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VOL 9 No. 36
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FORT BEND FAIR. BALANCED. INFORMATIVE. WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 2016
P. O.BOX 623, SUGAR LAND, TX 77487-0623
Official newspaper of Fort Bend County, Missouri City & Sugar Land
Fort Bend County Fair Parade set for Sept. 23
2016 Grand Marshal Chita Craft
SUGAR SHINDIG. Enjoy a sweet time at the Fort Bend Education Foundation’s second annual Sugar Shindig presented by Safari Texas on Friday, Oct. 21, at 6:30 p.m. Shimmy over to Safari Texas for a casual evening of fun and frolic, including a fajita dinner, a dessert auction and dancing to the music of Password. This is camaraderie at its finest as staff from our schools and community members vie for the best cakes made by local bakers. The event is hosted by the Angels of Education Auxiliary, whose mission is to create community awareness for the Foundation’s Grants to Teachers and Schools programs. Have your cake and eat it too at this shindig. To purchase tickets or make donations, visit www.fortbendisd.com/foundation. Honorary Sugar Shindig Committee - Fort Bend ISD Board of Trustees L to R: front, KP George, Noreen Covey, Vice President - FBEF Auxiliary, Grayle James, Addie Heyliger, Kristin Tassin; Rear, Jason Burdine and Dave Rosenthal.
Missouri City Green recognized as Gold Star Affiliate by Keep Texas Beautiful Keep Texas Beautiful formally recognized Missouri City Green as a Gold Star Affiliate during its 49th Annual Conference in June. This is the highest status a community affiliate can achieve and was awarded to only 60 of KTB’s more than 390 affiliates that went above and beyond established requirements. Successful events included Backyard Composting, Don’t Mess With Texas Trash-Off, Earth Day, Electronic Recycling, Paper Shredding, Storm Drain Markers, Tree Academy and Water Conservation. Upcoming events in September include partnering with Missouri City Parks and Recreation for the Oyster Creek Cleanup and Treasure Hunt on the Edible Arbor Trail on Saturday, September 10 from 9-11 a.m with check-in at 8:30 a.m. Families, friends and groups interested in earning service hours will collect trash and hunt for treasure as TxDOT celebrates the 30th Anniversary of the iconic “Don’t Mess With Texas” campaign. Prizes will be awarded. Parking is available at the YMCA, 4433 Cartwright Rd
Don Johnson, Margo Webb, Penny Johnson and Pam Allan proudly display the Gold Star Affiliate Award given to Missouri City Green at the Keep Texas Beautiful Conference. 77459. All participants must complete and sign a waiver form. Registration and waiver forms are online at www.missouricitygreen.org.
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
Fort Bend Independent, (USPS 025-572) is published every Wednesday (for a subscription rate of $20 per year) by Fort Bend Independent, LLC., 12551, Emily Court, Texas 77478. Periodicals Postage Paid at Stafford, Texas. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Fort Bend Independent, P.O. Box 623, Sugar Land, Tx 77487.
Missouri City Green will host a Water Conservation Workshop on Saturday, September 24 from 9-11 a.m. with check-in at 8:30 a.m. at the Missouri City Recreation & Tennis Center, 2701 Cypress Point Drive 77459. Fort Bend Master Gardeners Water Conservation specialists will demonstrate how to save water in your home and yard along with how to set up and use a rainwater harvesting system. Participants will receive a voucher for one FREE rain barrel distributed at the end of the class. The class is limited to 30 registrants and there is a nonrefundable $30 registration fee. More information at www.missouricitygreen.org.
KHOU Meteorologist Chita Craft will serve as Parade Grand Marshal at the 80th Annual Fort Bend County Fair and Rodeo on Friday, Sept. 23 at 9 a.m. Chita will lead almost 200 parade entries along the parade route. “I am looking forward to meeting people! I am usually in the news studio, so I’m not usually meeting people! And I can’t wait to see the parade. I danced all growing up, and I’ve performed in countless parades. Such fun memories,” said Craft. Recently Chita became a
2015 talent show contestants – Matthew & Andrew Wu rancher’s wife with her marriage to Lane Craft, a landman and longhorn rancher. Chita encourages kids wanting to get into meteorology to focus on science and math classes. She says, “Meteorology is fun, interesting, and a science that is always evolving. I mean who doesn’t want to know what the weather will do.” Chita has a miniature schnauzer named Doppler and in case you were wondering, Chita— pronounced Cheetah—is a family name. In fact, there are five
generations of mother-daughter Chitas in her family. The theme for this year’s parade is “Tipping our hats to 80 years.” The parade begins at Hwy 90 near 5th Street (near the Old Courthouse at 301 Jackson Street). Parade route will stay on Hwy 90 from Richmond into Rosenberg. Parade entries are still being accepted. Registration forms are due to the fair office by September 6, 2016 at 5 p.m.
Keri Schmidt gets Certified Chamber Executive designation The Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives (ACCE) (www.acce.org) has designated Keri Curtis Schmidt, President & CEO of the Fort Bend Chamber of Commerce as a Certified Chamber Executive (CCE). The CCE is the only national certification for chamber professionals. “The CCE program assesses and tests the applicant’s knowledge of core chamber management areas—management, planning and development, membership and communication, and operations,” says Bob Quick, CCE, president and CEO of Commerce Lexington Inc. and CCE commission chairman. “Chamber professionals who are designated CCEs have rightfully earned this outstanding recognition through hard work, countless hours of dedication to their field, and leadership of their chamber to achieve the chamber’s goals. We are proud to have this year’s class join a long tradition of professional excellence.” Schmidt was one of seven chamber executives in the nation who earned the CCE designation which was awarded August 10 during ACCE’s Convention in Savannah, Georgia. Since the program was initiated more than 40 years ago, only about 500 individuals have earned this highest designation in the industry. Today there are about 270
Mick Fleming, left, President of ACCE, Keri Curtis Schmidt President & CEO Fort Bend Chamber and Bob Quick, CCE Commission Chairman. active CCEs out of 7,100 chambers nationwide. Keri Schmidt joined the Fort Bend Chamber in 2000. She serves as the President & CEO of the largest singlecounty chamber in the Greater Houston region. Under her leadership, the United States Chamber of Commerce awarded the Fort
Bend Chamber of Commerce 5-Star Accreditation for its sound policies, effective organizational procedures, and positive impact on the community. With 7,077 chambers in the United States, 207 of these are accredited with only 82 receiving a 5-Star designation.