountain KFOUNTAIN@FORTBENDSTAR.COM
You can take the teacher out the classroom, but not necessarily the desire to teach out of the teacher. Lauren Piland, a former teacher who lives with her family on a rural property outside Beasley, has just published her first children's book, titled Blooming Rose Blasts Off! The book, aimed at elementary-age children, is the first in a series Piland has planned to teach kids how to handle some of the challenges they might face
in life. Piland, who grew up in Slidell, La. and graduated from Louisiana State University with a degree in marketing and public relations, worked for several years in that field before setting her sights on teaching. She received a teaching certificate and taught at elementary schools for four years in the Dayton and Goose Creek school districts in the greater Houston area. As a teacher, Piland said she often found it hard to balance working with students' needs while also meeting the instructional
Laura Piland is shown with children Owen, right, and Audrey Rose at her family's property outside Beasley. (Photo courtesy of Jillian Rose Photography)
demands placed on educators. In particular, she
said she often noticed that students had individual
emotional challenges that teachers need to address. While still teaching, Piland began thinking of ways to use children's books that would give students a way to think about these challenges and how to overcome them, and also offer parents and teachers resources they can use to help their young charges. In the meantime, Piland and her husband Stan, who works in fiance in the oil and gas industry, moved to their property outside Beasely with their oldest SEE BOOK PAGE 6
Kelsey-Seybold launches new clinic at The Grid Staff Reports
Kelsey-Seybold Clinic opened a two-story, 33,000-square-foot clinic on January 3 in The Grid, a 192-acre, mixed-use development in Stafford. Kelsey-Seybold Clinic – Stafford is located at 11211 Nexus Ave., off the Southwest Freeway between Kirkwood Road and W. Airport Boulevard, providing medical care access to those living in Stafford and the surrounding communities
of Meadows Place, Alief, Braeburn, and North Missouri City. The clinic has room for up to 15 providers and will offer adult and pediatric primary and specialty healthcare, including Family Medicine, Internal Medicine, Pediatrics, and Pulmonary Medicine. An OB/ GYN provider will join the clinic shortly after opening. Additional specialties planned for this location include BehavSEE CLINIC PAGE 6
Kelsey-Seybold Clinic has opened a two-story, 33,000-square-foot clinic in The Grid in Stafford. The clinic will work to provide care to those living in Stafford and surrounding areas, with room for up to 15 medical providers, according to officials. (Photo courtesy Kelsey-Seybold Clinic)
PRESCRIPTION DRUG CARD HIGHLIGHTS Free discount card for everyone No insurance necessary Good for uninsured and underinsured individuals No sign up or personal info required Eligible for brand, generic, AND pet medications HIPAA compliant
MEMBER ID 10 Digit Phone Number BIN 0022634 GRP DR21 PCN 3333