Matt Lafata’s Weekly Community News

September 27, 2007 – Volume 6, Issue 39

matt@mattlafatamarketing.com – www.mattlafatamarketing.com

We took a trip to Orlando recently and were able to visit Disney and Universal Studios. During our trip to Universal, we were walking down the street and came across The Mystery Machine with Shaggy and Scooby-Doo looking puzzled – or maybe that’s just the way they always look. In any event, we went over to talk with them to see if we could help with anything…or at the very least, bring greetings from Frisco.

After talking with Shaggy for a few minutes, which was quite a chore as he kept babbling about monsters and such, we realized they were lost and couldn’t find the rest of the gang – Fred, Daphne and Thelma. Since they were standing right outside of the Terminator 3-D show, I can understand why they were so frightened as they actually that it was real.

So we jumped in the Mystery Machine with them and starting driving around Universal Studios looking for the rest of the gang of Mystery, Inc.

I have to say it was an interesting ride as we didn’t even know where to start. We drove through the set of Jimmy Neutron’s Nicktoon Blast and got to meet all kinds of interesting characters from Spongebob Squarepants, the Rugrats and so much more. Yet, no members of the Mystery, Inc. gang.

Next we came across the Shrek adventure and while Shrek, the Donkey, Princess Fiona and the rest of the gang were interesting, we still couldn’t find Shaggy and Scooby’s gang.

So we spent the rest of the day enjoying the park and all the great adventures it had to offer and finally realized that the rest of the Mystery, Inc. gang wasn’t even at Universal because the only members anybody really cared about was Shaggy and Scooby anyway! We gave Scooby some Scooby snacks and asked if we could at least take a picture with them for all our troubles and they agreed. Thus the picture you see above. Enjoy the newsletter!

This newsletter and information source is designed to bring us all a little closer together each week by providing coverage of so many things going on in our community. There are so many amazing things in this newsletter, as there are every week. Please forward this newsletter to all your friends and neighbors and encourage them to sign up to receive it themselves. They will greatly appreciate you for it as no citizen should be without this important information at their fingertips.  Let’s work to get all Frisco citizens on this list as a more informed society is a more functional society.

If you have questions or have any community events, people or groups you want to recognize, fundraising events, or any newsworthy items you would like to see added and shared with more than forty thousand residents and businesses in Frisco and the surrounding areas, please send me an email so I may include them. The newsletter goes out each Thursday and I need materials by the end of the day on the preceding Wednesday if you want something to be included.

If you received this from somebody else and would like to be added to the list, just send me an email. Your email address will never be sold or given to anybody else for any reason. All newsletters can also be found on our web site at www.mattlafatamarketing.com.

Inspirational Quote of the Week:

"Do not follow anyone blindly in those matters of which you have no knowledge, surely the use of your ears and eyes and heart - all of these, shall be questioned on the Day of Judgment”

For advertising opportunities, please contact sales@mattlafatamarketing.com

As always, this newsletter is absolutely packed with information – something for everyone. There is always something going on in our great city and I try to include everything I can. In this jam packed issue you will find lots of great information. There is something for everyone including the following…

Capitol Steps by Rep. Ken Paxton: 41

Issue of the Week:

Each week I will post a different issue for discussion. Your opinions mean a lot to me and I’d love to get your feedback on the subject. Please send me an email with your thoughts. While your feedback is for my own use at this time, I do publish a sampling of the comments along with some commentary on my web site at www.makemattmayor.com in the “Issues” section.

Newsletter Staff Members and Contributors

Matt Lafata – Editor and Publisher – 214-336-3355

Kaleigh Lafata – Tornado Talk

Sarah Ianace – Happenings in the

Frisco ISD

Glenn Kopanski – Landscape Design

Pedro Checo – Advice from Dr. Checo

Joe Hockaday, CPA – Today’s Tax Talk From Joe

Citizen of the Month and Neighborhood of the Month Details

If you have a citizen or neighborhood you would like to nominate, please send it to me.

The Citizen of the Month will focus on a person or group in Frisco who has been nominated by another individual. He, she or they could be a person or a group who has recently done something special that contributes to the well-being of our city and/or its citizens, or it could be somebody who has had (or currently has) an interesting career or experiences that could be shared with our readers.

The Neighborhood of the Month will highlight a particular neighborhood in our city. I am looking to hear from you as to why your Neighborhood is so special.

Please send an email to community@mattlafatamarketing.com to nominate and explain why a Frisco citizen or a neighborhood should be honored with this monthly recognition.

