Garden rededicated in honor of fallen officers

  By Crystal KobzaHOUSTON (KTRK) -- In southwest Houston new crosses and new plaques now honor the memory of two fallen Houston police officers. The memorial garden at the southwest substation was re-dedicated for those fallen officers Thursday morning.

The memorial garden is to honor and remember Officer James Charles Boswell and Officer Guy Patrick Gaddis. Both of the men were only in their 20s when they died in the line of duty in Houston.

Officer Boswell, at the age of 29, in 1989 was shot by a man who claimed to be a DEA informant. Officer Gaddis was 24 years old in 1994 when he was shot in his own patrol car while transporting two handcuffed prisoners.

HPD Captain Wyatt Martin says this memorial garden has new life, thanks to the community. He added that many of the men who are still on the force today remember these two fallen officers. Some of them actually attended the police academy together some 20 years ago.

"Just having them here, I think lets the officers know that what they are doing means something to someone, not only to their co-workers, but with what the community did for us here at the station, it lets them know people actually care," Captain Martin said.

The memorial garden, along with the rest of the grounds at the southwest division police substation, were cleaned up, thanks to a keep Houston beautiful community donation. Part of the effort was to clean up the gardens, and refurbish the plaques and two memorial crosses.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.) Get more Local »

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Westbury Community Garden may be in jeopardy

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Neighbors are fighting to save the Westbury Community Garden and keep it exactly where it is. The seven acre site in far southwest Houston now may be in jeopardy.

The undeveloped land has been owned by the Houston Housing Authority for three decades. It's been leased by the Westbury Civic Club for a community garden for only the past two years. The question is how much longer the garden will remain.

It's a garden fighting the elements beneath a hot Texas sun but it's thriving -- for now.

Gardener Dita Geary said, "It's pretty terrific to watch kids learning where their food actually comes from."

Last month, amid all the green, something unusual was spotted around the garden -- surveyors for the Houston Housing Authority were sizing up the land. The authority owns the land that is leased for the community garden for only $10 a year.

There is concern that all this might be developed or sold, even as the Westbury Community Garden was about to expand to the rest of the seven acre site.

"It's not going to happen now because we're not about to pour money into the place that might go for naught," Geary said.

There is a petition drive to save the garden, appealing to the Housing Authority to let it stay. Meanwhile, things keep growing and people keep working, looking ahead to the winter and perhaps even next spring.

"Seasons don't wait, so we're not going to wait," Geary said. "We're just going to keep planting."

The CEO of the Houston Housing Authority said that the land is being surveyed and it must also be appraised to determine if it should be sold or whether it should be developed for low income housing purposes.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.) Get more Local »

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