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The Tomball City Council took steps to begin regulating donation canisters that are located within the city, while also hearing about a proposal for a new multi-family apartment building, during their regular meeting April 15.

The council unanimously passed an ordinance that will regulate donation boxes in Tomball.

"This will set the regulations for the type of containers that are allowable, who can operate them, where they can exist, a permitting process and then a process for violations," said Christal Kliewer Weber, Tomball Assistant City Manager.

The new ordinance will require that the containers must be operated on behalf of a non-profit organization, as well as be placed only in non-residential areas.

The new regulations also require that no more than two may be located on any lot and that they must be at least 300 feet away from any other container on any other lot.

They may not be larger than 96 cubic feet and must be neutral colored, while also maintained in good condition and emptied regularly.

The new law also requires operators of the donation boxes to get them permitted each year, at a fee of $25.

In other business, a joint workshop of the council and planning and zoning commission heard a proposal from Sean Rae, of Trammell Crow, about a planned multi-family apartment building on the northeast corner of SH 249 and Holderreith Road.

"A month or so ago we were approached by Trammell Crow Residential, wanting to talk about development of a multi-family complex here in Tomball," City Manager George Shackelford said. "We decided it would be best if they made a presentation before submitting a pro-posal."

Sean Rae, a development associate with the company, told the members about the proposal.

"This is not section eight or government subsidized housing," Rae said. "This is luxury, market rate housing."

The proposal laid out by Rae spells out a 376 unit complex on 19 acres. A formal proposal has yet to be submitted to the city.

A horrific scene unfolded in a parking lot behind Concordia Lutheran High School, April 16, as crunched metal, pieces of cars and bodies lay sprawled across the pavement. Fortunately the scene was staged, but for many it looked all too real.

Shattered Lives of Tomball staged its annual mock, multi-victim crash scene for students and family of the high school, to bring awareness about drunk driving. "Victims" are either pronounced dead at the scene or transported by both helicopter and ambulance to Tomball Regional Hospital. "Perpetrators" are then transported to jail to face consequences for "driving drunk".

"We try to make it as realistic as possible," said Shattered Lives co-director Kim Garrett. "We go to great lengths to put this presentation on."

After the program, students are transported to an off-location retreat for the rest of the day, where they have no communication with the outside world.

"It's an actual deal with the result of they didn't come home from school, come home from practice, in order to make it real," Garrett said. "They can't call and tell people hey, I'm really ok."

The next day the students participated in a mock memorial service at Concordia Lutheran, where the entire student body sees a video that shows footage from scenes of the crash, hospital and the Tomball jail.

Tomball Police, Tomball Fire and Northwest EMS actually respond to the scene and work it as a real accident, providing training for the departments as well.

"It shows that the coordination between the agencies is like a symphony," Tomball Police Chief Robert Hauck said. "There are a lot of moving parts."

Beyond that, Hauck said the program provides a very inportant and humbling experience for participants.

"It's important because it heightens awareness of driving under the influence for both students and parents," he said. "It's a demonstration about how tragic the loss of life really is, especially when it is due to the poor decisions of others."

Tomball Fire Chief Randy Parr agreed.

"It shows how dire the consequences of one bad decision can be," he said.

Tomball Regional Hospital also uses the program as an active training event, as the "victims" are brought into their emergency room, overloading them with multiple trauma victims at one time.

"This is an opportunity for multi-agency cooperation to test our response with EMS providers in a mass casualty situation, so that we can better serve our providers," said Tomball Regional's emergency room director Michelle Henderson.

Parents have to travel to the emergency room and actually watch the doctors and nurses attempt to save their children. Many of them had to watch, as the decision was made to stop treatment and their children were pronounced "dead".

"It was a very real and sobering experience," said Pat Harrison, whose daughter Tess played a victim. "It kind of put everything into perspective."

Harrison said the message was well received among his daughter and her friends.

"I think the message is very well received," he said. "I had a discussion with my daughter and some of her friends about it and the entire experience was emotional."

