ASIS INTERNATIONAL HOUSTON CHAPTER

MEETING MINUTES: February 23, 2005

The luncheon meeting was held at Renaissance Hotel. Chapter Chairman Darin Dillon CPP presided. 87 members and guests attended.

Permanent nametags are available, sponsored by Crescent Realty.

Opening prayer and Pledge: Lewis Eakins

Committee Activities:

Treasurer: Bob Cascino reviewed and distributed the report, which does not reflect the January Luncheon invoice.

Newsletter: Tom Hamilton CPP requested all articles for the March newsletter are submitted by close of business on Monday February 28.

Golf Tournament: The new location is Southwyck Golf Club in Pearland on May 16. 9:00 AM Shotgun start with breakfast served starting at 8:00 AM. Lunch will be provided following the completion of play. Mike Reeves generously offered to provide and cook the BBQ sausage for the luncheon. There will be a Putting Contest prior to the tournament. We will have a Silent Auction and prizes are being solicited, as well as items for the goodie bags and door prizes. This is our major fundraiser, which supports the Criminal Justice scholarship program at UHD. Last year we provided scholarships for 9 academy cadets and 7 students in the Security Management Masters Program. Detailed information can be found on our web page.

Certifications: Steve Bourg CPP announced the next review class begins March 8 sponsored by Baylor at the TMC. It will be held on Tuesday evenings from 18:00-20:00. The tests are being revised for July testing, so it is advisable to study and take the current version.

Houses of Worship: Lewis thanked Posie Clinton for arranging a meeting with the Catholic Churches for Houston/Galveston Counties. Lewis is also scheduled to meet with Ministers Against Crime, an organization sponsored by HPD. The committee did a presentation to a church in Baytown last week and will be giving another presentation in Houston next week.

Foundation: Randy Simpson CPP announced the recent scholarship lottery for a free Asset Protection seminar in California was won by a member of the St. Louis Chapter.

Training:

o Dr. Trey Williams announced a free training opportunity for Houston Chapter members on Effective Facility Security, presented by Paul Timm (RETA Security, Inc). It will be held on March 9 from 11:00-12:00 at UHD, but also will be available on-line. Recertification points for CPP, PCI and PSP are available. Detailed registration information is available on the web page.

o The local chapter seminar will be August 12-13.

o He hopes to provide TPSB licensing recertification points for certain monthly luncheons shortly.

o Dr. Williams accepted a check for $1505.95 from last year’s seminar profits on behalf of the ASIS/UHD Scholarship Fund.

Web: Mike Crocker CPP announced we have three new sponsors. Sponsorships are greatly appreciated and valued. Please see Mike for information.

Misc:

• RVP Lisa Smith is slowly recovering and was able to return to work on a limited basis.
• Tom Hamilton and John Brady attended an ASIS International Leadership Conference in Washington D.C.

Military Recognition Award: As a departure from our monthly Law Enforcement Recognition Award, we invited the family of U.S. Marine Corp Lance Corporal Leroy Sandoval to accept an award on his behalf. Cpl. Sandoval, age 21, was killed in battle last year in Iraq. He graduated from high school in 2000 prior to joining the Marines in 2003. He was a machine gunner and had only been in Iraq on his third combat patrol when he died. He was awarded the Bronze Star for Heroism and the Purple Heart. The Houston Chapter wanted to express our deepest appreciation, not only for the sacrifice of Cpl Sandoval, but to his family for their great loss. We presented his mother, sister and step-father with a plaque inscribed:

Lance Corporal Leroy Sandoval, USMC

“Greater love hath no man than this that a man lay down his life for his friends” John 15:13

With appreciation for his sacrifice for our freedom

We must all remember that these men and women volunteer to serve and protect our liberties.

Speaker: Steven McCraw, Texas Homeland Security Director

“An Update on Homeland Security in Texas”

Mr. McCraw was a former DPS Officer prior to his appointment as a Special Agent to the FBI in 1983. He was appointed the Director of the Governor’s Office of Homeland Security by Governor Rick Perry in August 2004.

Mr. McCraw first extended his personal appreciation and sympathy to Cpl. Sandoval’s family. He expressed great pride in his own daughter, who is due to be commissioned and will be going overseas shortly.

As public safety professionals, we all recognize the threats to our country. The public, as a whole, has become desensitized to this threat while we continue to work to minimize it. The prevention strategy of our Administration “Take the fight to the enemy” is our front line of defense. This is accomplished in several steps:

• Prevention
• Seeking out embedded cells and determining their capabilities and preoperational activities
• Integration, unification and cooperative efforts of all Law Enforcement agencies
• A consistent reporting system that starts with the local police departments
• Distribution of that information
• Integration throughout the disciplines (different industries)
• Addressing border issues at both the Mexican and Canadian borders and recognizing that this is a gateway to terrorist illegal entry
• Radio inoperability: there is now a major focus on communication between first responders. Radio replacement is expensive, with an estimated cost of $1.6-16 billion for everyone just in the state of Texas. More efforts are being placed on funding this issue with a Technical Advisory Group to oversee the connectivity.
• Integrating training and drills by making it a state-organized exercise rather than regional or individual drills. This helps with cross-notification, feedback, follow-up and redundant systems
• Increasing our detection capability for pests to crops and livestock

$1.3 billion in funding has come INTO the state but not necessarily TO the State. It has gone to the CDC, Universities, the Texas Health and Human Services Department etc. Approximately $54 million is due to be released to the Houston area. The State will keep about 20% toward gaps in radio inoperability. Regional and local governments will have 45 days to submit requests for funds once the money has been released.

After a question and answer period, Mr. McCraw accepted a plaque in appreciation for his time and presentation. Our next meeting is March 30. Our speaker is Dr. Richard Wainerdi, President, CEO and COO of the Texas Medical Center.