The 10-04-23 Edition of The Fort Bend Star

Fort Bend ISD students finalists in prestigious scholarship program- Page 3

Five held in Stafford kidnapping incident that ended in Galveston

By Ken Fountain KFOUNTAIN@FORTBENDSTAR.COM

Five people are in custody following a Wednesday kidnapping that began in Stafford, wound through Sugar Land, and ended in Galveston, according to authorities.

On Wednesday at around 6 a.m., Stafford Police Department received a call from the 1700 block of Pecan Land reporting that a woman had been heard screaming, followed by the sound of gunfire, according to a Stafford PD press release. Shortly afterward, a man called the department to report that his neighbor’s wife had been kidnapped.

When officers arrived at the scene, the victim’s husband told them his wife was leaving for work when he heard her screaming outside, according to the release. He told police he saw three men scuffling with his wife and forcing her into her own car.

When the man tried to intervene, one of the assailants pointed a handgun at him. The woman pleaded for the man not to shoot her husband. The husband then received a call, and a man told him, “You need to calm down. If you call the police, you will pay.” The man then demanded a $10,000 ransom, threatening to cause injury to the wife and send a video of it to the husband.

When Stafford detectives arrived, a neighbor told them that an unfamiliar black Dodge Ram 1500 pickup truck had been parked nearby. The neighbor saw several men forcing the woman into her own car, and rushed outside, firing two warning shots to try to scare the assailants away, according to the release.

The woman’s car and the pickup had been seen in the 200 block of Easton Ave. in Sugar Land. Detectives were able to use nearly surveillance cameras to locate the woman’s car and the pickup leaving the neighborhood together. Detectives ran the truck’s license plate, which identified the owner as Brayan Rodriguez. He was later identified as a former coworker of the woman.

Using security camera footage from the area, Sugar Land police confirmed that both vehicles had been traveling together in the 200 block of Easton Ave. Sugar Land police deployed a drone and sent several officers to canvass the area, since the camera footage did not capture the victim’s car and the pickup leaving the neighborhood.

Stafford detectives went to the woman’s workplace and confirmed that Ro -

Man arrested in auto-cyclist crosswalk fatality in Katy

By Ken Fountain KFOUNTAIN@FORTBENDSTAR.COM

A Katy man has been charged in a fatal vehicle-pedal cyclist accident. On September 28, at approximately 6:46 am, the Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office received a call regarding an accident involving a motor vehicle and a pedestrian in the 6000 block of Mason Road in Katy.

Upon arrival, deputies learned a juvenile male was riding his bicycle in a crosswalk when he was

A

year

fatally struck by a vehicle being driven by Devin Delvalle, 20. Delvalle remained at the scene, and was fully cooperative with deputies and investigators, according to a press release from the sheriff’s department.

After further investigation, Delvalle was booked into the Fort Bend County Jail and charged with motor vehicle collision involving a pedestrian or other vulnerable road user within the area of a crosswalk. At press time, a bond amount was pend-

ing magistration.

This incident remains under investigation.

“This is a very sad and tragic incident on both sides, for the driver, and especially for the victim’s family,” Sheriff Eric Fagan said in the release. “Drivers need to slow down and pay attention, and that’s extremely important in areas that are heavily traveled by children.”

This is the second arrest in as many weeks in

Fort Bend County under the new law. Bao Giang was arrested September 22 for striking a pedestrian in the New Territory subdivision, which resulted in the victim’s death. According to the Fort Bend County District Attorney’s Office, it is believed to be the first arrest under the Lisa Torry Smith Act, commonly referred to as the Crosswalk Law.

The law, which was Fort Bend County District Attorney Brian Middleton, is named after Lisa Torry

Smith, who lost her life to a motorist in a Fort Bend County crosswalk while walking her son to school in 2017.

The law, which was enacted in 2021, makes it an offense to fail to yield right of way to a pedestrian in a clearly marked crosswalk and requires drivers to come to a full stop for any pedestrians or cyclists who are in the intersection. It is a felony offense for a motorist to cause serious bodily injury to a pedestrian legally in a crosswalk.

in, Sugar Land police chief strives to change department’s philosophy

By Ken Fountain KFOUNTAIN@FORTBENDSTAR.COM

Mark Poland is a man on a mission.

Approaching a year on the job as chief of the Sugar Land Police Department, Poland has said in public forums lately that he’s working to change the entire philosophy of the department, from a military-style “chain of command” approach to one more like a business that welcomes input from all levels.

During a period of national conversation about the relationship of police forces with their communities, Poland frequently says, “Our profit is public trust.”

Poland was hired by the city of Sugar Land in September 2022 to succeed Eric Robins, who had retired the previous July. Robins served the city for

three decades, the final four years as police chief, according to previous Fort Bend Star coverage.

Poland previously had 30 years in law enforcement experience in Virgina, including two decades with the Loudon County Sheriff’s Office, ending with the position of undersheriff. He was one two final candidates for the Sugar Land polst in a national search conducted by an outside consulting firm. He officially began his duties on Nov. 1, 2022.

Poland told the Star that since he began, he’s been trying to change the mindset of the department from a traditional, topdown approach in which those in the higher ranks simply give orders to those in the lower ranks, who are expected to follow them without question. In that model, those in the lower ranks are not expected to provide any meaningful

input into departmental decision-making,

Poland said that paramilitary style, which dates from the earliest days of modern policing, is still vital in critical situations where lives are at stake. But in the routine, day-to-day operations of the department, it is an outmoded approach that needs to be adapted to today’s environment. He acknowledges, however, that it’s sometimes been an effort to get people to embrace his new approach.

In the wake of the civil unrest that followed the 2014 death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri and similar incidents, the Obama Administration created a Task Force on 21st Century Policing, which ultimately resulted in a 2015 report outlining “Six Pillars of Policing.”

