I am the reporter and photographer for the Tomball Tribune. I'm originally from Ozark, Mo., a growing city between Springfield and Branson. I have been a journalist, editor and political consultant over the years. I am an avid St. Louis Cardinals and Dallas Cowboys fan and a complete karaoke addict.
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A man accused of murdering his brother pled guilty in Brazos County court last week and was sentenced to life in prison without parole.
Kyle Wischnewsky, 28, of Shepherd, shot his brother Cliff, 43, of Tomball, to death March 22, 2012, after accompanying him on a trip to buy two four-wheelers.
Kyle and Cliff traveled to Brazos County to purchase a pair of ATV's. Cliff was carrying $14,000 on him to purchase the ATV's and asked his brother to accompany him in order to help.
Cliff Wischnewsky was found lying on a metal cattle guard the following day on Texas 21, east of Bryan. The truck driver that found the body called the sheriff's office.
The ensuing investigation led investigators to New Mexico, where they found Kyle at a motel in Carlsbad. He was arrested by the Carlsbad Police Department.
During the sentencing, about two dozen friends and family members sat in the audience, as Cliff Wischnewsky's son Brett gave a victim impact statement.
"Now I want to address the person who did this," The Bryan-College Station Eagle reports Brett Wischnewsky as saying. "I will not call you by name because you are nothing to me. I could speculate why you would do something so evil, but I guess the why doesn't matter as much anymore. It's done. Nothing will ever bring my dad back."
Brett Wischnewsky said his uncle remained emotionless throughout his statement.
"He had no emotion," Brett Wischnewsky told the Tribune. "There was nothing there in his face or his eyes."
Brett Wischnewsky said he wanted his uncle to see the monster Brett thinks he has become.
"I wanted to show him that no one is afraid of him because of what he has done," he said.
Brazos County District Attorney Jarvis Parsons said the guilty plea was the best outcome.
"This case is extremely unique considering that the mother of the victim is also the mother of the defendant," he said in a statement. "There is no way for the criminal justice system to fill the void left by this defendant's actions on his own family. Considering everything, including the fact that the defendant will spend the rest of his life in prison for killing his brother, we believe that this sentence is a just result."
Brett Wischnewsky agreed.
"We are glad we don't have to go through a trial and everything associated with that," he said. "It would have been 10 times harder on everyone. I believe justice has been done, but I also don't think there ever could be enough of a punishment for what he did to this family."
Brett Wischnewsky said his family is now ready to move on and remember the person that Cliff Wischnewsky was.
"I want everyone to remember how good of a guy he was, the soul he had and how he would do absolutely anything for anyone," Brett Wischnewsky said of his father. "He was one of the good guys and unfortunately the world has too few of them now."
A Tomball man was killed and his son was severely injured, following a crash May 25 on FM 2978, near Dobbin-Hufsmith Road.
State troopers responded to the scene around 9 p.m. to find Magnolia firefighters working to remove victims from two vehicles. All three were in critical condition and transported to area hospitals via Life Flight.
Troopers said a 1997 Nissan driven by Piper Landon, 21, of The Woodlands, was traveling northbound and crossed the center line. The car crashed head on with a 2003 Subaru SUV, driven by Julio Reyes, 42, of Tomball. Reyes’ 15-year-old son was also in the car.
All three were transported to Hermann Memorial in Houston, where Julio Reyes was pronounced dead upon arrival.
Troopers and Mont-gomery County District Atttorney's office investigators spent five hours at the scene, while also reconstructing the accident.
According to the Montgomery County Police Reporter, state trooper Sgt. Terry Barnhill believed that alcohol was a factor in the crash and may be the reason Landon crossed the center line.
The top two graduates for the 2013 senior class at Tomball High School have many things in common – extracurricular activities, grades, friends and they both attribute their success to one thing – hard work.
Rachel Mai and Amy Shaklovitz have been named as the top performers in their senior class of nearly 700 graduates. The pair are involved in numerous activities at the school, as well as in the community.
Mai and Shaklovitz sat down for an interview recently and here are their responses.
Q: What are your plans for college?
Amy: "I am going to Texas A&M. I'll be a general engineering major and after I complete my basics, I'm going to switch to petroleum engineering."
Rachel: "I am planning to go to the University of Houston and I'll be classified as a biology major. Hopefully, I'll be done with everything in three years and then I'm going to apply to dental school – the UT dental branch in Houston."
Q: What activities did you participate in while at Tomball?
Amy: "All four years I played volleyball and golf my freshman year. I did tennis my sophomore, junior, and senior years. I've been in National Honor Society, Student Council, Mu Alpha Theta (math honor society), Senior Girls and Spanish Honor Society."
Rachel: "I've been in Student Council and I've participated in Health Occupation Students of America (HOSA) for three years. I really enjoy HOSA because I want to work in the medical field. I've also been in National Honor Society and Mu Alpha Theta. I also volunteer at a Vietnamese school in Houston."
Q: What advice would you give to younger students?
Amy: "I would tell them it's important to start early and keep up with your work."
Rachel: "I would tell them to have good time management and know how to use your time wisely and balance your school work and activities after school. I would also say to stay drug free and have fun."
Q: What will you take with you as you graduate from high school?
Amy: "The friendships. Being on teams in school I have made good friends and I know I'll keep up with them in college. Being on a team you really get to know each other and you get close."
Rachel: "Definitely, prom was memorable. Hanging out with friends at prom and project prom was great. It was magical like a dream come true."
Led by the Magnolia West High Interact Club members, students at MISD's Williams Elementary are going "green" this spring. For the past ten weeks, the students have been collecting recyclable plastic bottles and aluminum cans and bringing them to school. They collected more than 125 bags of them, which surpassed their original goal of 100. To spur their efforts, they made posters encouraging others to recycle, which were all entered into a contest.
Thanks to counselor Pamela Fairchild and sponsor HEB, on May 28, six students received $10 awards for their winning posters in the school's regular morning assembly. Winners were: Alexa Ramirez - Kindergarten; Natalie Smith - grade 1; Holden Stringer - grade 2; Cole Leonard - grade 3; Rebecca Cartwright - grade 4; and Ally Waid - grade 5. Approximately 160 students entered the Recycle Poster Contest. All participating students received green arm bracelets (with the message "WES makes a difference! WES recycles!") to remind them to continue to "go green" this summer.
Fairchild spearheaded the recycling effort at the school.
"We hope to inspire all the Magnolia ISD schools to recycle as part of a commitment to keep our community clean," she said.
Fairchild was grateful to the Keep Montgomery County Beautiful organization for including her school in the HEB grant, which funded the recycle bins and provided recycled pencils (made out of old currency) for each student.
Going green is nothing new for Williams Elementary students. Earlier this school year they established one of the area's first "butterfly" gardens on the school grounds. The beautiful garden of natural butterfly-friendly plants was planted on the school grounds by students, parents, teachers and volunteers of the US Green Building Council Piney Woods Branch, who helped fund the garden. Plants, garden tools and services were donated by Landology, Elizabeth Austin Landscapes by Design, Nature's Way, and Silversand Services.
"Our students are learning early about how to preserve our environment, which is sure to make them better citizens when they grow up," said Fairchild. "We members of the school staff are thankful to have this opportunity."
Tomball High School will hold its 2013 commencement ceremony June 8, at Reed Arena, on the campus of Texas A&M University, at 9 a.m. No tickets are required for the event and graduating seniors may bring as many guests as they wish. For more information visit wwwtomballisd.net.
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