Dear Neighbor,

It has been so good to be home in the district this week!  And what a week it has been. 

I have just returned from welcoming First Lady Dr. Jill Biden and U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy with members of our Congressional delegation as they visited Texas Children’s Hospital this afternoon as part of their nationwide effort to vaccinate children ages 5-11 against COVID-19.  Getting children vaccinated is the best way to protect our kids and ensure students can continue learning in person.  Today’s event highlighted the great work being done in our community with heroes all around.

Children as young as five can now get vaccinated against COVID-19 at Houston Health Department vaccination sites.  Vaccination of children at health department sites requires parental consent, available at the time of vaccination.  Visit houstonhealth.org or call 832-393-4220 to find a nearby free vaccination site or schedule an appointment.

Before I get to last week’s summary, I want to be sure you know that I will hold a virtual community conversation on mental health with Houston-area experts tomorrow evening.  It will be a webinar format where you can ask questions about mental health issues, stigma, where to seek help, and more. 

I hope you will join us!  Click here to RSVP. 

It was a great week to be home – and the glorious weather was certainly a highlight.

This week I had the great privilege of presenting service medals to Gulf War Navy Veteran Amaury Mercado and sharing the moment with his wife and son. 

Amaury had been seeking his medals for years, and I was so glad to be able to assist him in obtaining them.  If you or someone you know are owed medals from your service, please fill out my casework form and someone from my office will get in touch with you.

I was also glad to meet with Pipeline Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) Acting Administrator Tristan Brown at my district office this week.  PHMSA is the regulatory agency that oversees pipeline safety and transportation of energy products.  It is vitally important to many of the companies operating in the district, and it was a pleasure to visit with the Acting Administrator on a broad range of issues. 

I also spoke with the Texas Hospital Association this week, to give an update on federal health care policy, discuss Texas-specific concerns and issues, and hear from leaders of hospitals from around the state on matters of concern to them.  It was great to visit with incoming CEO John Hawkins and Dr. Marc Boom from Houston Methodist (pictured below), and many others.

On Tuesday, I attended the Holocaust Museum’s Guardian of the Human Spirit Luncheon, an inspiring and important day for an inspiring and important organization.  It was great to connect with Houston Rockets President of Operations Gretchen Sheirr there as we honored community leaders. 

On Wednesday, I stopped by Dandelion Café in Bellaire to visit with owners Sarah Lieberman and JC Ricks, whose work to promote small business earned them the honor of representing SBA Region VI at National Small Business Week.  I was glad to present them with a certificate recognizing their work in #TX07!

I also enjoyed meeting with Chris Pruitt from CW39 to talk about local broadcasting and relevant legislation to support local journalism.  Did you know CW39 is located in the district? 

And, of course, this week, we honored our fellow citizens who have answered the call to serve our country, at home and around the world, on Veterans Day.  I am grateful to our veterans and committed to keeping our promises to them.  Please know that my team and I are here to help veterans and their families access resources and services throughout the year.

As always, I am proud to represent you and I am here to help you.  Please call my office at (713) 353-8680 or (202) 225-2571 or email here at any time to ask for assistance or share your thoughts.  I look forward to hearing from you.

Best wishes,