Silverado, K-Park students host ‘senior’ prom

By JENNIFER SUMMER
KINGWOOD OBSERVER
Updated: 03.29.09
The roaring 1920s style music will play through Silverado Senior Living as residents and high school students decked out in their best dresses and suits dance into the evening hours.

As a service project for Kingwood Park High School’s National Honor Society, the group has organized a “senior” prom for residents April 3.

“I first heard about this idea from one of our teachers and that is when we decided this would be a great service project for our club and we would enjoy spending time with the residents,” Joanie Wan, one of the organizers from NHS, said.

The students approached Silverado Senior Living about the idea and the administrators were thrilled by the idea.

Members of NHS are planning to put on their prom dresses and suits and the Silverado residents will wear their best outfits for a fun evening.

There will be refreshments and snacks and the prom attendees will be entertained by live music.

“We are very excited about the ‘senior’ prom because it will give us a chance to spend time with residents since some of them do not have that many visitors,” Wan said. “We developed the idea since we were incidentally reading ‘The Great Gatsby,’ so it seemed like a great idea and theme for our prom.”

The students will arrive the day before the prom to decorate and get everything set up for the event.

Several Kingwood Park High School students have spent the past year volunteering at Silverado Senior Living and enjoy the chance to give back to the residents.

“This should be a fun event for everyone including the residents and NHS members. We get the chance to travel back in time and enjoy a fun time period,” Wan said.

Kingwood resident publishes book about economic opportunity

Kingwood resident Steve Unwin recently published his book: “The New American Dream: How to Make it Happen!”


By MATTHEW HUISMAN
Updated: 03.24.09
Throughout the history of mankind, the entrepreneurial spirit has been the engine of the economy. Steve Unwin, an eight-year Kingwood resident, recently finished his book “The New American Dream: How to Make it Happen!” about human ingenuity and how it relates to the economy today.

“I was interested in how the economy works and what makes people buy and what makes people sell,” Unwin said.

He explained how people think up an idea and start a small-scale business. From there the business grows legs and expands. The final stage is where a single product replaces a service provided.

“That’s the lifecycle of the economy,” Unwin said.

Unwin used the example of RedBox - a machine that delivers a service 24 hours a day with little overhead cost and at a cheap price to consumers - which is a possible replacement for Blockbuster.

“It’s an ATM for movies,” Unwin said. “It’s taking the place of Blockbuster and it’s very available.”

But the idea of a product replacing a service could also be used in education. Unwin used the example of the Nintendo Wii and the possibility of using it to supplement education in schools. He talked about how it could help students learn.

“Students aren’t just listening and looking,” Unwin said. “They are engaged and all three senses are being applied to learning.”

Read the full story HERE!

New Kingwood café offers peaceful setting, healthy food

By JENNIFER SUMMER
Updated: 03.20.09
Filled with the smells of freshly brewed coffee and fresh baked goods, Java Pi Café in Kingwood offers a variety of healthy options and special treats for the community.

The new deli and bakery opened its doors March 18, providing a unique experience and a personalized atmosphere.

With grab-and-go foods such as bagels, scones, muffins, fresh fruit and refreshments to name a few, the self-service café provides options for customers.

“Java Pi Café strives to offer our customers the choice of ‘grab ‘n’ go or stay ‘n’ relax,’ plus everything is fresh ‘n’ healthy,” owner Rita Ritter said.

A business three years in the making, longtime Kingwood resident Ritter had always dreamed of owning her own café and she found the vacant spot on Northpark Drive which sparked her interest.

“I remember I used to look in vacant shop store windows, looking for that perfect place, when one of my friends said to me, ‘Why don’t you stop talking about it and just do it?’ That’s when I found this location,” Ritter said.

Ritter visited a small business development center to develop a plan for her business and start working on the Java Pi Café.

She started negotiating the lease for the location in August 2007 and sealed the deal August 2008 and then construction on the space began.

“One thing led to another and I found a builder and now we are open and greeting customers. It was a lot of struggle to get everything together but I learned a lot along the way and it gave me a little bit more time to be prepared for anything that may happen,” Ritter said.

Ritter tossed around several ideas for the name of the café when she settled on Java Pi Café because she serves coffee and because of the significance of pi in math.