The students that participated agreed.

"It was really realistic to be honest," said Concordia Lutheran senior Jay Stracke. "It was heartbreaking. I could hear my parents crying and I realized how easily life can be taken from you."

Senior Lauren Soule made a plea for people to think about others before making the choice to drink and drive.

"I'd like to tell people to think twice the next time," she said. "It will have an impact on people who do not want to be a part of your choices and it's not fair to them or their families."

For a photo gallery of this event, please visit our Flickr page.

Magnolia resident Thomas Reynolds took first place in the Hushpuppy Eating Contest presented by Snookie's Fish Camp & Grill at the recent "Rails & Tails Mudbug Festival" in Tomball. Snookie's owner Rachael Holyfield looks on as Reynolds finishes off another one. Tomball Marketing Director Mike Baxter said that more than 2,400 pounds of crawfish, 300 pounds of shrimp and 100 pounds of alligator were consumed by the record crowd of nearly 7,000.

The Tomball City Council heard about the successful week long clean up effort during their regular meeting May 6.

The Tomball public works department recently held a clean up week and consolidated recycling day for city residents.

"This is just one of those events that are at the top of the list of things that I do that are rewarding," said Tomball Public Works Director David Kauffman.

The department has held a clean up week for 14 years now, according to Kauffman. The week consists of city workers chipping and disposing of yard brush and removing various bulk items like fridges and furniture from residents homes.

For the last three years the city has added a recycling day.

"This started with myself and the chiefs getting together with Sgt. Rebecca Carlisle for the prescription drug take back with the DEA, plus the demand we had from the public for the recycling of electronics, paper shredding and that kind of thing," Kauffman said.

Kauffman reported that 150 cubic yards of bulk waste was collected, 270 cubic yards of brush and limbs, as well as 327 pounds of prescription drugs.

"When you remove that amount of prescriptions from the wastewater treatment system, it's big," he said. "If you were to flush 10 pounds of antibiotics down the toilet, then 10 pounds of antibiotics would end up in the creek. It doesn't dissipate in the treatment system."

Kauffman also said that 11,140 pounds of electronics were recycled, three tons of mixed household items, 181 gallons of used oil, 30 gallons of antifreeze and 6,000 pounds of paper was shredded.

"That amount of paper saved 52.3 trees, 10 kilowatt hours of energy, 10.2 cubic yards of landfill space, almost 22,000 gallons of water and 185.4 pounds of air pollution," he said.

In other business the council unanimously passed a proposal to sell bonds that will be used to finance the infrastructure for the Tomball Economic Development Corporation's planned business park. The TEDC will be responsible for paying the bond payments.

Kauffman also reported that the city was ready to accept a proposal to build the long-awaited restroom facility at the Depot Plaza. Council agreed to award the contract to KBR for an amount not to exceed $183,000.

A Magnolia woman has been arrested and charged in Harris County, after she allegedly embezzled nearly $200,000 from her Tomball employer.

Cindy Lee Berry, 44, was charged with Theft of greater than $100,000, but less than $200,000, after officials allege she stole the money over a period of a year-and-a-half fromher employer Johnston Water Well Service. The thefts allegedly took place from Jan 2011 through August of 2012.

The owners of the company have also filed a civil suit in Montgomery County against Berry. Their attorney in the civil case, Field Hudgens, said that the Johnston's discovered some irregularities when looking over their books.

"It came to my client's attention that there were irregularities in the books, checks were missing among other things and an audit showed that there was nearly $200,000 missing," Hudgens said. "After more digging it became clear to them who was responsible."

At that point the Johnston's turned over the information to the Harris County Sheriff's Office who investigated the case.

"We worked with law enforcement agencies to provide all the information to them," Hudgens said.

After completing a lengthy investigation, the Harris County District Attorney's Office filed charges against Berry a month ago, after a grand jury decided to indict her.

"The DA's office has taken a very hard look at this case and is treating it as a very serious matter," said assistant district attorney Lester Blizzard. "It was reported to us and we found evidence to support the alleged embezzlement."

