VOL 9 No. 35
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FORT BEND FAIR. BALANCED. INFORMATIVE. P. O.BOX 623, SUGAR LAND, TX 77487-0623
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 31, 2016
Official newspaper of Fort Bend County, Missouri City & Sugar Land
Welcome home celebration held for local Olympians The City of Sugar Land hosted a “Welcome Home Celebration” for Simone Manuel and Steven López on Aug. 25, from 5:30-7:30 p.m., at Sugar Land Town Square. The two Olympians recently competed in the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Manuel won gold medals in the 100 meter freestyle and the 4x100 meter medley and silver in the 50 meter freestyle and the 4×100 meter freestyle relay. López is a two-time gold medal winner and competed in his fifth Olympics in Rio. He is also the winner of five world championships and holds the distinction of the most decorated athlete in taekwondo history. The community-wide celebration showcased the City’s pride and appreciation of the hard work and dedication displayed while competing on a world-wide stage. Fort Bend ISD, First Colony Swim Team coaches and swimmers, the López family and other community groups and in-
Exchange Club of Sugar Land members handed out American Flags at the “Welcome Home” ceremony in Sugar Land Town Square for Olympians Simone Manuel and Steven Lopez
SMSD budget adopted unanimously; tax rate remains the same
Christian, Elena and Mia Longoria proudly waved the American flags given to them by Exchange Club of Sugar Land President Carlos Perez and Past President Robert Kern at the “Welcome Home” ceremony in Sugar Land Town Square for Olympians Simone Manuel and Steven Lopez. By BARBARA FULENWIDER dividuals joined the city to wel- booths and activities along with Stafford Municipal School come back the Olympians. meet and greet areas for both District’s annual budget proThe event included a short athletes with autograph signcess with the town’s city counceremony, photos, community ings. cil began on June 25 and ended Aug. 24 at a joint meeting where Superintendent Robert Bostic announced that it was tesville, VA, designed the stamp the third consecutive year the and William J. Gicker of Washdistrict passed a balanced budington, DC, served as the projget with a 14-0 vote. ect’s art director. He said this year’s budget is The Diwali stamp is being istight. It came in at $28.17 milsued as a Forever stamp. This lion compared to last year’s Forever stamp will also be equal budget of $28.20 million. The in value to the current First Class fund balance last year ended Mail 1-ounce price. with $9,730,428 and is proThe Postal Service receives apjected to be $9,936,694 at the proximately 40,000 suggestions end of the 2016/2017 budget. for stamp ideas annually from The school district’s certiclean their homes, open their the public. Stamp subjects are fied taxable value of property doors and windows, create in- reviewed by the Citizens’ Stamp this year totaled $2.249 biltricate rangoli — a vibrant floor Advisory Committee. Of that, ap- lion and is $1.033 billion more pattern traditionally made from proximately 25 topic suggestions than the $2.145 billion values materials such as rice powder, for commemorative stamps are in 2015. colored sand and flower petals selected by the Committee for the The tax rate for this year will — and light diyas with hopes that Postmater General’s approval. remain the same as last year’s, Congresswoman Carolyn MaLakshmi, the goddess of wealth which was $1.23 per 100 valuloney (D-NY), championed this and prosperity, will visit. In some ation. Of that total $1.04005 regions of India, people play cause for many years. Senators will pay for the district’s maingames, just as Hindu lore says Mark Warner (D-VA) and John tenance and operations and that the god Shiva did. On the fes- Cornyn (R-TX) and House mem- $0.19 will pay interest on the tive main day of the holiday, fam- bers Joe Crowley (D-NY), Ed district’s bonded indebtedness. ilies pray for Lakshmi, dress up Royce (R-CA) Ami Bera (D-CA), The superintendent exin their best clothes, enjoy lavish and George Holding (R-NC), all plained that the Texas Sufeasts and sweets, exchange gifts past or present co-chairs of their preme Court ruled that state and light fireworks. Diwali also chamber’s India Caucuses, also school funding is adequate. marks the new year for people in led significant campaigns to as- The verdict keeps Stafford a Gujarat and a few other states of sure Congressional support for India. Diwali also is celebrated as this measure. Congresswoman Tulsi Gaba major holiday by followers of bard (D-HI), the only Hindu the Jain and Sikh faiths. member of Congress, led the Sally Andersen-Bruce of New most recent write in campaign to Milford, CT, photographed the the USPS with hundreds of signaCharles L. Wood, 49, of diya. Greg Breeding of Charlottories. Louisiana, was recently found guilty of a bank robbery in Sugar Land last year. He entered Compass BBVA Bank, 14121 Southwest Freeway, on Sept. 14, 2015, at 4:45 p.m.; displayed what appeared to be a weapon; demanded money; and left with just over $5,000 in cash. Bank employees quickly provided SLPD with a vehicle description, and Sgt. Matt Levan, an investigations supervisor working a traffic assignment,
