Featured Story: 2010 Houston ADA Dignity Memorial® Tour de Cure on September 25, 2010

Take an active step to prevent and cure Diabetes by signing up to ride in the second annual 2010 Houston ADA Dignity Memorial® Tour de Cure on September 25, 2010. Approximately 2,000 riders are expected to participate in the event that runs from 7 a.m. – 3 p.m. and offers activities for the whole family.

Routes are available for novice, occasional or expert cyclists, with 10-, 27-, 47-, 63- or 100-mile rides, and each route will start and finish in front of Katy Mills Mall at Champion Nissan, 25550 Kingsland Blvd., Katy, Texas 77494. Interested parties should go to www.diabetes.org/tour , select Texas and the Houston event to register Registration is ongoing until Thursday, September 23rd and costs $25.

Benefits from the ADA Dignity Memorial Tour de Cure go to the American Diabetes Association in Houston for research and programs designed to prevent, manage and cure diabetes. Read the story »

Events: 6th Annual 2010 Nun Run

On Saturday, October 16th, you will want to checkout the 6th Annual Nun Run.  The Nun Run is a fifty-mile, Blue Knight police-escorted motorcycle ride from Houston to Galveston. The 2010 Nun Run benefits the children and families of CHRISTUS school-based clinics. Your donation will help provide flu vaccines, health education and screenings, back-to-school supplies and the promise of a brighter Christmas.

Non-riders can participate by pledging or donating gifts in support of the adventurous nuns. Proceeds directly benefit the children and families cared for by CHRISTUS ministries. There will be awards, prizes, breakfast, lunch and rides! Sidecars welcome.

Event Schedule

* 9:00–10:15 AM: On-Site Registration, Breakfast and Nun Rides
* 10:15 AM: Blessing of the Bikers and Bikes
* 10:30 AM: Kick Stands Up! Time to head to Galveston! Rain or Shine!
* 2:00 PM: Happy Trails! See you again on October 15, 2011!

Awards and Prizes

* Door Prizes Galore
* 50/50 Cash Drawing
* Nun’s Choice Award
* Biker From Farthest Distance
* Youngest and Oldest Biker
* HOPE Clinic Award

Click here to Register or Sponsor

Registration includes: Breakfast, Lunch, Ride Pin, Do-Rag, Door Prize Ticket

* $35 per person prior to day of event
* $50 per person day of event
* $159 room rates are available at Moody Gardens. Reserve your room before September 25, 2010 by calling 888-388-8484.

Event Hosts

The event is sponsored by CHRISTUS Foundation for HealthCare, the Congregation of the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word, Blue Knights, JSC Space Riders and Retreads Motorcycle Club.

Location:
Starts: Villa de Matel, 6510 Lawndale St., Houston, 77023
Ends: Moody Gardens Convention Center, 7 Hope Blvd., Galveston, 77554

Contact:
Kemah Blair, 713.803.1801

Katy Real Estate: Fifteen of Sixteen Cinco Ranch Schools Receive Exemplary Rating

Fifteen of the 16 Katy ISD schools serving the 7,600-acre Cinco Ranch master-planned community have earned the highest possible rating in the 2010 Accountability Ratings just released by the Texas Education Agency.

The 15 schools were all rated Exemplary, the highest of the four ratings assigned by the TEA.

An Exemplary rating means that a campus must have at least 90 percent of its students meet or exceed the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) standard on each subject, including Reading, English/Language Arts, Math, Writing, Social Studies and Science.  A campus must also have a dropout rate of 2 percent or less to earn an Exemplary rating.

Taylor High School, the only school serving Cinco Ranch that was not rated Exemplary for 2010, received the TEA’s second highest rating, Recognized.

Katy ISD schools attended by Cinco Ranch students include eight elementary campuses: Creech, Exley, Fielder, Griffin, Kilpatrick, Rylander, Stanley and Williams. Middle schools include Beck, Beckendorff, Cinco Ranch, McMeans and Woodcreek. Students also attend Cinco Ranch and Seven Lakes high schools.

“Outstanding schools are a major reason why Cinco Ranch is the number one community in the nation for new-home sales in 2009, and we applaud the students, parents, faculty and all community members for their hard work and achievements,” said Heather Gould, marketing director for Newland Communities, developer of Cinco Ranch.

The 2010 TEA ratings are the latest good news about Cinco Ranch schools.  The 2010 “America’s Best High Schools” study by Newsweek ranked Cinco Ranch High School and Seven Lakes High School within the top 3 percent of the nation’s high schools.  The study ranked schools based on the number of students taking Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate or Cambridge tests, divided by the number of graduating seniors.

To tour Cinco Ranch Homes, contact me via FuellingKaty.com. I have sold Katy real estate for 21 years and would enjoy touring Cinco Ranch together.

Katy Sports: Katy Triathlon at Firethorne set for Sunday, Oct. 24

Katy/Fulshear, TX – July 30, 2010. . . The 18th Annual Katy Triathlon at Firethorne, the third largest co-ed triathlon in Texas, will be held Saturday, October 24, 7:30 a.m. – 11 a.m., in and around the 1,400-acre Firethorne residential community. The USA Triathlon-sanctioned race, sponsored by the Rotary Club of Katy, encompasses a 16-mile bike race, a three-mile run and a 500-meter swim in Lake Firethorne.

“Firethorne is a great partner on this event and we’re thrilled to be back,” said Rotary Club of Katy Treasurer Vicki Rao. “We really enjoy the residents — they’re phenomenal people. Their response was so incredible last year, especially those who live near Race Central (the Visitor Center).

The 2010 race hopes to draw 1,000 participants — 900+ individual athletes, plus those on relay teams.

The cycling route will include sections of FM 1463 and US Hwy. 90, within the Katy city limits. Firethorne is located on FM 1463, near the crossroads of the I-10 West corridor, Westpark Tollway and Grand Parkway.

“Firethorne’s 12-acre lake amenity and proximity to wide spaces of rural areas is conducive to having a successful triathlon,” said veteran Race Director Dave Rainey.

The registration fee is $55 per person and $75 per relay team through September 1. Registration continues through October 20. The complete fee structure and deadlines are posted on the new website, www.katytriathlon.com.

The Rotary Club of Katy, race sponsor, donates event proceeds to the Katy Rotary Fund, which supports local charities for their work in providing essential health, recreation and educational services to children in Katy ISD. In May, the Rotary Fund awarded $21,000 in scholarships, $1,500 each to 14 graduating seniors from the district’s six high schools. Cinco Ranch High School FBLA, Rotary Interact Club and Boy Scouts provide have provided volunteer support for the race. Race sponsorships, underwriters and in-kind underwriters are available. For information, call 281-391-3655.

Firethorne, located 15 miles west of Houston’s Energy Corridor, blends the best nature has to offer: 150 acres devoted to parks and recreational amenities, a 12-acre lake with surrounding greenbelt, hike/bike trails, parks and playgrounds, tennis courts, Fitness Center, resort-style swimming pool, discovery-rich wildlife observation area and a natural bird habitat. Served by highly acclaimed schools, Firethorne combines the vibrancy of West Houston with the small-town charm of Katy/Fulshear. To tour Firethorne, take I-10 West and exit Pin Oak to FM 1463, call 281-395-1440 or visit www.firethorne.info.