With three siblings and three children, the number three has always been significant for Ritter so pi, whose value is approximately 3.14, was very fitting.

The cafe even has the symbol for pi on its signs and displays throughout the café as well as a plate with pi spaced around the edge

Read the full story HERE.

Santa Fe girls advance in soccer playoffs/Area sports scores

Santa Fe girls advance in soccer playoffs

From staff reports
The Daily News
Published March 21, 2009

H.S. Baseball

Creek 6, Ball 0

Ryan Gunhouse pitched a one-hit shutout with five strikeouts and three walks.

Greg Olson hit a solo home run in the third inning.

Creek is 8-5 (2-0). Ball is 6-6 (0-2).

+++

Brook 13, Dickinson 3

Cody Whitley, Sencion Barajaz and Josh Honc each scored for the Gators (4-9, 0-2).

Zac Enger was tagged with the loss on the mound.

+++

Lake 10, Springs 2

J.R. Bethell and Matt Corbell each had home runs for the Falcons (9-5, 2-0).

Matt Brister took the loss for Springs (6-10, 0-2).

+++

Friendswood 12, Manvel 2

Alex Anastas hit a home run for the first-place Mustangs.

Jordan Johnson got the win for Friendswood (10-5-1, 3-0).

+++

Santa Fe 10, La Marque 0

Ryan Ewald struck out 12 and Taylor Terrasas hit a home run for Santa Fe (5-9, 1-2).

+++

Texas City 7, Angleton 2

Curry Sattig hit a 3-run homer for the Stings, who defeated the first-place Wildcats.

Steven Mott, Kyle Bulpitt and Renee Filoteo each drove in a run, while Tyler Iguess had two hits.

Matt Plitt got the win for Texas City (7-8-1, 2-1), allowing seven hits with five strikeouts.

+++

H.S. Softball

Creek 4, Springs 0

Katlyn Moulder allowed just one hit while striking out 13 for Creek (16-7, 3-1).

Springs drops to 8-6 on the season (2-2 district).

+++

Friendswoood 1, Dawson 0

Kelly Smith earned the win. She gave up three hits and struck out 14.

Friendswood (14-6-1, 2-2) scored in the first inning. Carrie Flores walked and moved to second on Aimee Konet’s single. Flores scored on a two-out error by the third baseman.

Caitlin Bennett had a double for the Lady Mustangs.

+++

Texas City 6, La Marque 0

Crystal Alaniz struck out 16 while recording the shutout for the Lady Stings (9-12, 2-2). Alaniz also had three hits and two RBIs, Cheyenne Cash drove in two, and Casey Oliver and Chelsea Huggins each had an RBI.

Jennifer May struck out seven but took the loss for La Marque (11-7, 1-3).

+++

H.S. Girls Soccer

Santa Fe 4, C.E. King 0

Visiting Santa Fe won its first playoff game since 2005.

Kat Hamric scored two goals and Kourtnee Leflet had two assists.

Mary Hunt and Ashley Kovacevich each scored one goal.

Goal keeper Tyler Steinbach made four saves.

The Lady Indians will play Houston Reagan at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at Houston ISD’s Dyer Stadium.

+++

College Baseball

Galveston College 15, Blinn College 11 (10 innings)

On Wednesday in Brenham, Tyler Fiebrich hit two home runs and had five RBIs for Galveston.

Dan Lazarou was the winning pitch

South Indian Culture Celebrated in Kingwood

The International Ladies Club welcomed the Kingwood community on March 7th during their celebration of South Indian Culture which was held at the Kings Crossing Apartments club house.

A kaleidoscope of colors, forms and exotic flavors engulfed attendees’ senses as a group of young dancers in classical costume and make-up took the stage to perform traditional South Indian dances, Bharathanatyam dances and a typical group dance from Kerala. The Bharatanatyam is the celebration of the eternal universe through the celebration of the beauty of the body. The dancers’ impeccable moves, lovely expressions and exquisite costumes highlighted their beauty, confidence and control of mind and spirit. After the performance guests were treated to zesty ethnic food.

Namaste to the performers and to ILC member Devaki Radhakrishnan for bringing us this exceptional show. For information on the Kingwood International Ladies Club, please visit us at www.intlladieskingwood.org

First published HERE.

Mighty Mustang Band Going To Chi-Town!