Berry was arrested on April 18. She made a $100,000 bond on April 26 and was released.

Her attorney Stephen Jackson of Conroe said he is still in the early stages of building Berry's defense strategy.

"I have been in touch with her civil attorney and the district attorney is cooperating with us in handing over the information we need," Jackson said. "We will be digging into the records in order to get to the bottom of this. It's a private matter for the Berry's and we will help them through this."

Laura Johnston, who owns the business with her husband, said that the ordeal left her stunned.

"We didn't suspect anything and when we found (the theft) it was a big shock," she said. "We felt betrayed."

Hudgens said he is trying to work out a settlement agreement with Berry's civil attorney.

"We are in the process of contacting Berry's attorney to try and reach an agreement so they can recover some of their money," he said. "I am happy to report that Johnston Water Well Service has survived and continues to be a viable and strong business in Tomball."

Johnston said she hopes other business owners learn from her situation.

"People need to be watching," she said. "I don't want this to happen to others."

If convicted, Berry could face a punishment of two to 20 years in state prison.

The Greater Tomball Area Chamber of Commerce (GTACC) garnered two wins in communications contests, when chambers from across the state convened June 25, for the Texas Chamber of Commerce Executives (TCCE) annual Excellence Awards. The awards honor organizations for exceptional efforts in marketing, communications and media outreach.  Awards are judged in seven separate categories, including Outstanding Chamber Map, Outstanding Brochure, Outstanding Magazine or Directory, Excellence in Print or Electronic Newsletter, Outstanding Chamber Website, Excellence in Social Media Marketing and Communications, and Outstanding Marketing Campaign. 

In the categories of Outstanding Magazine and Outstanding Chamber Map, GTACC was honored as one of the best in Texas, winning second place in both categories. 

“This is an extremely tough competition,” said Bruce Partain, TCCE Media Awards Chairman.  “Rest assured that the chambers that won these awards faced stiff competition from their fellow chambers of commerce. It truly means the Greater Tomball Area Chamber of Commerce is one of the very best in 2012 with its magazine and map.”

The overall competition had more than 200 entries from which the best were judged by panels of experts. 

“One of the primary responsibilities for a chamber is to promote the organization, community and that chamber’s members,” said Beth Journeay, TCCE incoming chair and president of the Angleton Chamber of Commerce.  “By winning these awards the GTACC can be held up as an example of the best at promoting the chamber, its businesses and providing excellent information to people in the greater Tomball area.”

“It was a complete staff effort in working to achieve this recognition,” GTACC President Bruce Hillegeist said. “We always strive to provide great tools and quality products that reflect well on Tomball and our business members.”

Starting Aug. 27, Lone Star College-Tomball (LSC-Tomball) will be offering four college courses, every Monday evening at Magnolia High School.

Courses offered will be English Composition and Rhetoric I, Federal Government, General Psychology and Intro to Computers.

The high school is located at 14350 FM 1488 in Magnolia.

“Lone Star College-Tomball offers students opportunities to learn day or night, on campus, or online. In this case, we are bringing the campus to Magnolia High School to provide a close to home option for our students in the Magnolia area,” LSC-Tomball Vice President of Instruction, Lee Ann Nutt said. “These four courses are part of most degree and transfer plans. So, no matter the student’s goal, we’re hoping these courses close to their home will make it easier to reach their goal.”

To register for the courses being held at the high school, visit www.lonestar.edu/registration or register in-person at Lone Star College-Tomball, located at 30555 Tomball Parkway.

The Magnolia/Tomball YMCA will be holding a youth flag football camp next week, for ages 6 through 11. Details and contacts include:

Mon. August 20-Thurs. August 23, 2012
6:30PM – 8PM
Fee: $50 per Player

This camp will provide a comprehensive overview of the sport of flag football. Participants will learn skills in all areas of football; offense, defense and specialties. No previous experience necessary.