While Poland doesn’t disavow that report, he

has developed his own six pillars for the Sugar Land department. In a nutshell, they are:

1) Family First

2) Professionalism 3) Leadership 4) Growth (or training) 5) Accountability; and 6) Community.

By “family first,” Poland says he means that police officers need to know that the needs of their families must always be foremost in their minds, with professional demands coming second. The other pillars all relate to how police officers (and civilian employees) should think about their roles both within the department and how they comport themselves among the citizenry.

Poland says he maintains a fully “open-door policy” that encourages people from all levels within the department to voice their thoughts on how they can better do their jobs. While those recommendations may go through a

traditional chain-of-command, he said, he’s open to hearing from anyone.

Those recommendations might include ways to use existing resources, or begin using new ones, Poland said. Departmental leaders then might recommend that the person making the suggestion talk with budget officials on how to go about obtaining those resources.

Poland said the new philosophy extends to how police interact with people while out on the beat, always emphasizing treating people with respect. It also involves being seen in the streets of Sugar Land, making traffic stops and interventions that not only result in arrests or citations but also show people that there is a continuous police presence in the city.

Sugar Land Police Chief Mark Poland, standing, addresses officers during a recent shift roll call. Poland is approaching his first anniversary on the job.

Courtesy City of Sugar Land

The 2023 Fort Bend County Fair Queen - Page 4

Third annual 'Bike Ride for Survivors' set for Oct. 7

The Fort Bend District Attorney’s Office will host its third annual “Bike Ride for Survivors” on Saturday, October 7, beginning at 7:30 a.m. in Brazos River Park in Sugar Land.

The event is a ride and not a race, so riders are able to ride at their own pace. The event includes routes of 20 miles, 40 miles, and 55 miles. All routes will include a police presence for rider safety.

“I enjoy this public service outside of what a prosecutor’s office traditionally does to support those organizations that help crime victims,” District Attorney Brian Middleton said in press release. “I’m an avid cyclist and know there are many others in Fort Bend who like to ride and would also support crime victims.”

Poland points to initiatives the department has undertaken in the last year and figures and data that have been compiled in that time to buttress his argument that such a presence has positive results.

In May, for instance, the department created a mental health unit with one full-time police officer and eight part-time officers that is designed to help people in crisis in a way that is less confrontational than many police interactions.

The department also initiated a Command Competency Lab, which jointly trains Sugar Land Police Department and the Sugar Land Fire Department personnel on how to respond to active violent incidents, in an effort to save lives.

According to the data provided by Poland, the city’s current crime rate (based on federal stan-

“We have a color run, skills contests, and facepainting for the kids. And if you can’t ride, you can always donate for a good cause. All proceeds support crime victim service providers in Fort Bend County and our Expose Excellence

dards) is currently 18.64, compared to 28.02 in 2022.

The crime rate calculation is the number of crimes per 1,000 people within a jurisdiction. By the end of 2023, the year-over-year rate will be lower than that of 2022, the department projects.

Property crime so far this year has decreased by 41 percent compared to 2022, according to the department. In 2023, each quarter has seen a downward trend of more than 20 percent. Meanwhile, crimes against persons have decreased by 22.4 percent in the same period.

The city has seen a 51 percent decline in burglaries of motor vehicles year over year, and a 71 percent decline in burglaries of residences or businesses, according to the department’s figures.

But for Poland, the shift in the department’s philosophy is about more than just facts and figures. He says he wants everyone working in the department, from officers on the

Youth Foundation,” Middleton said.

People interested in participating in the ride, or making a donation, can do so at https://www.bikereg.com/ third-annual-fort-bend-dabike-ride-for-survivors.

beat to civilian employees, feel empowered in making their own contributions to how the force best operates.

Mayor Joe Zimmerman told the Star that since coming on board almost a year ago, Poland “has exceeded all of my and City Councils expectations.”

Zimmerman said that when Robins, Poland’s predecessor, retired in summer 2002, there was no intention on his or the City Council’s part to hire someone who would bring a new philosophy to the police department. But Poland emerged as the strongest candidate in the national search that resulted, and he has since demonstrated that he was the right pick.

Zimmerman said that his own philosophy of leadership is that a good leader should be respected before being liked by his subordinates. In his own observation, he said, Poland has uniformly gained the respect, as well as the admiration, of those serving under him.

driguez had previously worked there. After getting a phone number for him, detectives asked the Houston-area FBI to help find a location for Rodriguez, which yielded an address at Galveston’s East Beach.

According to a Galveston Police Department press release, a patrol officer was able to locate a vehicle matching the description of the woman’s car provided by Stafford police parked at Apffel Park on the island’s east end.

When officers approached the vehicle, they found one suspect in the driver’s seat, another standing behind the car, and another standing on the nearby sand dunes appearing to be acting as a lookout, according to authorities.

The woman was found on the floor bed of the back seat of the car with her hands bound behind her back and head covered. She was taken by Galveston Emergency Medical Services to The University of Texas Medical Brach emergency room for evaluation.

Police arrested five people: Jose Gonzalez Hernandez, 50, also known as Brayan Rodriguez Ramir; his wife Claudia Elizabeth Rojas Rivas, 37; Pablo Mendez-Cruz, 21; Kelvin Gustavo Cruz, 30; and Williams Noe RedondoRamirez, 35. All were booked into the Galveston County Jail on charges of engaging in organized criminal activity, as well as immigration holds. At press time, they were awaiting being transferred to the Fort Bend County Jail.

According to Wesley Wittig of the Fort Bend County District Attorney’s Office, charges have not yet been accepted for the suspects, pending their transfer to the county.

Fort Bend County Libraries invites the public to join in this year’s “Community Reads” initiative, a county-wide reading program encouraging communities to read and discuss a particular book together in October and November. The 2023 selection for “Community Reads” is Rubén Degollado’s debut novel, “The Family Ezquierdo.”