On March 14, Kingwood High School's Mighty Mustung Military Marching Band, also known as "KM4B," takes off for Chicago to participate in that city's reknowned Saint Patrick's Day Parade on May 15.

Band director Destry Balch told me the 204 partcipating students are very exicited about the opportunity, which is by invitation only. "It's a pretty big undertaking," he said.

The band applied for a slot in the parade in February 2008, and only recently learned about the selection by the parade's organizers. The application included still photographs of the band in uniform, video and audio tapes of their performances, and a "biography" of the band's numerous awards and accomplishments.

Balch said the band members have been preparing for a year for the trip, even without knowing whether they'd be selected. Since it costs $1,200 per student, many families started payment plans that allowed them to save for the trip little by little.

In additon to student fees, members of the community and local businesses made contributions to help supplement the trip.

"We were going to Chicago, whether we got selected or not," he joked.

The parents who will accompany their students are paying their own way, Balch said. To raise money, many of them have been volunteering over the past year, including working the concession stands at the Toyota Center. Balch said he enjoyed working there during a Mötley Crüe concert.

During the mile-and-a-half parade down Columbus Drive, the K4WB will perform the familiar National Emblem march composed by Edwin Eugene (E.E.) Bagley in 1906. (Check out this YouTube video.) Balch said the piece has a lot of long notes, which will be helpful to the players from Texas.

Read the full story HERE at the Chron.

Battle of the Bands at Kingwood Park High School - Kingwood

Battle of the Bands at Kingwood Park High School - Kingwood

Four Bands competed in the 2nd Annual Battle of the Bands

Running With Fire

Love Chase

Dearly Beloved

Crushed Velvet

Bands were judged by a panel of four judges on the following criteria:

Vocal Clarity
Musical Talent
Stage Presence
Song Writing Ability/Diversity of Playlist

And the winner is . . . . . . Running With Fire

March is Music month in Kingwood

A trio of musical performances by the talented community members and students of LSC-Kingwood will delight music lovers throughout the month of March.

The Kingwood Community Symphonic Band and Jazz Ensemble will kick off the month with a free performance on Thursday, March 5. The KCSB is made up of both students and community members. They perform a wide variety of music, including Broadway and show tunes, transcriptions of orchestral works and original compositions for band. The Jazz Ensemble is comprised of LSC-Kingwood students performing on piano, bass, guitar, drum set, trumpet, and trombone.

Kris Chapman, conductor of the KCSB, says the music for the program will be quite lively and enjoyable for all ages. "Our concert features the energetic rhythms of Hungarian Gypsy melodies in Puszta, the regalia and pageantry of the famous military unit drawn from Russian nobility in Entry March of the Boyars and the beloved American folk song, Simple Gifts, treated in a unique way by composer John Zdechlik in Chorale and Shaker Dance."

Marvin Sparks, director of the Jazz Ensemble, promises more of the same from his group. They will perform several selections, including Tengo Tango, Caravan, and Teen Town. Sparks says Chad Willis, who plays an integral part in the production and performance of this concert, was selected as the lead trumpet player for the TCCBDA (Texas Community College Band Directors Association) All-State Band and performed at the TMEA (Texas Music Educators Association) conference recently.

Read the full story HERE.

Kingwood’s Boys Win Both 5A and 4A Swimming Championships

Kingwood High School swimming program continued its dominance of state swimming in Austin with a strong championship performance.


Kingwood Observer

Updated: 03.02.09
The Kingwood Mustangs boys won the 2009 5A Texas UIL Swimming and Diving State Championships on Feb. 28 without winning a single individual or relay event. It was their third 5A title in the last five years.

Kingwood accomplished the feat by placing second in all three relays and depth in their individual events. The Mustang boys won the Class 5A title at the Jamail Texas Swimming Center at the University of Texas-Austin with 200 points, followed by Plano with 170 and Round Rock with 154.


Senior Austin Wilson led the Mustangs with four second place finishes. He was out-touched in the 50 and 100 freestyle and the 200 and 400 freestyle relays by a combined time of just .37 seconds for the four races. His anchor leg of the 200 freestyle relay was a blazing 19.99 seconds. Wilson’s teammates on the 200 free relay were: Jordan Jones, Taylor Kneisley and Kyle Sorge.

Read the full story HERE