The annual Rising Star New Employee Luncheon for Friendswood ISD was again sponsored by the Friendswood ISD Education Foundation and welcomed 23 new staff members.
            Out of the 23, seventeen are teachers at one of five campuses and six are paraprofessionals that also will be housed at Westwood Elementary, Bales Intermediate, Cline Elementary, Friendswood Junior High or Friendswood High School.
            The new staff at Westwood include Rachel Chapman, Vera McKee, and Sharon McGowan; at Cline Jodi Leslie; at Bales, Leslie Breaux; at FJH Kim Flores, Julie Hopkins, Brannon Jackson, Tammy Locklear, Toby Simmons, Kelly Stanton and Lindsay Weddel; at FHS Rebecca Hamilton, Ginger Hartman, Jeffrey Kenner, Christina Motl, Glen Newsom, Cliff Owens, JT Patton, Beth Wallace and Pete Wise; and in Special Education Augusta Cloyd and Rachel Landry.
            Mentors include Alex Childers, Caryn Stamper, Sandra Miller, Anne Short, Marni Galli, Carolyn Carhart, Laurie Armstrong, Charlie Taylor, Gary Mullins, Tamara Bullington, Renae Simon, John Hext, Wiley Murrell, Janwin Overswtreet-Goode, and Lori Harvey.
            Underwriters included Gulf Coast Educators Federal Credit Union and Joseph Ditta who sponsored the food from Joe’s Barbecue, Aramark who sponsored the dessert and drinks, Lary’s Florist and Lynn Larry McLean who donated three dozen long-stemmed roses, and the Friendswood Chamber of Commerce who donated large goody bags for each new staff member.
            Vendors at the luncheon included ATPE, AXA Advisors, Christus St John Hospital, First Investors, Gulf Coast Educators Federal Credit Union, Hope Village, JSC Federal Credit Union, Melange, Memorial Hermann Outpatient Imaging, Momentum Financial Group, Mustang Pride, Amoco Federal Credit Union, UH-CL and Valic.
            Door prizes were provided by Amoco Federal Credit Union, Valic, Gulf Coast Educators Federal Credit Union, Hope Village, JSC FCU, and Melange.
            Table sponsors included PTO groups from all six campuses, Dr. and Mrs. David Montz, Nona and John Landers, Debbie and Mike Hickey, Eagle Transmission and Automotive, Ed Stuart and Stone Throw Center, Elaine and Walter P. Manning Jr., Gulf Coast Educators Federal Credit Union, HomeTown Bank of Friendswood, Jeter Memorial Funeral Home, JSC Federal Credit Union, County Judge Jim Yarborough and County Clerk Latonia Wilson, Lucy and Jim Woltz,  Raymond James/Sally Branson, Ron Carter, The Law Firm of Alton C. Todd, Tony Hopkins, and Debbie Frieden.
            Donors included Chris Seller/AHI Supply, the Primrose School of Friendswood, Rebecca Hillenburg Ed. D., Susan Bode, and the Law Firm of Alton C. Todd.
            Goody Bag donors from The Chamber include Amoco FCU, College of the Mainland, Eagle Transmission and Automotive, Friendly Computers, The Chamber, GIA Insurance, HomeTown Bank of Friendswood, Huntington Learning Center, IESI, Jeter Memorial Funeral Home Inc, JSC FCU, Mainland Communities United Way, Professionals’ Choice Housekeeping, Prudential Gary Greene Realtors, Schell Family Dental, Texas Advantage Community Bank, NA Texas First Bank-Friendswood, TNMP, VARC Solutions-Robin Hall, and James D. Yarborough, Galveston County Judge.
            Keynote speakers were FHS Teacher of the Year Kellye Nye and 2008 FHS graduate Luke Landers who is beginning his Junior year at Brown University. Foundation President Guy Crouch and Mayor Dave Smith also spoke at the luncheon.
            Luncheon committee members include chairs Sally Branson and Kim Montz and members Zoe Buzbee, Debbie Frieden, Beth and Alan Stanfield and Vanessa Thornton.
            The luncheon was held at Windsong Intermediate in the cafeteria.