Book discussions will take place at different locations throughout the library system on various dates and times during the months of October and November. The “Community Reads” initiative will conclude at FBCL’s annual Book Fest on November 18, with a keynote presentation by Rubén Degollado.

“The Family Izguierdo” iweaves together the lives of three generations of a tight-knit Tejano family bound by love, and a curse. Told in a series voices. the novel is a narrative of a multi-generational family at a turning point.

“Through the years, the Izguierdo family has grappled with misfortunes that none of them can explain. When eldest son Gonzalo digs up a strange object in the backyard of the family home, the Izguierdos are convinced that it is proof

that a jealous neighbor has cursed them, and this curse is the cause of all of their troubles,” according to a news release.

“As the Izguierdos deal with a troublesome past, a distressing present, and an uncertain future, they are sustained by the blood that binds them, a divine presence that guides them, and an abiding love for one another. Each interlocking chapter is told by a different family member, culminating in a thoughtfully-crafted history spanning decades,” the release states.

Book discussions will take place at different locations throughout the library system. The schedule of upcoming book discussions is as follows:

• Wednesday, October 4, 12:00 noon-1:00 pm – Cinco Ranch Branch Library (2620 Commercial Center Blvd, Katy)

• Saturday, October 7, 11:00 am-12:00 noon – Missouri City Branch Library (1530 Texas Parkway)

• Thursday, October 19, 12:00 noon-1:00 pm –George Memorial Library (1001 Golfview, Richmond)

• Monday, November 13, 3:00-4:00 pm – Sienna Branch Library (8411 Sienna Springs Blvd, Missouri City)

• Saturday, November 18, 11:00 am-12:00 noon

– Missouri City Branch Library

For more information, see Fort Bend County Libraries website (www.fortbend. lib.tx.us) or call the library system’s Communications Office (281-633-4734).

Photos Courtesy Galveston Police Department

Jose Gonzalez Hernandez Kelvin Gustavo Cruz

Pablo Mendez-Cruz

Claudia Elizabeth Rojas Rivas Williams Noe Redondo-Ramirez

82 Fort Bend ISD students named finalists in prestigious scholarship program

Eighty-two Fort Bend ISD high school seniors have been named semifinalists in the 2024 National Merit® Scholarship Program, making FBISD the district with more semifinalists than any other school system in the entire region.

“This achievement is evidence of the excellence that exists in Fort Bend ISD and it’s a testament to the amazing teachers who instruct, train, nurture and mentor our children,”

FBISD Superintendent Dr. Christie Whitbeck said in a press release. “This is one of the reasons our district continues to be a ‘Destination District’ where parents are drawn to live, work and raise their families. The community support

our district enjoys is outstanding and we greatly appreciate it.”

Fort Bend ISD students are among 16,000 semifinalists in the 69th annual National Merit Scholarship Program. These students have an opportunity to continue in the competition and win one of three types of National Merit Scholarships worth nearly $28 million combined. The awards will be announced April through July.

Merit scholars are selected on the basis of their skills, accomplishments, and potential for success in rigorous college studies. The scholars are students who score in the top one percent in the nation on their college entrance exams.

High school juniors entered the 2024 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2022 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®), which served as an initial screen of program entrants. The semifinalists represent less than one percent of all U.S. high school seniors.

To become a finalist, each semifinalist and a high school official must submit a detailed scholarship application, in which they provide information about the semifinalist’s academic record, participation in school and community activities, demonstrated leadership abilities, employment, and honors and awards received. A semifinalist must have an outstanding aca-

Fort Bend libraries celebrate Teen Reads month in October

Fort Bend County Libraries will celebrate Teen Read Month in October, with special recognition of the county’s growing teen population and their role in establishing new library programs and services reflecting the changing literary dimensions of this population.

The rapid growth in the teen-reader population around the country is reflected in the rising number of Young Adult (YA) programs and book collections at FBCL. YA Advisory Councils are making an impact by providing a platform from which teens can actively suggest library programs and popular books and authors they would like to have included in the YA area of the library.

Teen programs at FBCL range from book clubs and college/career-preparedness programs to fun crafts and trivia competitions. Game nights and movie nights are also popular activities.

In October, in addition to the regularly scheduled YA programs, FBCL will host special trivia/scavenger hunts, based on the legend of Anansi the Spider, at various locations throughout the library system.

In the “Spider’s Sign of the Eight” trivia challenge, teens will hunt through one of the participating libraries on the designated day

in search of eight “messengers” hidden in the building. They must then try to solve the riddle that the messenger presents.

Those who complete the challenge by solving all eight riddles will receive honor and win a prize!

Registration is encouraged.

The schedule of challenges is as follows:

• Wednesday, October 4, 5:00-6:30 pm – Missouri City Branch Library, 1530 Texas Parkway.

• Tuesday, October 10, 5:00-6:30 pm – Sienna Branch Library, 8411 Sienna Springs Blvd, Missouri City.

• Wednesday, October 11, 6:00-7:30 pm – Mission Bend Branch Library, 8421 Addicks Clodine Road.

• Tuesday, October 17, 5:00-6:30 pm – Cinco

demic record throughout high school, be endorsed and recommended by a high school official, write an essay, and earn SAT® or ACT® scores that confirm the student’s earlier performance on the qualifying test.

