Tuesday, May 12, 2015

CONGRATULATIONS: Judge Debra Mayfield Has Been Appointed Judge of the 165th Judicial District; Margo, Rodolfo, Madrid, Galo, and Jefferson Appointed to Other Posts by Gov. Abbott



Governor Greg Abbott Appoints Mayfield As Judge Of 165th Judicial District Court

Governor Greg Abbott has appointed Judge Debra Ibarra Mayfield as judge of the 165th Judicial District Court in Harris County for a term to expire at the next general election in November 2016.

REMARKS FROM JUDGE MAYFIELD: "I'm honored by Governor's Abbott's appointment, and I look forward to the continuing opportunity to serve the public in the 165th Civil District Court."

Judge Mayfield currently serves as judge of Harris County Civil Court at Law Number One, where she has held office since 2011, and she currently serves as Administrative Judge of the County Civil Courts. In 2013, she was selected as a “Woman on the Move” by Texas Executive Women. She is also the past president of the Mexican American Bar Association of Houston, received the 2014 “Public Service Award” from South Texas College of Law, and is on the board of the Institute of Hispanic Culture. Judge Mayfield received a bachelor’s degree from Texas A&M University and a law degree from South Texas College of Law.

This appointment is subject to Senate confirmation.



A FEW OTHER APPOINTMENTS: Donald R. "Dee" Margo, Rodolfo “Rudy” Madrid Jr., John L. Nau, III, Anna Benavides Galo, and Wallace B. Jefferson

"On behalf of Aubrey R. Taylor Communications, the publisher of Houston Business Connections Newspaper and Magazine I would like to congratulate Judge, Debra Ibarra Mayfield, Donald R. "Dee" Margo, Rodolfo “Rudy” Madrid Jr., John L. Nau, III, and Wallace B. Jefferson on their recent accomplishments." -- Aubrey R. Taylor, Publisher

Governor Abbott Appoints Margo To Cancer Prevention And Research Institute Of Texas Oversight Committee


Donald R. "Dee" Margo is the owner of Margo Partners, Inc. Prior to that, Margo worked at the John D. Williams Company for more than 30 years. He worked his way up through the ranks to become the chairman and CEO of the company before the business later sold in 2012 to HUB International, one of the largest brokerage firms in the world. Margo was elected to the Texas House of Representatives in 2010 and served on the Appropriations Committee and the Land and Resource Management Committee. He has been a strong leader in growing and diversifying El Paso's economy as an active member of the Greater El Paso Chamber of Commerce, the El Paso Regional Economic Development Corporation, and the Paso Del Norte Group. Margo also helped found the Border Fund, a non-profit foundation providing more than $26 million in charitable grants to local volunteer groups; and Operation Noel, which provides more than 20,000 coats for needy El Paso children, from toddlers to teenagers, each Christmas. As a current member of the World Presidents Organization and past member of the Young Presidents Organization, Margo has been honored as an exemplary role model in business ethics. Margo attended Vanderbilt University on a football scholarship where he received a bachelor's degree in history and economics.

This appointment is subject to Senate confirmation.


Governor Abbott Appoints Madrid To Commission On State Emergency Communication


Rudy Madrid is a 1990 graduate of H.M. King High School in Kingsville, Texas. He attended Texas A&I University from 1990 to 1992, where he then began his Navy career - completing boot camp at the Recruit Training Command in San Diego, California. From there, he immediately attended the Naval School of Health Science in San Diego and graduated from Hospital Corpsman School. After serving his next two years on the Labor & Delivery Unit at Naval Hospital Memphis, Tennessee, he was accepted to the Navy’s Advanced Medical Laboratory “C” School and went on to serve as a Microbiology Supervisor at the Naval Hospital Jacksonville, Florida. While onboard, he managed to attend off-duty college which led to his completion of a Bachelor’s of Science in Healthcare Administration from Southern Illinois University. In 1998, Madrid was meritoriously selected to the Military Enlisted Commissioning Program where he went on to complete his Bachelors of Science in Nursing from Texas A&M University at Corpus Christi.