City of Frisco Related Question of the Week:

Q. Is there a law where cyclist have to have reflectors on the front and rear of their bikes?

A. From the Texas Transportation Code:
§ 551.104. SAFETY EQUIPMENT[0]. (a) A person may not
operate a bicycle[0] unless the bicycle[0] is equipped with a brake
capable of making a braked wheel skid on dry, level, clean pavement.
(b) A person may not operate a bicycle[0] at nighttime unless
the bicycle[0] is equipped with:
(1) a lamp on the front of the bicycle[0] that emits a
white light visible from a distance of at least 500 feet in front of
the bicycle[0]; and
(2) on the rear of the bicycle 0]:
(A) a red reflector that is:
(i) of a type approved by the department;
and
(ii) visible when directly in front of
lawful upper beams of motor vehicle headlamps from all distances
from 50 to 300 feet to the rear of the bicycle[0]; or
(B) a lamp that emits a red light visible from a
distance of 500 feet to the rear of the bicycle[0].

This Day in History – September 27, 1964 - Warren Commission Report Released:

From the History Channel…

The Warren Commission report on the assassination of President John F.
Kennedy is released after a 10-month investigation, concluding that there was no conspiracy in the assassination, either domestic or international, and that Lee Harvey Oswald, the alleged assassin, acted alone.

The presidential commission, headed by Supreme Court Chief Justice Earl Warren, also found that Jack Ruby, the nightclub owner who murdered Oswald on live national television, had no prior contact with Oswald. According to the report, the bullets that killed President
Kennedy and injured Texas Governor John Connally were fired by Oswald
in three shots from a rifle pointed out of a sixth floor window in the Texas School Book Depository. Oswald's life, including his visit to the Soviet Union, was described in detail, but the report made no attempt to analyze his motives.

Despite its seemingly firm conclusions, the report failed to silence conspiracy theories surrounding the event, and in 1978 the House Select Committee on Assassinations concluded in a preliminary report that Kennedy was "probably assassinated as a result of a conspiracy" that may have involved multiple shooters and organized crime. The committee's findings, as with the findings of the Warren Commission,
continue to be widely disputed.

September is National Thyroid Cancer Awareness Month:

So far this month we have covered Pain Awareness, Ovarian Cancer Awareness and Cholesterol Awareness…

September is Thyroid Cancer Awareness Month, a month designated to help increase visibility for this often-overlooked cancer. To help in this effort to raise awareness, here are some key resources on thyroid cancer

You can also visit the American Thyroid Association’s web site for more information.

Just a reminder - this newsletter is put together with information from many different sources. You can also view this newsletter and past newsletters in the News section of my web site at www.mattlafatamarketing.com. If you do not receive your emailed newsletter for some reason, please visit www.mattlafatamarketing.com each week as some mail servers block emails that are sent to multiple recipients. Just remember that if you don’t get it by each Friday, you can read it on the web site.

For advertising opportunities, please contact sales@mattlafatamarketing.com

Homeowner Association Meetings and Other Group Meetings:

If you have an upcoming meeting that you would like a city official at, just to be available to answer any questions, please let us know. If Matt’s schedule permits, he would love to attend.

Answering Questions for Kids and Young Adults:

As you know, communication and sharing information is something that I spend a lot of time doing. I frequently get asked to answer questions for kids and young adults for school projects or leadership programs. Usually the project involves getting these questions answered from somebody in a leadership position, and as a City Council member, I’m always happy to take the time to do this. If your son or daughter ever needs questions answered from a leadership figure for projects of any kind, please feel free to contact me or have them contact me directly.

Alternatively, if your child is interested in learning more about city government and has questions, feel free to contact me.

Finally, if you are looking for a speaker to talk to a group of kids or young adults about city government or Frisco in general, I’m happy to try and schedule something.

All the opinions, endorsements or recommendations in this newsletter are mine alone and they do not necessarily reflect the opinions or views of any organization or group with whom I am affiliated or the individuals who are a part of such organizations and groups.  You should not rely on any statement made in this newsletter as evidenced of how I may act as a member of any organization or group.  Inclusion of news, events and other information in this newsletter does not imply an endorsement; it merely serves as my effort to be of service to the readers.

All About Frisco:

In our continuing efforts to bring information to our great community, we have updated our web site with listings of:

• Frisco Neighborhoods and Homeowner Associations
• Churches and other places of Worship
• Clubs and Organizations
• The Frisco Independent School District and other Schools

Visit www.friscocommunity.com to access this information and I look forward to your feedback. This site will continue to grow and evolve over time.

Clubs and Organizations in and Frisco:

Frisco is home to a very diverse and numerous set of clubs and organizations. If your group or organization is missing, and you would like to get it listed, please send me an email so we can list it and continue to maintain the most comprehensive list available.