Fort Bend ISD’s 2024 National Merit Scholarship Semifinalists:

Austin High School: Anusha Adusumilli, Margaret Jia, Aashi S. Kasotia, Ahmed A. Kazi, Chloe Y. Lee, Mahika P. Natarajan, Pia Saha, Jessica A. Smith, Alexander R. Wang, Andy Y. Wei, Ziduo Yi, Ryan Yuan

Clements High School: Enoch Y. Amat, Aryan D. Arora, Aryan Bora, Aaron W. Chen, David W. Chen, Anne M. Christiono, An -

thony Du, Qimiao Gong, Rohan Gummadi, Nischay Hegde, Wenda Huang, Adam Hwang, Alexander Y. Jun, Ruhi Kelkar, Anurag R. Kumar, Tina Li, Om H. Patel, Paloma Pichardo, Ruchika A. Sanghi, Rianna R. Skaria, Alexander M. Song, Kavya M. Vaidyanathan, Joshua M. Wan, Emma V. Wang, Hanyi Wu, Viola R. Xu, Leo Y. Zhang, William C. Zuo

Dulles High School: Anushka Aggarwal, Anantshri N. Asthana, Isaac N. Chacko, Akhila R. Chikkula, Jeffrey B. Copold, Maria Elahi, Brionna Grapeson, Saikrishna K. Gundlapalli, Juliana F. Horiszny, Pablo

J. Jonsson, Tran T. Lam, Boping Li, Justin J. Li, Caleb A. Lin, Benjamin Tri M. Nguyen, Jayani Pradhan, Iana M. Sajith, Ronil M. Shah, Allen A. Thomas,

Dan D. Tran, Aishwaryaa

H. Udeshi, Jason A. Wu, Maggie Y. Yuan

Elkins High School: Alina R. Ali, Jie Dai, Nnamdi J. Ilochonwu, Darena D. Nguyen, Carson W. Padilla, Brendan P. Ryan, Dev B. Shroff, Kelly Yin

Hightower High School: Arshi M. Maniar, Mhyank S. Sekhar, Eric J. Thekkel

Kempner High School: Jai R. Pillai

Ridge Point High School: Christian L. Devenish, Zachary L. Mok

Travis High School: Evan Chang, Rohan T. Dharia, Crystal J. Fu, Haider Mahdi, Ayaan Sunesara

UH Sugar Land to hold groundbreaking on Oct. 5

Staff Reports

The University of Houston will host a groundbreaking ceremony for the new $65 million academic building on the UH at Sugar Land instructional site on Thursday, Oct. 5, beginning at 1 p.m.

The event will be held UH at Sugar Land, 14000 University Blvd. A reception will follow in the rotunda of the Albert and Mamie George Building.

rooms, labs and offices for UH Cullen College of Engineering-Technology Division faculty, staff and students. Other features include:

Wet and dry labs

Traditional and Active Learning classrooms

Computer labs

Student lounge areas

Conference spaces

The new facility will be adjacent to the current Technology Building and will open in 2025.

University and for our Fort Bend County region,” Jay Neal, associate vice president, academic affairs and chief operating officer for UH at Sugar Land, said in a press release. “The addition of this new building will allow us to accommodate all Technology Division classes and programs that have been transitioning from the main campus to Sugar Land for the last several months.”

Ranch Branch Library, 2620 Commercial Center Blvd, Katy.

• Tuesday, October 24, 4:00-5:30 pm – University Branch Library, 14010 University Blvd in Sugar Land. (Park inside the gated lot for VISITOR LOT 4. Bring the parking-ticket stub to the check-out desk inside the library to be validated by library staff. Parking is free if the ticket is validated by the library. Parking outside the gated lot may result in a parking violation from the University of Houston.)

For more information on Fort Bend County Libraries’ programs and services for young adults, see the FBCL website (www.fortbend.lib.tx.us) call the library system’s Communications Office (281-633-4734), or inquire at any of the branch libraries.

The three-floor, approximately 75,000-square-foot building will house class-

“We are excited to usher in this next chapter of growth and impact for the

The new Sugar Land Academic Building is designed by SmithGroup and will be constructed by Vaug

George Ranch Frontier Days set for Oct. 21

The George Ranch and the Fort Bend History Association have partnered to present the new George Ranch Frontier Days, a day of family fun on Saturday, Oct. 21.

“George Ranch Frontier Days will showcase 150 years of Texas history in a festive atmosphere that has something for everyone,” FBHA Executive Director Madeleine Calcote-Garcia said in a press release. “It’s a day filled with cowboys, cannons, history and fun with cattle working demonstrations, historic home tours, battle reenactments, games, vendors, food trucks, live. music and entertainment, hands-on activities and more! We invite the community to come and experience all that the FBHA, The George Ranch and our many participating partners have to offer for a historic, funfilled Saturday.”

Other attractions include a Cowboy Fast Draw Contest, music from Grandmas’ Boyfriends Barbershop Quartet and Museum of the Pacific War weapons’ demonstrations.

The Frontier Market will feature a variety of vendors for holiday shopping, including: Crafts by Astrid, Daughters of the Republic of Texas, Gloria Desyns, Fort Bend County Historical Commission, Fort Bend Museum Docents, George Ranch Historical Park Gift Shop, Greenleaf Promotions, Hummers Homestead Alpacas, JDs Woodworks, Judy’s Handcrafted Creations, Author Curt Locklear, M&D Woodturning & Sawmill Services, Rocking F Woodworks, Sons of the Republic of Texas and SweetNes Honey & Beetique.

Costumed guides will be on hand to tell tales of 150 years of Texas history, and Sky Kings Falconry will present “Native Birds of Texas” featuring the avian stars including Cyrene, a Eurasian eagle owl, Pierre, cara car, and Obie, a raven, The show will be presented by wildlife conservationist and “bird whisperer” Victor Lawrence.

Food and beverage options in The Chow Corral include: BLPJ BBQ, Katy Sliders, Kona Ice of Richmond, Roadside Popcorn, Rock n Cajun and Ujima Unique Cuisine.

On Friday, Oct. 20, schools are invited for Field Trip Friday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Schools can sign up by contacting Maggie Trinker at 281.343.0218 ext. 220 or sending an email to mtrinker@georgeranch.org. Advance

When it comes to local advertising

registration is required, and space is limited.