Benefits of Camp:
• No Contact: Participants learn skills safely while still in a
competitive environment
• No Specialization: Experience ALL positions and all skill areas
• No Conditioning: Optimum learning without fear of fatigue
• Small Groups: 1 Instructor per 6 participants
To register, stop by the Y or call 281.356.4077.

For more information contact Dan at 281.356.4077 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .
MAGNOLIA TOMBALL FAMILY YMCA
36725 FM 1774

 “Candy Canes & Christmas Carols” is the theme recently announced for the 2012 Tomball Holiday Parade presented by the Greater Tomball Area Chamber of Commerce (GTACC).  

“I think this year’s theme will spark a variety of decorated floats and I can’t wait to see what creative minds come up with,” GTACC parade committee member Camille Hamilton said. “This is always an exciting event focused on welcoming the holidays. Thousands fill our streets and enjoy the day in Tomball. ”

The 2012 Tomball Holiday Parade will begin at 10 a.m. Nov. 17. The annual event announces the holiday season in the greater Tomball area. The parade also features Miss Tomball contestants who will participate in the 2013 Miss Tomball Pageant the same evening. Both the parade and the pageant turn 47 this year.

To be eligible to compete in the 2013 Miss Tomball Pageant, applicants must reside in the Tomball Independent School District, have a physical Tomball home address or be home-schooled or enrolled in a public or private school with a Tomball address; classified as a junior or senior and no younger than 15 and no older than 19 years of age. Each applicant is required to have a business sponsor. Sponsorships are $375. Sponsors belonging to the chamber receive a $100 discount.

On pageant day, contestants appear in individual entries in the Tomball Holiday Parade. That evening at 7 p.m. the pageant will be presented in the Salem Lutheran Church Worship Center, under the direction of Miss Tomball Pageant Chair Sandy Krug of Classic Hair. Contestants will be introduced on stage, appear in evening attire and judged on the basis of poise, personality and beauty. The new Miss Tomball and four finalists will be awarded trophies in addition to other prizes and gifts.

Applications for the 2012 Tomball Holiday Parade and the 2013 Miss Tomball Pageant are available beginning Sept. 4 at the Greater Tomball Area Chamber of Commerce Office, 29201 Quinn Rd., Ste. B during regular business hours. Applications are also available online at, TomballChamber.org. For more information visit the Chamber’s website or call the Chamber at 281-351-7222. 

Salem Lutheran School (SLS) began its school year with a record enrollment of 470 students in kindergarten through eighth grade and 175 children in its early childhood program.

New this year is a one-to-one laptop project. More than 200 students in fifth through eighth grades received MacBook Air laptops to use in class and for homework. Students in kindergarten through fourth grades will use MacBook laptops, iPads, and iPods in special technology classes, as well as during their regular classroom instruction time.

“The goal is the integration of 21st century skills for today’s learner. The students will be able to use the latest technology to carry out research and to create multimedia projects,” said Steve McEwin, SLS director of technology.

Social studies teacher Dave Boldt is teaching a geography class that is completely online this year.

“I am looking forward to the students being excited about using their MacBook Airs for this class,” Boldt said. “They will no longer need to carry textbooks back and forth. The internet will allow them to access multimedia knowledge in a way that will truly enhance their learning experience.”

“The laptops will make school more interesting. We’ll be able to be more organized,” seventh grader Breanna Lauder said.

Mary Beth Gaertner, Director of Educational Ministries and National Distinguished Principal of the Year, attributes SLS’s enrollment record to its mission to educate tomorrow’s leaders.

“We are truly achieving our mission. We are empowering a generation of leaders,” she said. “God brings us kids with huge potential, and we are able to help them achieve their academic and leadership goals.”

“Salem School teachers and staff make the school a special place,” Gaertner said. “We are a school where teachers truly care about every single child and every single family. Not everybody can teach a heart. You have to really feel it, and that is how we are different.”

For information about Salem Lutheran School admissions and tours, call 281.351.8223 or visit www.salemlutheran.com.