 
AARP – 972-335-2478

Alcoholics Anonymous Frisco – 972-708-5086

American Cancer Society of Collin County – 214-819-1221

American Legion Post 178

American Red Cross of North Texas – 972-542-5642

AroundTown Kids

Arts of Collin County

Boy Scouts of America – 214-902-6754

Boys and Girls Club

CASA of Collin County – 972-529-2272

Chamber of Commerce

Christian Community Action – 972-436-4357

City of Frisco – 972-292-5000

Collin County – 972-424-1460

Collin County Association of Realtors – 214-618-3800

Collin County Connection – 214-544-0666

Collin County Gay and Lesbian Alliance – 214-521-5342

Collin County Genealogy Association – 972-231-4190

Dallas Athletic Rugby Club

Daughters of the American Revolution

Denton County

Downtown Merchants Association

FC Dallas

Frisco A&M Club – 214-618-5079

Frisco Al-Anon Family Group – 972-978-8757

Frisco Area Children’s Theater – 972-377-2675

Frisco Area Republican Women

Frisco Association For the Arts

Frisco Bar Association

Frisco Baseball/Softball Organization – 972-712-2288

Frisco Business and Professional Women

Frisco Chorale

Frisco Community Band – 972-668-5315

Frisco Community Theatre – 972-377-3868

Frisco Convention and Visitors Bureau

Frisco Democratic Party

Frisco Ducks Unlimited – 972-712-5049

Frisco Early Childhood PTA

Frisco Economic Development Corporation – 972-668-5550

Frisco Education Foundation – 469-633-6066

Frisco Family Services Center – 972-335-9495

Frisco Family YMCA – 972-335-3222

Frisco Fire Department – 972-335-5525

Frisco Football League – 972-712-0558

Frisco Garden Club – 972-335-3812

Frisco Gymnastics Center – 972-377-0888

Frisco Humane Society – 972-498-8980

Frisco Independent School District – 469-633-6000

Frisco Kiwanis Club

Frisco Music Teachers Association

Frisco Neighborhood Watch

Frisco Police Department – 972-292-6000

Frisco Post Office – 972-335-7453

Frisco Pride

Frisco Public Library

Frisco Quilt Guild

Frisco Republican Men’s Club

Frisco Republicans – 972-335-9176

Frisco Rotary Club – 972-701-2801

Frisco RoughRiders

Frisco Soccer Association – 972-712-4625

Frisco Square

Frisco Veterans of Foreign Wars Post #8273 – 972-712-5611

Frisco Women’s League – 972-712-8890

Frisco/Plano Christian Women’s Club – 972-668-4464

Frisco Youth Volleyball Leagues

Heritage Association of Frisco – 972-335-6684

KittiCo Cat Rescue – 214-826-6903

Labrador Retriever Rescue of North Texas

Meals on Wheels – 972-562-6996

Miracle League of Frisco

North Texas Tollway Authority – 214-461-2000

OU Club of Collin County – 972-797-9708

Senior Center at Frisco Square – 972-335-5515

SPCA of Texas – 972-562-7387

Texas Tornado Hockey

Toastmasters Club of Frisco – 972-712-4611

Visual Arts Guild of Frisco

Volunteer Center of North Texas

Word of Mouth Productions

Young Life Frisco – 972-424-6339

Youth Leadership Frisco

About Matt Lafata:

Matt Lafata and his fiancée Erika share six children between the two of them. In January 1999, Mr. Lafata moved to Frisco from Gloucester, MA. Mr. Lafata has helped build several highly successful businesses for more than 20 years. A long-time business consultant, entrepreneur and human resources professional, he is the Director of Business Development with the Frisco-based HR strategy and technology consulting firm HRchitect (www.HRchitect.com). He is also the founder of several marketing and public relations agencies including The Matt Lafata Marketing Group (www.mattlafatamarketing.com). Previously, Mr. Lafata was an Executive Vice President of a computer software company where he was responsible for corporate development, marketing, sales, product development and more. Mr. Lafata studied finance and business management at Salem State College in Salem, Massachusetts.

Mr. Lafata is involved in numerous organizations throughout Frisco. He is in his 2^nd term as a Frisco City Council member and has been involved in the following…

• Former Deputy Mayor Pro Tem on the Frisco City Council
• Former Planning & Zoning Commissioner
• Graduate of Leadership Frisco
• 2005 recipient of the “21 Leaders of the 21^st Century” by Inside Collin County Business
• Graduate of the Citizen’s Police Academy and a member of the Alumni group
• Youth sports coach
• Past board member for the Frisco Family Services Center
• St. Francis of Assisi Knights of Columbus Member
• Member of the Frisco Heritage Association
• Member of the Frisco Association for the Arts
• Member of the Frisco Community Theatre
• Community Advisory Board member for the Frisco Women’s League
• Friends of the Frisco Public Library Member
• Board member for the Frisco Square Municipal Management District
• City of Frisco Technology Committee member
• City of Frisco Budget and Audit subcommittee member
• Tax Increment Finance board member
• Wakeland High School PTA Technology/Publicity Committee Chairperson
• Co-Director of the Mrs. Texas United States Pageant
• Honorary Chair for World AIDS Day 2007 in Collin County

Since 2001, Matt and his marketing company have produced this very popular e-newsletter that goes out every week to over 40,000 people and businesses which keeps the Frisco community in touch with local events and businesses.

