VOL 8 No. 40
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FORT BEND news FAIR. BALANCED. INFORMATIVE. news WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2015
P. O.BOX 623, SUGAR LAND, TX 77487-0623
Official newspaper of Fort Bend County, Missouri City & Sugar Land
The Great Grow donates $6,000 for School Garden Competition
Missouri City native serves with Trident Training Facility
Lt. James Hardaway A 2006 Elkins High School graduate and Missouri City, Texas native is serving in the U.S. Navy as an instructor at Trident Training Facility aboard Na- By BARBARA FULENWIDER Danny Nguyen (pronounced val Submarine Base Kings Bay, wen) has written a chapter in the Georgia. recently published “Chicken Soup Lt. James Hardaway is a profor the Soul” hardback that came spective nuclear engineering ofout this past September and is sellficer instructor who trains sailors ing in its usual high numbers. serving aboard the eight OhioNguyen, an immigrant from class ballistic and guided missile Vietnam, has turned writing and submarines aboard Naval Subother numerous opportunities he’s marine Base Kings Bay. Measurhad in the U.S. into personal gifts ing 560 feet long, 42 feet wide of journeys, which he says have and weighing more than 16,500 made his life what it is today -tons, a nuclear-powered propulrich with family, friends, achievesion system helps push the ship ments and accolades. through the water at more than In the book, Nguyen says he’s 20 knots. achieved what he has by living “I like my job because it afboldly and is the title of the chapfords me the opportunity to train ter he wrote in the new Chicken officers who will be doing very Soup book that retails on Amazon important jobs aboard submafor $19.99. Nguyen wrote: “Each rines here at Kings Bay, so I can day is a journey that I enjoy and directly contribute to the success one for which I am grateful to be of the entire submarine commua part.” nity,” said Hardaway. He has acquired lots of parts. The Navy’s ballistic missile They include arriving in the U.S. See NAVY, Page 4 after escaping Vietnam and having a harrowing trip across the Pacific, learning the language and culture of the U.S., and graduating from Texas A&M with a bachelor of with a series of slides showing business administration degree some of the most relevant docu- and a concentration in internationment changes from the past De- al business and marketing. For more than 20 years Nguyen velopment Code to the recently has sold commercial real estate approved Development Code and owns a commercial real escontained in Ordinance 2014. tate business. While building his Volunteer training will be availbusiness he also co-founded the able for those wishing to help Vietnamese American Chamber of in the continuing efforts, Miller Commerce in Houston, is a former says. board of directors in the Houston The presentation will also Association of Realtors and a forprovide information on the mer director of the Texas Associacurrent Comprehensive Plan, Chapter 6, which will be re- tion of Realtors. He is also an honorary member moved should the City proceed of the Houston Association of Rewith the Land Use Update as altors International and received planned. an Entrepreneur of the Year award Sugar Land Votes believes in 2009 from the Houston West the City of Sugar Land has vioChamber of Commerce. He is also See PETITION, Page 4 a graduate and member of the National Speaking Association and an associate for Rice University’s James Baker Institute. He was also elected to serve on the Missouri City Council as an at-large member. With all of that on his resume, he was tapped by Jack Canfield to write a chapter for the next Chicken Soup edition, a how-to guide to whatever it is that makes the most sense for the person reading it. In the book, Nguyen says, the journey he took from Vietnam to the U.S. and the person he has become “are incredible and fulfilling. I came to the U.S. as a political refugee from Vietnam; grateful for the opportunity and knowing that I had much to provide with the incredible opportunity I was given.” He then urges his readers to “do what your heart and soul desire” and “seek out a career where your heart and soul meet.” He also says be willing to pay a price, believe in God, yourself and America, stick with it until you’ve made it, enjoy success and keep rising.
PINK SHIRT DAY. Watercrest at Sugar Land, an affordable luxury retirement community for seniors age 55 and up, showed support for Breast Cancer Awareness month by wearing pink on Oct. 1 for Pink Shirt Day. The event symbolized the importance of early detection and regular screenings. “Our residents are proud to wear pink as a symbol of support to those affected by breast cancer,” says Kristen Lembcke, Vice President of Integrated Property Management. “Since the risk of breast cancer increases with age, our community felt it was important to raise awareness. We want our residents to be happy and healthy.”
