VOL 10 No. 14
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FORT BEND FAIR. BALANCED. INFORMATIVE. P. O.BOX 623, SUGAR LAND, TX 77487-0623
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 5, 2017
Official newspaper of Fort Bend County & Missouri City
Dulles High has three Semi-finalists for the US Physics, Chemistry, and Biology Olympiad teams
Shreyas Balaji, Andrew Liu and Shree Mohan. Shreyas Balaji is a senior at Dulles High School and a semi-finalist for all three exams in physics, chemistry, and biology. Andrew Liu, a sophomore at Dulles High School, is a semi-finalist for two exams in physics, and chemistry. Shree Mohan is a sophomore at Dulles High School and is a semi-finalist for biology. Approximately 400 top scorers out of 10,000 in the United States take the first test to advance to the USA Physics Olympiad Exam as semifinalists. The USA Physics Olympiad Exam is used as the basis for selection of the 20 members of the U.S. Physics Team. These students, if finalists, would then travel to the University of Maryland-College Park at the end of May for the annual U.S. Physics Team Training Camp. There they would engage in ten days of intense studying, testing and problem solving. The International Physics Olympiad will be in Indonesia. Approximately 1000 in the country will compete for a positions of 1 through 20 in chemistry. These 20 top scoring students from the National Exam will spend two weeks at a study camp to undergo rigorous training. Based on their performance, four students are chosen to represent the International Chemistry Olympiad held in Pathon, Thailand. Approximately 10,000 students take the premier exam in biology to narrow the competition down for the semifinalist round. These students then go through another round of testing so the pool will be narrowed to 20 students world-wide, and then to four students where the 2017 International Biology Olympiad will be held at the University of Warwick, Coventry, UK.
Judge Sandy Bielstein passes away
Bielstein Fort Bend County Court-atLaw #4 Judge R. H. “Sandy” Bielstein passed away peacefully on April 2, according to the Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office. He was first elected to County Court at Law No. 4 in 2001. In his last re-election bid in 2014, Bielstein held off the challenge of Fort Bend County resident Warren Diepraam, who worked as a Montgomery County special prosecutor since 2009. Bielstein was a Marine Corps veteran who served in Vietnam and earned three Presidential Unit Citations for unit combat action. He also served 20 years with the Houston Police Department before retiring as a lieutenant in the Homicide Division. Bielstein graduated with honors from the South Texas College of Law in 1989 while working full-time with HPD as a homicide lieutenant. He operated a private practice as a trial lawyer in both criminal and civil matters. Bielstein established the first therapeutic DWI/drug court in Texas, graduating 235 probationers from an intensive treatment and supervision program with a recidivism rate of less than 10 percent. He was married with three children and multiple grandchildren.
Appeals court reverses trial court order, rules in favor of FCCA
By SESHADRI KUMAR The Court of Appeals, First District of Texas, has reversed an order of the 268th District Court, presided by Judge Brady Elliott, in the First Colony Community Association versus Arthur J. Valentz and Lynn Valentz. The litigation was over a gate installed by the residents in a landscape area,which the association deemed an easement open to the public. The district court had earlier awarded a summary judgment in favor of the Valentz family, allowing the landscape area to be gated and locked. The panel of justices comprising Michael Massingale, Harvey G. Brown and Rebeca A. Huddle ruled that “The Declaration expressly provides that all First Colony owners have an easement of enjoyment in the Association’s Common Areas, including Reserve E. Because
the easement is unequivocally “non-exclusive” and the Declaration provides that all First Colony owners have an easement of enjoyment in and to Reserve E, we conclude that the use of a locked gate on Reserve E to exclude the Association’s members violates the express non-exclusive grant. Accordingly, we conclude that the trial court erred in granting summary judgment in favor of the Valentzes on the Association’s breach of easement claim and that the Association is entitled to summary judgment on its claim that the Valentzes breached the terms of the easement by using a locked gate to restrict other First Colony property owners’ access to Reserve E.” The Association filed suit against Arthur J. Valentz and Lynn Valentz on October 1, 2012, seeking declarations from the Court that Reserve
“E” (the “Landscape Easement”) is and continues to be Common Area; and that as a Common Area, owners in First Colony have the right to use and enjoy Reserve “E”; and that the Landscape Easement does not authorize Defendants to enclose Reserve “E” with fences or locked gates for their exclusive use or for the purpose of preventing other owners in First Colony from going on to Reserve “E.” On October 16, 2015, the 268th Judicial District Court of Fort Bend County, Judge Brady Elliott held a hearing to consider Defendants’ Motion for No-Evidence Summary Judgment. Following the hearing, the Court granted Defendants’ Motion for No-Evidence Summary Judgement. On Nov. 15, the association filed a motion to reconsider the summary judgment and requestSee FCCA, Page 3
Commerce secretary presents National Award to Memorial Hermann Sugar Land
Memorial Hermann Sugar Land Hospital Senior Vice President and CEO Greg Haralson accepts the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award from Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross during the annual Quest for Excellence Conference in Baltimore, MD, on April 2.From left to right: Kent Rochford, Acting Undersecretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology and Acting Director, National Institute of Standards and Technology; Dr. George Benson, Chairman, Foundation for the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award; Malisha Patel, Vice President of Operations, Memorial Hermann Sugar Land Hospital; Greg Haralson, Senior Vice President and CEO, Memorial Hermann Sugar Land Hospital; and Wilbur Ross, Secretary of Commerce. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross presented Senior Vice President and CEO of Memorial Hermann Sugar Land Hospital Greg Haralson with the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award during the annual Quest for Excellence Conference in Baltimore, Md., on April 2. Memorial Hermann Sugar Land is the first Houston healthcare organization, and only the third in Texas, to receive the award which is the nation’s highest
Presidential honor for performance excellence. “This recognition is the culmination of six years of hard work, dedication and a constant pursuit of excellence from each and every physician, employee and volunteer at Memorial Hermann Sugar Land,” said Haralson. “Each member of our team played a role in this accomplishment and I am so proud of what we’ve achieved. Our journey will continue with an unwaver-
ing commitment to provide exceptional care and service to everyone who walks through our doors every day.” Memorial Hermann Sugar Land was one of four recipients of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award this year. To date, 113 Baldrige Awards have been given to 106 organizations, including seven two time winners; Memorial Hermann Sugar Land is one of just 22 recipients in the healthcare category.
Jacey Jetton appointed Fort Bend County Republican Party Chair By SESHADRI KUMAR After nearly five yers as chairman of the Fort Bend County Republican Party, Mike Gibson stepped down last week. The party executive committee appointed Jacey Jetton to succeed Gibson. Gibson cited both personal as well as political reasons for his decision to step down. “I was upfront during my reelection that I would not seek another term as Chairman. I decided that it would be best for the party to not have a free for all by serving out my term. I wanted the EC to have the opportunity to have input into who would be the next chairman so I stepped down early. This allows the new chairman, Jacey Jetton the opportunity to learn the job. I was thrown into the middle of the primary when I was appointed by the EC and that was not fun” Gibson said. Gibson said he had been been consulting for McDermott for 6 months and has now accepted a full time job offer. “I will be based here but will be traveling around the world with my new position. This was another significant influence on
Outgoing FBCGOP chair Mike Gibson displays a memento as the incoming chairman Jacey Jetton looks on. my decision to resign early,” he diversity of the county with EC members from all ethnic and said. “I achieved the goals I had age groups,” Gibson said. “I am leaving on my terms set out when I took office 5 years ago. The first and most not because anyone defeated important was to make the party me or drove me out. My time look more like the county. ParSee GOP, Page 3 ty events now reflect better the