Postal service issues Diwali ‘Forever’ stamp The U.S. Postal Service will commemorate the Hindu festival of Diwali with a Forever stamp. The Wednesday, Oct 5, first-dayof-issue dedication ceremony will take place at the Consulate General of India, New York. The stamp design is a photograph featuring a traditional diya oil lamp beautifully lit, sitting on a sparkling gold background. Diya lamps are usually made from clay with cotton wicks dipped in a clarified butter known as “ghee” or in vegetable oils. Also known as Deepavali, Diwali celebrates the triumph of good over evil. Spanning five days each autumn, it is considered by some to be the start of the new year. On the Hindu calendar, Diwali falls on the eve of, or on, the new moon that occurs between midOctober and mid-November. In 2016, the main day of the festival will be celebrated Oct. 29 for South Indians and Oct 30 for North Indians. Diwali is a shortened version of the Sanskrit word Deepavali, which roughly translates as “a necklace of lights.” During Diwali, the flickering oil-wick diyas sprinkle the homes of observers around the world. Before the festival, many Hindus traditionally go shopping,
property rich district. Bostic said Texas is 39th for school funding in the U.S. and that the funding model now used by the state is broken. “The model only provides funding for student growth.” Given that fact, SMSD will continue to send Robin Hood money to the state as long as property values increase and the number of enrolled students don’t. While Stafford MSD is considered a rich district two thirds of its students receive reduced and free lunches. Bostic told his audience in the Stafford Civic Center that the staff incentive program will continue with $125 for attendance and $200 for retention. He said the district’s extended day program will cost $120 a month and is less than most commercial after school centers charge. The student tutor program will continue, he said, and has a budget this year of $12,000, and the Phase 2 literacy initiative will get $99,000 this year compared to $112,661 last year. The district’s new math initiative has a $38,000 budget for the year. Eighty percent of the 2016/17 budget is to pay for
instruction compared to 79 percent last year. Local tax collections this year are expected to total $4,356,072 compared to $4,160,723 last year. Total revenues last year were $2,282,146 and are projected to be $2,226,749 for 2016/2017. Stafford MSD’s new budget includes a projected beginning fund balance of $12. 45 million and is a combination of the general fund, debt service fund and food service fund. The estimated revenues from those three funds total $34,751,409 and the district’s ending fund balance is expected to be $12.465 million. Local revenues will make up 86 percent of the budget, the state is to provide 12 percent and the federal government, two percent. Expenditures by major objective is 80 percent for payroll, 12 percent for contract services and four percent each for general supplies and operating expenses. Prior to the unanimous vote to pass the budget, Mayor Leonard Scarcella recounted some of the district’s illustrious past. He noted that 200 districts in the U.S. tried to breakaway after desegreSee SMSD, Page 2
Serial bank robber wanted throughout the nation nabbed
Wood located Wood a short time later traveling northbound on U.S.
FORT BEND FAIR. BALANCED. INFORMATIVE.
12551 Emily Court, Sugar Land, TX 77478 Mailing Address: P.O. Box 623, Sugar Land, TX 77478 Seshadri Kumar Publisher & Editor
www.fbindependent.com 281-980-6745
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Highway 59. Levan and other officers chased Wood to the 3900 block Bellaire near Stella Link in Houston where he was detained and later arrested after a witness from the bank identified Wood as the bank robber. There were no injuries during the pursuit or at the bank. Property recovered from Wood’s vehicle and his confession to Sugar Land detectives linked him to bank robberies across the nation. Sugar Land detectives assisted the FBI and other local jurisdictions with additional bank robbery investigations. Wood, a self-described professional bank robber, admitted to robbing five banks last year in Texas, Arkansas, Colorado, Utah and Kansas. U.S. District Judge Sim Lake accepted Wood’s guilty plea on Aug. 12 and set sentencing for Nov. 3. Wood faces up to 20 years in Federal prison and a possible $250,000 fine. He will remain in custody pending that hearing.