In July 2007, Matt announced his bid for Mayor of Frisco in the May 2008 election. Visit www.matt4mayor.com for more information about his candidacy.

How to “Whitelist” this Frisco Community Newsletter in Your Spam Filter:

With the advent of outrageous volumes of unwanted email these days, of which I get a ton, it's unfortunate that legitimate email publications like this are not being seen by some of the readers who enjoy those publications. There is much fear today that the email publishing/marketing industry is in serious trouble, due to mistakes in filtering when legitimate email is erroneously tagged as unwanted email.

While we applaud the anti-spam industry for removing the plethora of unwanted email from many of our mailboxes, from time to time, some legitimate email publications are mistaken as unwanted.

Sometimes, this results in our mailings bouncing back, with requests for us to respond to challenge/response messages to prevent future filtering. However, due to the size of our list, it's nearly impossible for us handle the volume of such requests.

To that end, please realize that we want our readers to always anticipate and enjoy the valuable information that this community newsletter delivers.

If you currently use an anti-spam program or service, we ask that you take just a minute or two to add this newsletter to your "safe" or permitted email sender list. This usually involves simply adding our sending address (From:) to your whitelist, safelist, or list of privileged senders. This is commonly known as whitelisting a publication. Simply add the email addresses of matt@mattlafata.com and matt@mattlafatamarketing.com.

If you wish to be removed from this list, please send an email to matt@mattlafata.com.

Dear Friends,

This week’s newsletter is Proudly Sponsored by Organized Chaos. Find out how they can help you organize your life, whether home or business, with a free ½ hour consultation!  Also check out the Spotlight on FC Dallas in the upcoming National Championship Game at Pizza Hut Park. And your team – FC Dallas – will be challenged by Major League Soccer rival the New England Revolution for the Championship on October 3^rd. Don’t miss this great opportunity to see this game here in Frisco. Visit www.fcdallas.com to get your tickets today. A lot of work goes into putting this newsletter together and I greatly appreciate the support of our sponsors so please patronize them wherever possible.

Come Celebrate with the Texas Tornado Opening Night, Friday, September 28.  The Tornado will take on the Wichita Falls Wildcats in the Dr Pepper Star Center, Frisco at 7:30pm.  Don't miss out on the fun!  Check out the New Coaches, New Jerseys, Live Music and get a FREE Magnetic Schedule.   Tickets start as low as $10 and can be purchased by calling 972-335-9800 or online at tornadohockey.com.

FC Dallas has a huge game this Sunday at 2pm at Pizza Hut Park against the Houston Dynamo. Visit www.fcdallas.com to get your tickets today! It is “Faith & Family Day” where pre-game activities kick off at 12 p.m. with performances by local musicians, a Faith village and other plaza activities. Stay for a postgame concert by Toby Mac, Thousand Foot Krutch, and BarlowGirl. All this is available for one low price, plus FREE parking!

Please drive carefully in our neighborhoods. I know you hear me say this all the time but too many people drive too fast and simply aren’t paying full attention to what they are doing. Recently a girl was struck by a car in one of our neighborhoods. Fortunately she is ok but it only takes a second for a tragedy to take place and the lives of at least two families will be changed forever. Please slow down.

Thank you to everybody who responded to the last “Issue of the Week: “What do you think about parking on neighborhood streets?” This one got a lot of response and I really appreciate everybody’s input. If I haven’t emailed you back personally, please know that I will. Every person’s response is important to me. I also publish a sampling of the comments along with some commentary on my web site at www.makemattmayor.com in the “Issues” section. Since I am quite a bit behind on updating the web site, I am going to refrain from including an Issue of the Week for one more week. Look for a new one very soon.

If you have a business, restaurant or a service and are interested in advertising and reaching more than 40,000 individuals and businesses in Frisco and the surrounding areas, please email us at sales@mattlafatamarketing.com for more details on the various options available to you. The newsletter is also included on the web site www.mattlafatamarketing.com and www.frisco-online.com for additional exposure. It’s a great way to promote your business, promote an event at your place of business and is the most cost effective and efficient way to reach a large segment of the Frisco population. You may want to also consider providing a special offer to newsletter readers only.

Newsletter Sponsor – Organized Chaos:

Have you found yourself saying, “I need to get organized!?”  Are you tired of clutter?  Would you like to reclaim precious time in your day?  Are you overwhelmed by the chaos controlling your life and need it organized now?