In 2001 he served as charge nurse to the Emergency Room at Naval Hospital Jacksonville and was sub-billeted to Fleet Hospital Jacksonville where he completed multiple pre-deployment work-ups in Camp Pendelton, CA in response to 911. In 2004, Madrid transferred to the Naval Hospital, Naples, Italy where he served as the Clinical Nursing Manager to the Emergency Room. During this tour, he was able to complete graduate level schooling and earned a Master’s of Science Degree in Health Care Management. In 2007, Madrid was meritoriously selected to attend the Navy’s Duty Under Instruction program and attended the University of Texas Health and Science Center in San Antonio, Texas. While there, he was trained as an Advanced Practitioner at University Trauma Center, and earned a Master’s of Science Degree in ER/Trauma Nursing. Upon completion, he transferred to the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland where he served as the Clinical Nursing Director to the Emergency Room.

In 2010 Madrid was hand-selected to deploy to Kandahar, Afghanistan where he served as part of an elite Shock/Trauma Team for the Role 3 Multinational Medical Unit. He was awarded the Navy Commendation Medal for directly influencing a 98% survival rate to severely wounded American, coalition, Afghan Police and local national patients. In 2011, Madrid was instrumental in constructing a comprehensive pre-deployment trauma training program at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center that is expected to increase overall Readiness for both hospital corpsman and military Nurses alike. LCDR Madrid finalized his military career as the Clinical Nursing Director for the Joint Forces Medical Education and Training Center at Fort Sam Houston Army base in San Antonio, Texas. In 2014, Madrid was elected Kleberg County Judge.

Madrid currently sits on several boards and is active in multiple charities.

This appointment is subject to Senate confirmation.

Governor Abbott Names Chair And Appoints Three To Texas Historical Commission


John L. Nau, III is President and Chief Executive Officer of Silver Eagle Distributors, L.P., the nation’s largest distributor of Anheuser-Busch products. Silver Eagle employs over 1,300 employees that serve 16 counties in Texas through operations in Houston, San Antonio, Conroe, Cypress, Pasadena, Rosenberg, Carrizo Springs and Del Rio. Nau’s commitment to service is apparent through a broad spectrum of participation in civic, community and philanthropic organizations in Houston and throughout the country. His current involvement includes National Park Foundation Board of Directors, Civil War Trust Board of Directors, The Texas State Historical Association Board of Directors, Baylor College of Medicine Board of Trustees, Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History Board of Trustees, University of Houston Board of Visitors, Honorary Trustee of the Greater Houston Convention & Visitors Bureau, Honorary Trustee of Texas Heart Institute, Honorary State Trustee for the San Antonio Parks Foundation and Advisory Council member to the Center for Big Bend Studies. He also serves as a Board Member for Discovery Green Conservancy, Friends of the Texas Historical Commission, Friends of Vicksburg National Military Park, Houston Police Foundation and The Admiral Nimitz Foundation. Additionally, he is Chairman of the Steering Committee for the proposed Lone Star Coastal National Recreation Area. He is a graduate of the University of Virginia, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in History and currently serves on the Board of Visitors, a position appointed by the Governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia. He is founder and President of The Nau Foundation.

