December2014 HBAA Newsletter - hba

Houston Bar Association Auxiliary
NewsBriefs
Volume 68, Issue 4
DEC. 2014
Plan now to attend the CHILI AND PIE COOK OFF which will support our Charitable Fund
Scholarship Awards. Judges are Ken Hoffman, Columnist, Houston Chronicle; Hon. Grant
Dorfman, Judge of 334th Judicial District Court of Harris County; Hon. Jerel Twyman,
Associated Judge of the Municipal Court of City of Bellaire, Texas; Professor Doug Moll,
University of Houston Law School. If you would like to help organize this event, please
contact Dominique Varner or attend the next committee meeting scheduled on December
4th, noon. Contact email: dem@hwallp.com
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Presidents Notes: Dear Members, the
busy holiday season has kicked off! The
Harvest Celebration was a wonderful
event with over 900 in attendance. This
65th Annual Celebration at River Oaks
Country Club is a fundraiser benefiting
pro bono legal services provided by
members of Houston Volunteer
Lawyers. A record $670,000.00 was
raised by generous donors through the
efforts of the HBA Board Members. Hats off to Kay Sim and her
staff at the HBA Office for a great job in organizing this
fundraiser.
Wendy and Alistair Dawson
HBA President Carter Crow, Meredith Crow, HBAA President Hazel Donato, Houston Bar
Foundation President John Eddie, Sheridan Williams
HBA VETERAN’S LEGAL INITIATIVE: Please consider contributing to the Veteran Holiday party
gift bags by donating holiday cards, toiletries, and any miscellaneous promo items such as
pens, shirts, etc. All donated items are going to Veterans living at DeGeorge at Union Station
and US Vets at Midtown Terrace in Houston. Monetary donations to the Houston Bar
Foundation are also welcomed so that socks and/or shirts can be purchased for the bags.
Drop your donations by December 8th at the HBA Office, 1111 Bagby, FLB 200, Houston,
77002. Volunteers are needed to sort and organize donations on December 8th and
9th. Contact Bonnie Simmons at 713-759-1133 or bonnies@hba.org for further information.
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The Selection Committee has selected Bill
Kroger the recipient of the 28th Leon
Jaworski Award, 2015. An attorney with Baker Botts Law Firm, Bill
was nominated by Communities in Schools/Houston and will receive
the award at a luncheon scheduled for 11:30 a.m., March 3rd at the
Hyatt Regency Downtown, 1200 Louisiana St, Houston, TX 77002.
Reservations are $75 per person; tables of 10 are $750. Contact
Sandy Norris at 713-827-0442 or visit HBA-AUX.org for pay/pal
purchase. Thanks to the Selection Committee for their service: Dr.
Tommy Thompson, Pastor, Bethany Christian Church; Mr. Marshall
Hiens, Chief Facility Services Officer, Memorial Hermann Health System; Ms. Bonna Kol,
Executive Director, Asia Society; Mr. Khambrel Marshall, Meteorologist, Channel 2 News; Mrs.
Mickey Meyers, Volunteer, Holocaust Museum; Mr. Carter Crow, President, Houston Bar
Association; Mrs. Hazel Donato, President, Houston Bar Association Auxiliary.
“Family,” the Pat Foley sculpture created in 1987 at the request
of the Houston Bar Auxiliary to commemorate the Jaworski
Award, was moved to its new home in the new Juvenile Justice
Center on November 17. The sculpture represents a family
enveloped within the protective arm of the law. Recipients are
presented with a maquette of the sculpture in recognition of the
award. Thanks to Judge Robert K. Schaffer, Judge David Farr,
Kelly Frels, Jane and Lee Larkin, and all others who worked
together to make this possible.
HBA AUXILIARY DIRECTORIES are on the printing press. Look for your copy soon!
FACEBOOK – Please join the HBA Auxiliary Facebook page.
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Phyllis Dent has been a committed active HBA Auxiliary member for
many years. She is our current Charitable Fund President,
Database and Directory Chair and has been the guiding force in the
establishment and awarding of the law school scholarships.
The American Lawyers Alliance has nominated Phyllis as the
recipient of the ALA Outstanding Individual Volunteer Award which
she will receive at an ALA ceremony in February.
The American Lawyers Alliance will meet in Houston next February 4 through February 6,
2015. The ALA schedules their meetings in conjunction with the American Bar Association,
which has scheduled its Mid-Term Meeting in Houston starting February 4, 2015. Please mark
February 4, 5 and 6 on your calendar.