George Ranch Frontier Days will be open to the public on Saturday, Oct. 21, from 9 a.m.-5

p.m. at the ranch, located at 10215 FM 762 in Richmond. Tickets are $20 for adults, $15 for children and children four and under are free. To purchase tickets or for more

information, visit www.georgeranch.org/programs-events/ george-ranch-frontier-days.

The event is presented by Polly Shouse and is

sponsored by Educational Day Sponsor Brazos Valley Schools Credit Union, Kay Danzinger, Fort Bend History Association Board of Trustees and OCuSOFT.

Kathryn Grace Tompkins crowned 2023 Fort Bend County Fair Queen

will serve

hear FFA, where she enjoys working with her peers in various activities and contests. As a sophomore, Kathryn received her Texas FFA Lonestar Degree.

She spends most of her time working in the barn, caring for her show heifers and steers. As a volunteer, Kathryn gives her time to various organizations, mentoring younger students and serving in programs she has been involved in. Her most recent is the Junior Rodeo Committee for the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Kathryn is considering attending Texas A&M or

Oklahoma State University after high school.

She credits her teacher, Ms. Kasie Vestal, for pushing her to follow her dreams and who has played a large part in showing what it means to be a leader and how to face adversity with strength and dignity.

Kathryn enjoys traveling, spending time with her sisters and nieces, and swimming. The Fort Bend County Fair continues through October 8 at the Fort Bend County Fairgrounds in Rosenberg. For more information, visit fortbendcountyfair.com or call the Fair Office at 281342-6171.

Historic cannon demonstrations will be among the attractions at George Ranch Frontier Days on Oct. 21. Courtesy George Ranch

Lynn Ashby Columnist

By Lynn Ashby ASHBY2@COMCAST.NET

Stewart Rhodes, we’ll see you again in 2042. Henry “Enrique” Tarrio, you are now 39 years old. You’ll be 61 before you can riot again. Guy Wesley Reffitt, of Wylie, Texas, you won’t be free to see your son until after 12 years in prison. That may be just as well since he was the one who turned you in to the feds. Be proud, my fellow Texans, Reffitt was only one of at least 63 Texans who were accused of taking part in the Capitol insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021. At least five of them have already been convicted. Texas has the third-highest number of residents charged in the riot, just under Flor-

A Capitol idea

ida and Pennsylvania. Among the rioters’ banners (“Stop the Steal” and “Hang Mike Pence”) I saw at least one Lone Star flag, so we have a dog in this fight.

First, unlike Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick’s outward non-partisan facade while running the Ken Paxton impeachment trial, let me state right off that I am prejudiced. Along with Texas high school football, the Presbyterian Church and cheese enchiladas, I favor not trying to overthrow our government. It wasn’t a spontaneous gathering of peaceful demonstrators, not when you drive or fly all the way to Washington, D.C. by the hundreds at the same time, don a military helmet and flak jacket, carry a club and cans of spray (unless it is Off! -- mosquitos can be terrible in Washington, even in January) and beat up police, then raid and vandalize the Capitol.

But this may put me in a minority. Rep. Andrew Clyde, a Republican congressman from Georgia, said during a Congressional oversight hearing on May 12, 2021, “Let me be clear: There was no insur-

rection, and to call it an insurrection, in my opinion, is a bold-faced lie. You know, if you didn’t know the TV footage was a video from January 6, you would actually think it was a normal tourist visit.” Unfortunately for Clyde, video showed him helping barricade the House chamber door from the rioters. The latest Rasmussen Reports finds that 49 percent of likely U.S. voters believe the riot was a mostly peaceful protest that got out of control, while 45 percent think the storming of the Capitol was an illegal insurrection.

Speaking of polls, a Politico/Morning Consult Poll found that eight out of 10 Republicans still view Donald Trump favorably. Some 35 percent, including 68 percent of Republicans, believe that the election was stolen. That makes about 50 million deniers. This is similar to polls that show 70 percent of Republicans say they don’t think Joe Biden is the legitimate winner of the 2020 election.

Back to the “peaceful tourists visit.” The wheels of justice are grinding slowly. It’s been, what? more than two and a half years

since that awful January 6, still the court cases drag on, and we have a ways to go. Not to get bogged down in numbers, as of May 2023, more than 1,033 people have been arrested for storming the U.S. Capitol building. Approximately 47 percent of those arrested (485 people) have received criminal sentences, while the rest are still awaiting their trials or haven’t yet reached plea agreements.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia has reported that 277 defendants have been sentenced to prison time, with longer prison terms for those who engaged in violence or threats. The median prison sentence is only 60 days. An additional 113 rioters have been sentenced to home detention, while most sentences have included fines, community service, and probation for low-level offenses like illegally parading or demonstrating in the Capitol.

It is expected that hundr eds of additional cases will be tried in the coming months. Every now and then we learn that some guy – it’s usually, but not always, a guy – is picked up by the feds for the way

he spent his visit to the Capitol. So we can only wonder how soundly others have been sleeping. One more point which should be mentioned: several of these punishments include a fine.

For instance, David Lee Judd of Carrollton (Texas!), was sentenced to 32 months in prison, 24 months of supervised release and fined $5,691. That’s an odd amount, but maybe that’s the price to replace a Capitol window.

This brings us to the dollar cost to us that the rioters caused. It will be more than $30 million immediately. There is the obvious cost to replace shattered windows and bashed down doors, stolen equipment and to replace rugs and repaint walls. The House’s fine art collection was damaged. Two lanterns designed and built by the eminent landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted in the late 19th century were ripped from their mounts. Paint was tracked all over the stone balustrades and into the hallways. Busts of former speakers of the House and a Chippewa statesman, a statue of Thomas Jefferson and paintings of James Madison and John Quincy

Adams were coated with chemicals. There is another less-obvious and long-term cost: The strain on Congressional employees from the assault caused a substantial increase in demand for mental health counseling.