Wallace B. Jefferson is a partner at Alexander Dubose Jefferson & Townsend, LLP in Austin. Prior to joining the law firm, Jefferson served as the Chief Justice to the Supreme Court of Texas from 2004 until 2013 and as an associate justice from 2001 until 2004. Justice Jefferson serves on the University of Texas Development Board, Council of the American Law Institute, University of Texas Law School Foundation and the Texas Supreme Court Historical Society. Justice Jefferson has three times made Texas judicial history as the first appointed African American Justice to the Texas Supreme Court, first elected African American justice to the court along with Justice Dale Wainwright and then first African American Chief Justice to the Texas Supreme Court. Justice Jefferson received the “Pillars of the Foundation” award by the Northside Independent School District and is the namesake for the Wallace B. Jefferson Middle School in San Antonio. Jefferson received a Bachelor of Arts in Political Philosophy from James Madison College at Michigan State University and earned his Juris Doctor from the University Of Texas School Of Law. He is the recipient of the James Madison College Distinguished Alumnus award in 2002, the University Of Texas School Of Law’s Outstanding Alumnus Award in 2005, Michigan State University Outstanding Alumnus award in 2007, and Texas Exes' Distinguished Alumnus Award in 2010.

Anna Benavides Galo is active in her family’s business, serving as co-trustee of the family mineral trust as well as Vice-President and Co-Operations Manager of several companies dealing with oil and gas holdings, commercial real estate, and ranch industries. She is also a former educator. Galo is a loyal advocate to fighting hunger in South Texas and is the current president of the board of directors at the South Texas Food Bank. In 2006, she and her husband, John, along with her family helped establish three Kid’s Cafes located at the Benavides Boys & Girls Club downtown and in South Laredo in Rio Bravo and El Cenizo. In 2010, Las Damas de la Cultura de Oro, an organization that conserves Hispanic customs and traditions for future generations in Texas, recognized Galo with the La Dama Award for her tireless efforts and contributions towards this cause. Galo was also honored by LEAD Laredo into their Laredo Hall of Fame, and in 2011, she and her husband were honored with the Blue Spirit of Excellence Award by the Laredo Police Officers Association. In 2013, Galo was awarded Tejano Achiever by LULAC Council No. 12. Later this week, she will be inducted into the Jr. Achievement Laredo Business Hall of Fame. Galo is a former board member of the Border Cultural Promotion Foundation, the Laredo Center for the Arts, the Webb County Children’s Advocacy Center and a former board member and local chair of AVANCE. Galo served on the City of Laredo Historic Landmark Board committed to the preservation of the historic areas of the city. Galo and her family enabled the renovation and preservation of the American Legion’s Post 59 located in the historic area of downtown Laredo. Galo graduated from St. Mary’s University with a degree in English.

These appointments are subject to Senate confirmation.


DON'T FORGET THAT THE CITY OF HOUSTON WILL BE HOLDING A VERY IMPORTANT MAYORAL ELECTION ON TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2015; EARLY VOTING STARTS ON MONDAY, OCTOBER 19TH AND ENDS ON FRIDAY, OCTOBER 30TH

Don’t forget that the City of Houston election is getting more exciting by the day. 

A few of the candidates expected to be in the Tuesday, November 3, 2015 race for City of Houston Mayor are: Ben Hall, Adrian Garcia, Victoria Lane, Sylvester Turner, Bill King, Marty McVey, Stephen Costello, and Chris Bell. The deadline for candidates to have their name placed on the ballot in the City of Houston is Monday, August 24, 2015. Early voting will start on Monday, October 19, 2015 and end on Friday, October 30, 2015. You are strongly encouraged to consider the candidates who value and respect us when you go to the polls

FINAL NOTES: Our "CELEBRATING FREEDOM AND LIBERTY" edition of Houston Business Connections Magazine will be released on Friday, June 19, 2015. This edition will highlight "JUNETEENTH" and "THE FOURTH OF JULY" holidays.

WE ARE STILL LOOKING FOR MORE PEOPLE TO FEATURE INSIDE THIS EDITION. A few of the key advertisers already signed up are: Attorney Ben Hall, Attorney Keryl L. Douglas, Attorney Farrah Martinez, Judge John Schmude, and Judge Loyd Wright.

CALL (832)212-8735 TO ADVERTISE!

Call Aubrey R. Taylor Communications at (832)212-8735 if you would like to be included in the next edition of Houston Business Connections Newspaper.