Heroes honored with wreaths at Houston National Cemetery

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Veterans are being remembered this holiday season with wreaths at Houston National Cemetery.

Thousands of people attended Saturday morning's ceremony, which included a moment of silence and a flyover in honor of the dead as part of National Wreath Day.

Volunteers placed nearly 40,000 wreaths on the graves of local veterans.

The annual Wreath Day started at Arlington National Cemetery 20 years ago and is now observed across the country.

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DNA links man to theft of three golf carts at Houston National Cemetery

Robert Torres, 32, is charged with theft.

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- DNA from blood left behind at the crime scene has linked a man to the theft of three golf carts at Houston National Cemetery.

According to court documents, the cemetery foreman told police that he closed the cemetery on the afternoon of Friday, December 16, 2011 and when he returned the following Monday, he discovered that three utility carts had been stolen. The foreman said a fourth golf cart had been tampered with and blood was left on the floor.

In addition, two wheels were stolen off a utility trailer and the foreman told police that a pickup truck and a Chevrolet Uplander were damaged in an attempt to steal them.

On January 31 of this year, the Texas Department of Public Safety Crime Lab confirmed a DNA match between the blood left in the cart and a genetic profile belonging to Robert Torres.

Court documents state the total loss was more than $36,000.

Torres, 32, is charged with theft.

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Perry addresses Texas delegates at Republican National Convention

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Mitt Romney's speech Thursday night was well received by delegates at the Republican National Convention.

We talked to Texas delegates who were eager to get back home and get out the votes for Romney. Among them was Gov. Rick Perry, for whom this week could have been so much different.

"I've been thinking about Florida a lot lately," Perry said.

Speaking to the Texas delegation Thursday morning, Perry admitted this was an awkward convention for him.

"If you want to make God smile, tell him your plans. Well my plan was to be speaking tonight at the convention," he said.

For months, Perry campaigned for the spot Romney won. But in an interview with us this week, he said he's fine with the way it ended.

"I haven't really left the fight. I am not the quarterback, but I am still on the team," Perry said.

He's campaigned for Romney and will again but won't yet rule out a presidential run in 2016, when Romney could be running for re-election.

"2016 is three lifetimes away in my business. We got a legislative session coming up," Perry said.

And after, that a potential gubernatorial re-election race in 2014. Perry's already the longest serving governor in Texas and there are signs people in his own party may put pressure on him to leave.

"'14 will take care of itself," Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott said.

Abbott has banked $14.5 million in campaign cash -- nearly five times what Perry has -- and is rumored to want to be governor.

In the middle of this Romney-Obama battle, Texas delegates are keeping an eye on a potential Abbott campaign.

"I would vote for him, yeah, if he ran," Texas delegation member Tammy Strum said.

"Over Rick Perry?" we asked.

"Oh, I like both of them," she said.

All Abbott will say is he will be on the ballot in 2014.

"He does aspire to the governor of the state of Texas some day, but there are a lot of people who aspire to be the governor of the state of Texas. That day will come for him," Perry said.

Both Abbott and Perry spoke to the Texas delegation this week and both were well received. Any thought that Perry's support for David Dewhurst in the recent Senate primary may have hurt him didn't appear to be present. He received several standing ovations during his address.

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Sugar Land student among 50 semifinalists in National Spelling Bee

Eighth grader Sivateja Tangirala of Fort Settlement Middle School in Sugar Land is one of the 50 finalists in today's Scripps National Spelling bee finals.

  OXON HILL, MD -- Fifty semifinalists are preparing to take the stage at the National Spelling Bee -- including the sister of the 2009 winner and two five-time participants.

Unlike in the preliminary rounds, spellers who get words wrong will hear the dreaded bell that signals it's time to leave the stage.

Eighth-grader Sivateja Tangirala of Fort Settlement Middle School in Sugar Land is one of the 50 finalists in today's Scripps National Spelling bee finals. Tangirala also qualified for last year's Spelling bee.