There’s a funny sidebar to this story: The man who wasn’t that man. Ray Epps was at the riot. TV shots showed him at first urging on the demonstrators, then later, telling them to calm down. Fox News got the story that Epps was actually an FBI plant to make the Trump tribe look bad. The late Tucker Carlson showed Epps’ photo and repeated the accusation at least 28 times. Epps denied he was a fed plant as did the FBI. He got so many death threats that he had to quit his job and he and his wife had to leave their home in Arizona and hide in the wilds of the Rockies. He is suing both Fox and Carlson. Since these expensive knuckle-draggers are not Texas high school football, the Presbyterian Church or cheese enchiladas, I say lock ‘em up for a long, long time.

Ashby demonstrates at ashby2@comcast.net

Water District

Notice of Public Hearing on Tax Rate

The Fort Bend County Municipal Utility District No. 131 will hold a public hearing on a proposed tax rate for the tax year 2023 on Tuesday, October 24, 2023 at 6:00 p.m. at the Mustang Community Center, 4521 FM-521, Fresno, Texas 77545, via Teleconference at 1-346-248-7799, Meeting ID: 954 7407 3398 or via Zoom at https://nortonrosefulbright. zoom.us/j/95474073398. Your individual taxes may increase at a greater or lesser rate, or even decrease, depending on the tax rate that is adopted and on the change in the taxable value of your property in relation to the change in taxable value of all other property. The change in the taxable value of your property in relation to the change in the taxable value of all other property determines the distribution of the tax burden among all property owners. Visit Texas.gov/PropertyTaxes to find a link to your local property tax database on which you can easily access information regarding your property taxes, including information about proposed tax rates and scheduled public hearings of each entity that taxes your property.

FOR the proposal: J. Jacobs, J. Randall, M. Higgins, L. Smith-Boards & J. Maxwell

AGAINST the proposal: (none)

PRESENT and not voting: (none)

ABSENT: (none)

The following table compares taxes on an average residence homestead in this taxing unit last year to taxes proposed on the average residence homestead this year.

Worship Directory FORT BEND COUNTY

NOTICE OF VOTE ON TAX RATE

If the district adopts a combined debt service, operation and maintenance and contract tax rate that would result in the taxes on the average residence homestead increasing by more than 3.5 percent, an election must be held to determine whether to approve the operation and maintenance tax rate under Section 49.23602, Water Code.

The purpose of this tax increase is to pay for the District’s debt service and operating needs while maintaining reserves in its Debt Service Fund and General Fund for future infrastructure obligations. The 86th Texas Legislature modified the manner in which the voter-approval tax rate is calculated to limit the rate of growth of property taxes in the state.

Questions regarding this notice can be directed to the tax office at (281) 499-1223.

GARDEN CLUB

OCTOBER PRESENTATION

“Remarkable Plants: Natives and Sneaky Interlopers in the Texas Garden and Wildscape” BY Matt Turner, PhD.

October 17, 2023 • 10 AM St. Basil’s Hall • 702 Burney Rd, Sugar Land

RICHMOND/ROSENBERG

CAREGIVER

ALZHEIMER’S

SUPPORT GROUP MEETING

Please join us on Thursday, October 5, at 7:00 p.m. We will be meeting in Room 105, the Gathering Room, at St. John’s UMC in Richmond. St. John’s is located at 400 Jackson Street.

We are looking forward to welcoming Dana Declouet to our meeting this month. Dana is a Certified Assisted Living Administrator and will be speaking on respite care. She’ll be addressing the cost, the length of stay, and who pays for respite care.

Alzheimer’s Association support groups are a safe place for caregivers and loved ones of people with dementia to:

• Develop a support system.

• Exchange practical information on challenges and possible solutions.

• Talk through issues and ways of coping.

• Share feelings, needs and concerns.

• Learn about community resources.

Just a reminder that support groups create a safe, confidential, supportive community and a chance for participants to develop informal mutual support and social relationships. They educate and inform participants about dementia and help participants develop methods and skills to solve problems.

Please visit our group’s Facebook Page: Richmond Alzheimer’s Support Group https://www.facebook.com/groups/RichmondRosenbergAlzheimersSupport/ or visit https://www.facebook. com/groups/alztexprograms to learn more about the Houston and Southeast Texas Chapter’s Care and Support page, Questions may be sent to: gallowkj@earthlink.net

We hope you will join us on Thursday, October 5, at 7:00 p.m.

QUAIL VALLEY GARDEN CLUB

The Quail Valley Garden Club is very busy, not only with meetings, but with some fun “stuff” for our members and the community. Please find our fall schedule of events that the QVGC will be involved with this fall leading up to the holidays.

HOLY FAMILY CATHOLIC CHURCH FALL FESTIVAL

Sunday October 8, 10:00am – 6:00 pm. Breakfast menudo and tacos at 8:00am. Festival food plus Filipino, Indian, Mexican food. Games, bingo, silent auction, raffle prizes. 1510 Fifth St, Missouri City, Highway 90 at Fort Bend Parkway. Https://www. holyfamilychurch.us

MUSIC MAGIC FOR 6 & 7 YEAR

OLD BOYS STARTS OCTOBER 3

The Fort Bend Boys Choir of Texas is offering Music Magic, an 8-week music enrichment program for six and seven year old boys. The class meets from 6:30-7:15 p.m. on Tuesdays starting October 3, 2023 and ending on December 5, 2023. (They will not meet on Halloween or Thanksgiving week.) Music Magic brings music alive through the use of movement, musical games, singing and other child-centered activities. Boys learn about pitch matching and rhythm awareness in addition to developing large muscle coordination, increased focus and better musicianship. To find out more about Music Magic, visit: https:// fbbctx.org/our-programs/music-magic/.