Ex-councilman turns author
H-E-Buddy in the Pumpkin Patch, a living bee hive buzzing away and butterflies in the garden, it was a perfect Fall Kids Fest at the Museum of Natural Science at Sugar Land on Saturday, September 26, 2015. This Fall Festival centered around the educational benefits of our pollinators, organic gardening and habitat plants but also included an array of vendors offering children’s activities and more. An estimated 700 guests enjoyed the event. The Great Grow, a 501c3 charitable organization organized the event. Proceeds are donated to local schools who participate in a school-year long organic gardening competition. $500 was donated to twelve schools who will compete in growing the best garden while incorporating a variety of educational elements that will also enter into the judging. The 2015-2016 participating schools include Middle Schools: David Crockett, First Colony. Elementary Schools: Arizona Fleming, Barbara Jordan, Highlands, Lakeview, Mission Bend, Mission West, Oyster Creek, Ridgemont, Townewest, Walker Station. Major event sponsors included H-E-B as the presenting sponsor, Evolution Kids Emporium, Sugar Mill Montessori, Meadow Montessori School, Diana Miller with Fort Bend Homes and Diane Schomburg with State Farm. www.TheGreatGrow.com
40 Under 40 Town Hall and petition drive set for Oct .11
Sugar Land City Councilman and attorney Himesh Gandhi has been named a recipient of the Houston Business Journal’s prestigious 40 Under 40 Award. The award annually recognizes 40 of the greater Houston See GANDHI, Page 3
To provide the Sugar Land voting public with relevant information regarding the Referendum Petition to Rescind Ordinance 2014, “Sugar Land Votes” an organization of concerned residents, will hold a meeting and Referendum Petition signing event on Sunday, Oct. 11, at the TE Harman Community Center, 226 Matlage Way in Sugar Land. To accommodate concerned residents, four presentations will be held, one every half hour; 1 p.m, 1:30 p.m, 2 p.m and 2:30 p.m., according to Diana Miller, spokesperson for Sugar Land Votes Each presentation will begin
Nguyen Nguyen follows that by saying, “When we are being truthful about what drives us, we can find the balance, inspiration and drive to succeed in our lives.” He strongly urges readers to figure out what they are good at and passionate about. He writes: “Driven by a natural desire to become an asset that gave back to my country, had respect for my opportunities, and also for making a name for my family and serving God, I wanted to show this vision to not only my Vietnamese family and ancestors, but to my new country.” While attending A&M, Nguyen had the opportunity, he says, to begin dabbling in commercial real estate by helping a few people set up their small business in shopping centers. He used the money he earned to pay for college and also “saw the impact of entrepreneurial power” and found his passion for commercial real estate. Nguyen also says there’s “no shame in being motivated by money when you are searching for a career.” He said he was because “I wanted to do better and have more impact. Money helps!” and being honest about motivations is important. “When we are being truthful about what drives us, we can find the balance, inspiration and drive to succeed in our lives. We create roadblocks and obstacles because we didn’t take the time to figure it out,” he says in “Chicken Soup for the Soul.” When Nguyen talks in the book about being willing to pay a price, he says “pay the price right away so you have more time to enjoy both success and happiness.” His success started when he boarded a leaky fishing boat with his father on the shores of Vietnam to escape the Communist country and come to America. Thirty years ago when he was 14, he writes that he and his father left his mother and five siblings behind “to risk a better future for all of us.” The boat of 70 people spent 25 days in the Pacific Ocean enduring a raid by Thai fishermenpirates who robbed and raped. “We ended up in a Thai prison and a few different refugee camps in Thailand and the Philippines before we were able to get to the United States,” he writes.
“All of the heartache and hardship of family separation, almost losing our lives because of a desire to experience a life many take for granted – a life with freedom... These freedoms are privileges and for millions of people, life is a privilege to be celebrated and be grateful for.” He also says, “Freedom is not free and we must treasure and respect it to enjoy its benefits.” He and his father had to start all over in America and adjust to their very different new lives as political refugees. He said the freedoms in America enabled them to build their futures. “Whatever perceived or real difficulties, challenges or adversities you have, be willing to embark on a new endeavor or journey and consider the price tag you will pay for that item,” he wrote in “Chicken Soup for the Soul.” He said it will bring happiness and “your heart and soul will know that what you desire is worth the price.” Nguyen also writes that “in order to believe in yourself you must have faith in your Creator.” With that, he says, he was able to endure Thai prison and lying in the bottom of a boat without a roof and a broken-down engine. The entrepreneur/writer also says “you must also have faith in your country” and for him that is America. “I knew I’d get there someday and when I did, I’d have to know where I wanted to go from there. This is the place where dreams could come true!” With the premise “stick with it until you’ve made it,” he says he was frustrated when he first entered commercial real estate and had “intense feelings” of failure. “Deep down I knew I wanted an opportunity, not security. I wanted the ultimate freedom to determine my own destiny and realize my fullest potential.” Nguyen says remember where you’ve been and where you want to go by keeping records, evidence and notes. “These are your assets, equity and inventory.” He said he has a habit of counting his blessings that are similar to the accounting a business owner would make except his evaluation is not about money. Instead, it’s “about how many lives I have positively impacted in the process, about happiness.” “If I have a tough day, I can access my inventory and get the reminders I need.” He ends his “Live Boldly” chapter in “Chicken Soup for the Soul” by saying that if you follow his advice, you too will “find rewards that go beyond explanation and that impact you so profoundly that you may view what’s around you from a new perspective – thankful to no longer be missing out on the bigger picture. “Go for it, my friends!”