Among the favorites is 10-year-old Vanya Shivashankar of Olanthe, Kan., whose sister, Kavya, won the Scripps National Spelling Bee three years ago. Vanya was the only speller to earn a perfect score in the preliminary rounds.

Six-year-old Lori Anne Madison, the youngest speller in the history of the event, did not make the semifinals.

Thursday's semifinals will be broadcast live on ESPN2, as will the finals Thursday evening.

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Missouri City boy wins National Geography Bee

National Geographic Bee host Alex Trebek stands with National Geographic Bee champion Rahul Nagvekar, 14, from Quail Valley Middle School in Missouri City, Texas, Thursday, May 24, 2012, in Washington, . (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

  WASHINGTON -- A first-time national geography bee contender from Texas has won the annual competition in Washington.

Fourteen-year-old Rahul Nagvekar, of Missouri City, Texas, won National Geographic Bee on Thursday. He will receive a $25,000 scholarship.

Thirteen-year-old Vansh Jain, of Minocqua, Wis., came in second, and will take home a $15,000 scholarship. The third-place winner, 13-year-old Varun Mahadevan of California, wins a $10,000 scholarship.

The competition began with about 4 million students in schools across the country this year.

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Local woman launches national non-profit program to help kids with autism

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- New research shows the number of children being diagnosed with autism and mental illness is going up. Therapy would help many of them, but few families can afford it.

Now, a Houston-area woman has launched a national non-profit program to provide financial help for those families, and she has made sure the money is easy to qualify for.

Three-year-old Yakser Syed's parents noticed when he was about two that his speech was delayed, and he wasn't properly responding to their calls. Still, they were surprised when he was later diagnosed with autism. Now he's seeing a behaviorist at the Varidian Center and making huge strides, but at an enormous cost.

"It's over $2,000 a month that I'm having to pay out of pocket, and so it's definitely been a big hit on us financially having to provide for this type of therapy but the progress that Yasker has made with it, it makes it so worth it," said his mother, Saba Syed.

The Syeds did get some financial help for their son's therapy from Dr. Layla Salek, a behaviorist who herself grew up in a home with a mentally ill parent. So she says she understands how deeply the wounds reach when autism, mental illness or other issues aren't properly assessed and treated with occupational therapy, speech remediation, and family education and support.

But it was quite by accident that she found a way to link her hobby with her work.

"I just serendipitously one day started talking pictures of toys in my daughter's playroom and I loved them and I sat there and tried to figure out what can I do," Dr. Salek said.

What she did was turn the photos into clothing -- onesies and T-shirts made of organic cotton -- which she sells in a few Houston-area stores and the proceeds fund her charity, Susie Bean. Susie Bean selects behaviorists with proper certification and training to partner with them by referring clients who need help. One hundred percent of the profits are made available to clients. Erin Breen is one of four service providers in our community linked with Susie Bean.

"It was such a simple process. I just filled out the application, talked to the family and she sent me the check and so it was absolutely wonderful," Breen said.

Dr. Salek hopes to make financial help available in cities all over the country. Her organization is on the forefront addressing a national challenge.

"Autism is on the national epidemic list, so for insurance just to decide they're not going to cover this that's huge. And these families really need help and if we don't pay for it while they're little then we're going to pay for it as a society later on," Dr. Salek said.

The Syeds offer their story as proof of the potential therapy offers.

"Since he's so young and he has so much potential I want him to live a full, normal, independent life where he can take care of himself," Syed said.

If you would like to be a part of Susie Bean's fundraising efforts to help families, or if your family is in need of help, you can access their website.

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Katy students headed to national Science Olympiad

  by Crystal KobzaHOUSTON (KTRK) -- Two Katy schools are gearing up for a national competition.

Students from Beckendorff Junior High and Seven Lakes High School are moving on after wins in Texas' Science Olympiad.

The students involved in the two teams couldn't be more proud to come home winners of this state competition. And it's pretty impressive to see just how creative and smart they are.

The junior high and high school students are coming straight off a big accomplishment. Just a few weeks ago, they competed against 29 other teams from around Texas at the state Science Olympiad in College Station.