LANDMARK CHARITIES PARTNERS WITH HOPE FOR THREE 8TH ANNUAL GOLF FORE AUTISM TOURNAMENT

Hope For Three, a nonprofit and autism organization, is partnering with Landmark Charities to present the 8th Annual Golf Fore Autism Charity Tournament on October 2nd at the prestigious Sweetwater Country Club in Sugar Land. Individual play is $150 or form a foursome for $600. Network with business partners, professionals, and community supporters who participate in the tournament to raise awareness of autism and funds for autistic children. Register your team today at www. hopeforthree.org/events. Volunteer opportunities, sponsorship, and underwriting opportunities are available. The event takes place on both courses to double the impact supporting local families. Your support can change a child’s future.

ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE GRAND PARKWAY BAPTIST CHURCH

In conjunction with the Literacy Council of Fort Bend Bend County, GPBC offers ESL classes on Tuesday nights 6-8:30 from August 22, 2023 through May 21, 2024. We are located at 12000 FM 1464 Richmond. Our students speak several languages and encompass many faiths. All are welcome. For more information call 281-277-2200 and ask for ESL information. You may also email ESL@grandparkway.org

FBJSL IS ACCEPTING CAF GRANT APPLICATIONS

We provide grants of up to $5,000.00 to charitable causes serving Fort Bend County with requests to fund a critical need, pilot a program, or expand a significant service to the community. If your agency or organization is interested in applying for a CAF grant, please visit the Request Support page of the FBJSL website (www.fbjsl.org/request-support). All applications should be submitted via e-mail to brccom@fbjsl.com

THE SANCTUARY

FOSTER CARE SERVICES

We are a child placing agency that provides wrap around care support for foster children and foster families. We provide free therapy services, 24 hr. crisis intervention, respite/alternative care services and community-based support. For more info, www.sanctuaryfostercare.org

ALIEF AARP CHAPTER 3264

Meets the first Thursday of every month at 10:00 a.m. at Salvation Army Church, 7920 Cook Road, Houston, TX 77072. Educational Program/Entertainment at each meeting. Bus Trips every month. Seniors 50 and above invited. Call 281-785-7372 for more information.

FORT BEND COUNTY LIBRARIES’ ONLINE BOOK CLUB

Online meetings on the fourth Wednesday of every month. Free and open to the public. Registration is required; to register online www.fortbend.lib.tx.us, “Classes & Events,” select “Virtual Programs,” find the program on the date indicated. Participants may also register by calling George Memorial Library (281-342-4455).

SUGAR LAND ROTARY CLUB

Sugar Land Rotary Club, the nation’s oldest community service organization, wants you to be its guest at a meeting that could turn out to be the best fit for getting involved with a local, non-political, humanitarian service organization with a global presence to satisfy your passion. We’re on a quest for new members! Call or email Dean Clark, 469-850-2424, dean7351@gmail.com. We’re a friendly group that meets once a week for lunch.

FT. BEND ACCORDION CLUB

Meets on the 4th Sunday of every month from 2:pm - 4:pm at: CHRIST CHURCH SUGAR LAND (in the Chapel) 3300 Austin Parkway, Sugar Land, TX 77479 FREE and Open to the Public! We welcome everybody! If you play accordion, beginners to professional and would like to play Call, Text or email: Vince Ramos Cell: 281-204-7716 vincer.music@gmail.com

FORT BEND JUNIOR SERVICE

LEAGUE RECRUITING NEW

MEMBERS FOR 2022-2023 YEAR

To join, the membership application can be accessed at https:// www.fbjsl.org/join/how-to-become-a-member/. FBJSL will also be hosting multiple virtual and in-person recruitment events over the summer where potential new members can learn more about the League. Information regarding attending these events is available at www.fbjsl.org or on the FBJSL Facebook page at www.facebook.com/FortBendJuniorServiceLeague/.

LITERACY COUNCIL OF FORT BEND COUNTY

We enhance lives and strengthen communities by teaching adults to read. We need your help. Literacy Council is actively recruiting Volunteer Tutors to provide instruction for English as a Second Language (ESL) Levels 0-5, three hours a week. For more information, call 281-240-8181 or visit our website www.ftbendliteracy.org

JAM WITH SAM

Join Sam Grice Tuesday evenings at 6:30 for a casual evening of music. We play a variety of music including bluegrass, country, gospel and some western. We request acoustic instruments only please. We welcome both participants and music lovers who enjoy listening to good live music. There’s no charge and we welcome beginners and gladly offer gentle assistance. We meet at First Presbyterian Church, 502 Eldridge Rd, Sugar Land. Please call Sam at 832-428-3165 for further information.

GIVE A GIFT OF HOPE

Give a Gift of Hope one-time or monthly. Your help provides access to therapies and services children with autism might otherwise go without. Please consider Hope For Three in your Estate, Planned, or Year-End Giving. Register now, or learn more about exciting events: www.hopeforthree.org/events

DVD-BASED ADULT SUNDAY SCHOOL CLASS WITH NO HOMEWORK REQUIRED

Weekly class designed to help you understand and appreciate the Bible by giving you a better sense of the land and culture from which it sprang. The class meets at 9:30 am every Sunday at First Presbyterian of Sugar Land (502 Eldridge Rd.). For more information call 281-240-3195

EXCHANGE

EXCHANGE, America’s Service Club, always welcomes guests and is in search of new members! Various Fort Bend clubs exist and can accommodate early morning (7 a.m.), noon and evening meeting time desires. For more info, contact Mike Reichek, Regional Vice President, 281-575-1145 or mike@reichekfinancial.com We would love to have you join us and see what we are all about!

