Gov. Perry Appoints 11 To State Independent Living Council

From: Office of the Governor (Press Release) - Austin, TX - Mar 18, 2006

Mar. 01, 2006

AUSTIN – Gov. Rick Perry today announced the appointment of 11 persons to the Texas State Independent Living Council. The council leads, promotes and advances independent living philosophy and advocates for the rights of individuals with disabilities.

Sue Pennington Ford of Bedford is a Texas Master Certified Nursery Professional and a Texas Certified Landscape Professional. Ford is a member of the Texas Nursery and Landscape Association. She is the Landscape chair at Martin United Methodist Church and a service dog access specialist at Delta Society National Service Dog Center. A graduate of Simmons College, Ford received a master’s degree from the University of South Florida and a nursing degree from New England Deaconess Hospital in Boston. Her term will expire on Oct. 24, 2006.

Morgan Talbot of McAllen is an attorney and president of Talbot and Talbot. He is being reappointed to the council and is vice chair of the council. He is a member of the Rio Grande Valley Estate Planning Council and is also a member of the Hidalgo County Bar Association. Talbot is Estate Planning and Probate certified by the State Bar of Texas Board of Legal Specialization. A long-time director of the University of Texas Pan American Foundation, he also served as chairman of the foundation for three years. He is currently the chairman of the foundation’s Estate Planning Program Committee. A former director of the State Bar of Texas, he is also a former member and chairman of its Grievance Committee for South Texas. Talbot is chairman of an Ad Hoc Committee for Development for American Sign Language Training in collaboration with the Valley Area Independent Living Council, South Texas College and the University of Texas Pan American. A graduate of Lamar Junior College and the University of Texas, he received a law degree from the University of Texas School of Law. His term will expire Oct. 24, 2007.

Scotty Sherrill of Nacogdoches is a retired executive director of the Nacogdoches Treatment Center. She currently serves on the Nacogdoches Mayor’s Committee for People with Disabilities, the Nacogdoches Commission on Women and Children and the Nacogdoches Handicapped Housing Board of Directors. Sherrill formerly served as a member of the Deep East Texas Council of Government Aging Advisory Council and the Texas Rehabilitation Commission Consumer Advisory Council. She is a past member of the Texas Department of Aging Consumer Advisory Council, the Deep East Texas Human Resources Council and the Nacogdoches County Aging Committee. Sherrill attended Harding University in Searcy, Arkansas. Her term will expire Oct. 24, 2007.

Donald Landry of Groves is a regional specialist for the deaf and hard of hearing serving Health and Human Services Region 5. As such, he works with the Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services in information and referral for Johnson Interpreting Service in Beaumont. He serves as past treasurer for the Southeast Texas Association for the Deaf. Landry is an honorary member of the Deep East Texas Association for the Deaf and a member of the Regional Council on the Aging. Landry’s term will expire Oct. 24, 2007.

Robert Hawkins of Bellmead is a member of the Bellmead City Council. Hawkins is a member of the Texas Technical Society and serves on the Texas Workforce Investment Council. He is chairman of the board for the Heart of Texas Economic Development District and is a board member and chairman emeritus of the Central Texas Economic Development District. Hawkins also serves as executive vice president of the 143rd Infantry Regiment Association and is a life member of AMVETS. He is a member of the Masonic Lodge and the Sons of the American Revolution. A graduate of McLennan Community College and the State University of New York at Albany, Hawkins also received a certificate in Industrial Development from Texas A&M University and a diploma in National Security Management from National Defense University. He studied economic development at Georgetown University and took courses from the United States Department of Labor and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. His term will expire Oct. 24, 2007.

Paula Jean Margeson of Plano is a technical writer and principal officer for Margeson Grant-writing Specialists. Margeson is being reappointed to the council and currently serves as chairperson. She also serves as a member of the Rehabilitation Council of Texas and was recently elected as treasurer of the National Congress of Statewide Independent Living Centers. She is a member of the National Council on Independent Living and the National Society of Fundraising Executives. Margeson is a board member for All Blind Children of Texas and is the disability minister director at Spring Creek Community Church. She also conducts disability awareness training for various public school districts. Margeson is a graduate of California State University at Fullerton. Her term will expire Oct. 24, 2008.

Marcia Ingram of Midland, who is being reappointed, has served as secretary of the council for the past four years. She is a medical consultant for John J. Ingram and Associates. Before retirement, Ingram was nurse manager for Texas Oncology for 14 years in Midland and prior to that, served as head nurse at Midland Memorial Hospital. She also previously served as executive director of Casa de Amigos, a social service organization in Midland, for nine years. Ingram is a graduate of the Odessa College School of Nursing. Her term will expire Oct. 24, 2008.

Tracey Michol of Kingwood is a teacher of American Sign Language (ASL) at Humble High School. She is a member of the alumni associations at both Lamar University and Gallaudet University; a member of the Council on the Education of the Deaf; the Texas Association for the Improvement of Reading; and the Up With People Alumni Association. Michol is also a member of Wesley United Methodist Church in Beaumont, where she is in the choir and teaches ASL. A graduate of Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C., Michol received a master’s degree from Lamar University. Her term will expire Oct. 24, 2008.

Kristen Elizabeth Jones of Houston is a grant assistant for the University of St. Thomas. She serves on the National Youth Leadership Network and has served as the Houston Coordinator of the National Disability Mentoring Day. Jones also served on the Houston Commission on Disabilities and was a White House intern in the office of public liaison-disability outreach and also in the United States Department of Education in the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services. Jones is a graduate of the University of St. Thomas and is completing graduate work at the University of Houston. Her term will expire Oct. 24, 2008.

Larry Gardner of Cedar Park, who will be serving as an ex-officio, is a program specialist with the Department for Rehabilitative Services. He is a member of Texas Rehab Action Network, an associate board member of the Austin Mayor’s Committee on Disabled Persons and is a member of Austin Goodwill’s Consumer Advisory Committee. Previously, Gardner has served as a liaison member of the Texas Governor’s Committee on People with Disabilities and on the board of directors for the Central Texas Easter Seals. Gardner received a bachelor’s degree from Texas Tech University, where he also completed graduate coursework. He will serve for a term at the pleasure of the governor.

Marc Gold of Austin, who will be serving as an ex-officio member, is the manager overseeing the Promoting Independence Initiative for the Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services. Previously, he worked with the Health and Human Services Commission and the former Texas Department of Human Services. A graduate of the University of Miami, Gold earned a master’s degree from Emory University in Georgia and also a master’s in neuropsychology from Columbia University in New York. He will serve for a term at the pleasure of the governor.