"It feels like all of our hard work paid off," Beckendorff student Andy Liu said.

The teams from Beckendorff Junior High and Seven Lakes High School were two of four schools from Texas to win state.

Among one of the winning projects is a rocket launcher. Basically, the goal was to shoot the rocket as high as possible, and they accomplished that mission.

"It was exhilarating and it was really fun to launch, and to watch it at state and get first at state was really an accomplishment," Beckendorff student Tanmaya Shrivastava said.

Junior high students also showed off a catapult. They say they're judged on how far the projectile will fly. The catch is, they don't know what they'll be launching or how heavy it until the get to competition.

"You want the furthest distance, but you also want accuracy," Beckendorff student Jordan Rapp said.

Seven Lakes High School students also came home victorious, after placing with a robotic arm they call the Terminator.

"This is more of like what comes out of mathematics, geometry, you know all the really boring classes, that you have to take, is something like this, something amazing, and extremely fun to interact with," Seven Lakes student Guillermo Angeris said.

As for their team coaches, they say, these students have been working hard every day, fine tuning the details.

"We know the students feel they are accountable to one another and it's truly a team effort," Beckendorff teacher Scott Lightle said.

"I think its an honor to just be able to go, to be able to be selected out of all the teams at state," Seven Lakes teacher Sara Mullenax said.

And the national competition is being held in Orlando, Florida on May 18-19. The students say they're hoping to place first, but as long they place in the Top 10, they'll be happy.

Two other schools, including Riverwood Junior High School in Kingwood, will also be heading to the national championships.

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City of Houston joins national 'Better Buildings Challenge'

As the newest Challenge community partner, the City of Houston is committing to improve energy efficiency across 30 million square feet of public and private buildings throughout the city.

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- The City of Houston is going green as part of a nationwide challenge.

The city is part of the Department of Energy's Better Buildings Challenge. The city and corporate partners have pledged to make energy efficient upgrades to 30 million square feet of property.

The challenge aims to improve energy efficiency 20 percent by 2020 in government, commercial and school buildings.

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Houston to be home base of national church

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Chosen by the Pope himself, Houston will become the home base of a national church for Anglicans and Episcopalians who want to join the Roman Catholic Church. This new ordinariate is the first of its kind in the US, and only the second in the world.

For 30 years, Our Lady of Walsingham has been a place for area Anglicans and Episcopalians seeking their Catholics roots. Margaret Pichon was Episcopalian, her husband, Arnaud, Catholic. This church fit them both.

"It allowed Margaret to convert to Catholicism because they were all former Episcopalians like she was,' said Arnaud.

The church has been part of the Catholic diocese, but now it is more than that. The official Parish of a New Ordinariate was created by the Pope. It's only the second in the world outside Britain.

"He has established an ordinariate to welcome Anglican groups and clergy to become Catholic," said CardinalDaniel Denardo of the Galveston-Houston diocese.

The head of the new ordinariate, Father Jeffrey Steenson, is a former Episcopal bishop who became a Catholic priest two years ago.

"For perhaps the first time since the Reformation in the 16th century, a corporate structure will be given to those who choose to return to St. Peter and his successors," he said.

Father Steenson is also married and a father of three adult children. The Episcopal church allows priests to marry. The Catholic church does not, and that will not change.

"It's not an issue at all," said Bishop Kevin Vann of Ft. Worth. "Married priests we have work well with the priests we have and we have the highest number of seminarians in the history of the seminary in Fort Worth," he said.

St. Mary's seminary in west Houston will offer a nine-month training program for Anglican clergy who want to join the Catholic priesthood. What this offers is the ability for Anglicans and Episcopals to retain the same liturgy, the same hymns, the familiar traditions, but as Roman-Catholics, something Arnaud and Margaret Pichon appreciate.

"Because I think we're being called to reach out to those people contemplating the journey and here, we now have the structure to help them do that," said Margaret.

According go the diocese, about 100 Anglican and Episcopalian priests are asking to go through the seminary program there.

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