MISSOURI CITY AARP

CHAPTER 3801

Meets the second Monday of every month at 11:30 a.m., at 2701 Cypress Point Dr., Missouri City Rec Center. Lunch, education, and entertainment. All seniors over 50 invited. For more information, call 713-859-5920 or 281-499-3345.

There's no place for hate in Fort Bend politics

the New Testament that is echoed in the tenets of all those faiths. I saw the actual painting at a Rockwell exhibition at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston in early 2020, shortly before the lockdown.

By Ken Fountain

Afew years ago, I read “The World’s Religions,” by the late, esteemed professor of the history of religion Huston Smith. I’d first heard of him through a PBS program he did with Bill Moyers many years ago. First published in 1958, the book grew out of a series Smith presented on the St. Louis public television station in the 1950s. In the book, considered a classic of its kind, Smith, the son of Christian missionaries in China, provides highly readable overviews of the world’s major faiths.

My paperback copy of the 1991 update of the book features Norman Rockwell’s painting “The Golden Rule.” You know the one. It depicts a group of people from around the world, of all the major faiths (and some perhaps not-so-major), with the inscription “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you,” a verse from

As I’ve told you before, I grew up in Alief. Back then, in the later years of the original Houston oil boom, Alief was a highly diverse place as people poured in from all across the country and the globe. I had friends of nearly every background you could name, including many of the faiths represented in Rockwell’s painting. Today, according to a talk I once attended by an academic who studies such things, Alief is the second-most religiously diverse community in the nation, after Flatbush in Queens, New York City.

Later, I enlisted in the U.S. Navy, and was stationed aboard an aircraft carrier based in San Diego. During my hitch, I made three six-month deployments, visiting ports all across Asia, Australia, and the Persian Gulf. We even paid a visit to the exotic locale of Vancouver, British Columbia.

One thing that has always stuck with me about my Navy years is that wherever we went, people were overwhelmingly friendly and welcoming. During a visit to Tokyo, a man with somewhat limited proficiency in English

provided a couple of buddies and me an impromptu guided tour of a museum. In Pusan, South Korea, a few of us hiked up a hill to visit a Buddhist monastery. We stayed a bit too long and were walking back down the hill toward the city after dark when a man kindly offered us a ride in the back of his truck.

During one deployment, our first port of call after spending three straight months in the Persian Gulf was Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. It happened to be during Ramadan, so there were thousands of sailors and Marines wandering the streets of that beautiful city having to refrain from eating or drinking outside during the daylight hours. One day, after spending a few hours at the souk, or marketplace, some of us were headed back to the ship near sunset. A group of men were laying out a large blanket on the street, and they invited us to join them for their meal breaking the fast.

My interest in the world’s faiths has continued ever since. In greater Houston, I’ve visited churches of many denominations, synagogues, mosques, and many others, including the stunningly beautiful BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, a Hindu temple, in Stafford.

As we’ve discussed before, Fort Bend County is considered by many

experts to be the most ethnically diverse county in the nation. It’s also one of the fastest-growing counties in Texas, and that growth is expected to be near-exponential in coming years. People are attracted to Fort Bend for all the reasons you’d expect: a thriving economy, great schools, and welcoming neighborhoods. With that ethnic diversity, of courses, comes religious diversity. Fort Bend is likely close to Alief in that regard. We even have the Fort Bend Interfaith Community, which in addition to other activities hosts the annual Interfaith Thanksgiving Service.

Taral Patel, a Democrat, is one of several announced candidates of both parties in next year’s election for the Precinct 3 Commissioner seat long held by Republican Andy Meyers, who has announced his own bid for reelection. Patel, an Indian-American and a Hindu, grew up mostly in Fort Bend. If elected, he would be the second Indian-American on Commissioners Court, with County Judge KP George, who is a Christian.

Last week, I received an email from Patel’s campaign, in which he decries some of the social media postings he’s come across from people who oppose his candidacy. A sampling of screenshots included in the email include comments that are racist, xenophobic, and in some instances

woefully ignorant about the actual tenets of Hinduism. (I’d invite people interested in actually learning something about Hinduism to pay a visit to the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir mentioned above.) The comments are uniformly vile.

Way back when I wrote for The Daily Cougar at the University of Houston, the theater department mounted a production of “The Diary of Anne Frank.” At the end of one performance, attendees returned to their cars only to find flyers on their windshields containing the oft-debunked assertion that the Jewish businessman Otto Frank, Anne’s father, faked the diary of his daughter (who died at Auschwitz) after World War II in order to make a quick fortune.

I got a hold of one of the flyers. There was no identifying information about its source except a phone number “for more information.” I called the number and reached a voicemail, so I left my name and number. When, the next day, someone called back, I identified myself as a reporter. Like any coward, the person hung up.

I’ve said before that as the lead reporter for the Fort Bend Star who strives to remain objective, I sometimes struggle to find subjects to write an opinion column about where I can’t really express a strong opinion. This isn’t

one of those times.

This is in no way an endorsement of any political candidate or any party. Especially today, there is no place for the kind of hateful bile that has been directed at Patel. Of course, it’s always been with us, including in the 2022 race that led to the election of Sugar Land’s Suleman Lulani to the Texas House of Representatives, one of the first two Muslims elected to that body.

Commissioner Meyers immediately denounced the comments flagged by Patel. “I do not know the people to whom these comments are attributed, but they are reprehensible and do not reflect my values or the values that made Fort Bend County such a wonderful, safe, and family-friendly place to live”, he told KPRC-TV.

The Fort Bend County of today, and the future, is much different than that of just a few decades ago. Kids going to schools here now are growing up in a highly diverse setting. From my own observation, they are pretty OK with it. As another Bible verse puts it, “The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together; and a little child shall lead them.”

Fountain keeps the faith at KFountain@fortbendstar.com

Early Detection Starts With Your ANNUAL MAMMOGRAM