I hope that the HBAA will extend arms of welcome to the ALA. There will be meetings, tours
and wonderful restaurants planned for this meeting. You will be invited and welcomed to join
the ALA in any or all of our activities and meetings. You will receive more information about
the ALA meeting.
One of the highlighted activities for the ALA meeting will be a cocktail party hosted by HBAA
Thursday, February 5. HBAA is well thought of with this group, so ya’ll show them a big Texas
welcome.
The ALA is going to sponsor a book drive for children ranging from young to middle school
aged kids. These books will be collected and then given to a worthwhile organization. A
collection box will be at the Chili and Pie Cook-Off on January 31st for you to deposit your
book donations.
Many of you are already ALA members and support the ALA organization. If you are not a
member, please consider becoming a member of this fine 501 C 3 Non-Profit Organization
that has a mission to promote understanding of the American legal system.
As I serve as this year’s ALA President, one of my goals is to keep HBAA abreast of what is
happening in ALA and encourage ALA membership. My other goal is to have HBAA meet these
lovely ALA members in February as some of them have never visited Houston.
Please email me at sbennett@johnhbennettjr.com if you have questions or would like to join.
Thank you, Sue Bennett
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Our October Lunch and Learn was led by Preservation Houston docent Jim Parsons at the
Glenwood Cemetery. This was a brief overview of the historical 84 acres. We learned “the
last President of the Republic of Texas, four Governors, and more than twenty Houston
Mayors, along with founders of major oil companies, religious and professional leaders, and
others who have made significant contributions to Houston” are resting within the
cemetery. We all enjoyed lunch at Chatters afterwards.
SAVE THESE DATES
Join us for a program and lunch on January 13, 2015. Bayou Bend docent Anna Hodges will
present “Dinner at 8:05,” a behind the scenes look at the preparations to ready Bayou Bend
for President George H. W. Bush’s formal dinner honoring the leaders of the free world who
were in Houston for the G7 Summit. The program will begin at 11 a.m. followed by a noon
luncheon at Yvonne Cormier’s beautiful home. Her table will be set for our lunch
reminiscent of the Bayou Bend dinner. Watch for E-vites just after Christmas; RSVP for lunch
at that time.
Dust off the rolling pins and ready the kettles for Saturday, JANUARY 31, 2015, 5:00-8:00pm
for the HBAA 1st Annual Chili "AND" Pie Cook-Off, Karbach Brewery, 2032 Karbach St.,
Houston, Tx 77092! This will be an evening of Family Fun!! Proceeds from the cook-off will
benefit our Charitable Fund Local Law School Scholarship Fund. Form a Chili Team AND/OR
enter your Pie; see page 1 for team entry information or visit HBA-AUX.org.
The American Lawyers Alliance will meet in Houston next February 4 through February 6,
2015.
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What does the Charitable Fund do? Supports Habitat for Humanity, Eikenburg Fun Run, Houston Bar
Foundation, and Houston Volunteer Lawyers. Also three $5000 scholarships were awarded this year to three
recipients representing the three law schools in Houston: Egllatine Moss, UH Law Center; Kendrack Lewis,
Thurgood Marshall School of Law (TSU); and Jamie Godsey, South Texas School of Law. Selection is based on
academic excellence, community involvement and financial need; a combination of all three is required to
be selected. Your donations make possible these contributions. We have been able to award over
$120,000 to Houston area students over the last ten (10) years solely as a result of your continued support
and generosity. The HBAA Charitable Fund is a 501 c (3) organization, so each donation you make will be tax
deductible.
Please send contributions to Treasurer Gina Rebman, 1 J-Star Court, Houston, TX 77024 and/or support the
Chili and Pie Cook Off being held on January 31st (see page 1.)
Do The Write Thing Challenge is an anti-violence and academic writing program targeted at middle school
students and is organized by the U.S. National Campaign to Stop Violence. By writing these essays students
are provided the opportunity to think profoundly about the issues of violence. The boy and girl winner from
each school will be invited to attend a ceremony that will honor them. This ceremony will be held in Minute
Maid Stadium. There is an over-all boy and girl winner selected to represent Houston. The finalist family and
teacher are invited to be honored at a recognition ceremony in Washington D.C. These finalists also will
have their essays published.
For the fourteenth straight year the HBA Auxiliary will read 1500 essays and select one girl winner and one
boy winner from each school. You are invited to become a reader. Please come join us to read.
When: February 16th, February 17th and February 18th
Where: Home of Sue Bennett, 2514 Potomac Dr. Unit H, Houston 77057
Time:
9:00 am-3:00 pm [or anytime between]
A light lunch will be served each day. Please join us for all or part of a day, as your schedule permits.
Please contact Kathy Redden 713 783-1824 kathyredden2213@gmail.com or Sue Bennett 713 266-8951
sbennett@johnhbennettjr.com
The Houston Bar Foundation has graciously once again this year given us funding for the Now
You Are 18 program. We are waiting on the order to be processed and picked up and plan to
distribute them in early December. This year 31,250 books are being distributed to school
districts in the Houston area to tell 18 year olds about their rights and obligations of
becoming adults. We are so thankful for the support of the Houston Bar Foundation to make
this available once again. The schools are delighted!
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January 13
Winter Lunch and Learn – Bayou Bend Program – “DINNER AT 8:05” –
Yvonne Cormier’s home,
11 a.m.
January 31
Chili and Pie Cook-off – Karbach Brewery, 5-8. Benefits HBAA Charitable Fund
Scholarship Fund
February 16-18
Do the Write Thing readings (see p. 6)
*Wine Wednesday
March 3
March 21
Jaworski Award Luncheon (see p. 3)
30th Eikenburg Fun Run, Sam Houston Park, 7-10 am
*Spring Egg Hunt (Easter is April 5th)
April 6
May 1
Spring New Board and President’s Luncheon
Law Week—HYLA Student Readings Event
HYLA Law Week Luncheon
HBA Annual Dinner, River Oaks Country Club, 7-10 pm
May 21
*The exact day will be announced.
Go to HBA-Aux.org for more information.
Keisha Phillips and Sarah Lane are our Egg Hunt co-chairs. They will be posting us soon on a
scheduled date for the Egg Hunt on the Mithoff’s lawn.
Also please call Hazel Donato if you have experience or are interested in
being our Newsletter Editor or Photographer.
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New Members—Welcome!
Gregory Griffin — Greg is Director of Business Development at Mehaffy Weber. He was
nominated for the Houston Business Journal’s 2014 “40 Under 40” and received honorable
mention. Greg is on the Chili and Pie Cook Off committee and designed the flyer for that
event. So glad to have you as a member and thanks for your time!
Warren Harris – Warren is an attorney with Bracewell & Guiliani and serves on the HBA
Board of Directors, 2014-2016. Warren’s wife, Lauren, also an attorney, is a HBA Auxiliary
lifetime member. Thank you for your support Warren!
Sabrina Neff — Sabrina is an attorney with Hughes Watters Askanase and is hard at work on
our Chili and Pie Cook Off event. She is a commercial litigation associate. Sabrina was
recognized by Law & Politics Magazine and Texas Monthly Magazine for the list of 2014 Texas
Rising Stars. Welcome and thanks for all of your efforts and time!
Keisha Phillips — Keisha is a stay at home parent of two daughters, ages 4 and 6. She is a
Mental Health Specialist with a specialty in Early Childhood Development. She volunteers at
the Junior League and is currently helping at Sheltering Arms. Keisha’s husband Felix is a
partner at Baker Botts. He works in the Corporate Department. Keisha has volunteered to cochair our Annual Easter Egg Hunt. Thank you, Keisha!
Lauren Virene — Lauren is an attorney with Hughes Watters Askanase who began practicing
law in 2013. She is “part of a team that focuses their practice on consumer and bankruptcy
litigation and mortgage default services”. Lauren is a committee member on our Chili and Pie
Cook Off and has already been a big help getting the event off of the ground. Thanks and
Welcome!
NOVEMBER
Warren Harris 11/05
Sharon Katz 11/07
Pat McAnelly 11/07
Jean Dowell 11/08
Lynn Gagnon 11/08
Claudia Aycock 11/09 Christy Benoit 11/11
Jacque Royce 11/12
Sue Bennett 11/18
Debbie Jones 11/18
Beth Lloyd 11/20
Karen Morris 11/24
Annell Smith 11/26
Cynthia Harper 11/29
JANUARY
DECEMBER
Hazel Donato 1/03
Carol Jean Moehlman 1/03
Helen H. Allen 1/09
Bonnie Denny 1/10
Penny Brann 12/01
Macey Reasoner 12/02
Anne Barrett 1/11
Mary Jones 1/16
Gina Rebman 12/03
Anne Conner 12/04
LaNell Neel 1/18
Maureen Alsup 1/19
Evie Ronald 12/04
Barbara Tartt 12/07
Phyllis Dent 1/23
Roberta Worsham 1/23
Nancy Eubank 12/16
Becky Davis 12/18
Beverly Arnold 1/25
Penny Hollyfield 1/28
Betsy Hope 12/18
Meredith Crow 1/30
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!
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