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With over 20 years of experience offering locksmith services, Genesis Barreto said her husband, Diveni Barreto, started his career as a licensed locksmith in Venezuela.

Years later, after moving to the U.S. in 2015, the couple took the courses necessary to become certified locksmiths and opened their own locksmith business, Vemex Locksmith, in 2020.

What they offer: Beyond residential locksmith services, Vemex Locksmith also offers commercial and automotive locksmith services, as well as key fob replacements. The company is based in Porter but offers services across the northeast Greater Houston area, including areas of Harris, Montgomery and Liberty counties.

What's special about it? As a certified locksmith company, Genesis Barreto emphasized the importance of ensuring that locksmith companies used by the community are certified to offer such services. 

Quote of note: “We see [our customers] as family,” Genesis Barreto said. “I'd rather have a long-time customer than a one-time customer.”

• 25025 FM 1314, Porter 
• Service area includes Cleveland, Conroe, Huffman, Humble, Kingwood, New Caney, Porter and Splendora

East Montgomery County Improvement District officials received approval to negotiate a management contract with a venue operations firm for the district's 210,000-square-foot convention center in Valley Ranch, according to a June 1 news release from EMCID.

Latest update: The district's board of directors approved Oak View Group to manage and operate EMCID's convention center, according to the news release. The firm will lead convention center services, such as:

• Hospitality
• Booking
• Food services
• Global partnerships for events

Multiple community events are being held in New Caney and Porter this weekend, June 5-7.

Donut Days Festival: Kick off the summer with a doughnut-themed market featuring live music, a petting zoo, bingo and fresh doughnuts.

• June 6, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.
• Free (admission)
• A.V. Bull Sallas Park, 21675 McCleskey Road, New Caney

• June 6, 8 a.m.-noon
• Free
• A.V. Bull Sallas Park, 21675 McCleskey Road, New Caney

• June 6-7, 11 a.m.-7 p.m.
• $44.99 (general admission)
• 23101 Hwy. 242, New Caney

As extreme weather events become more frequent, CenterPoint Energy announced June 1 that it is expanding its storm preparedness efforts through a partnership with Technosylva, a provider of weather, wildfire and flood modeling software.

Quote of note: “Preparing for extreme weather today requires earlier insight and better coordination than ever before,” said Jason Wells, chair, president and chief executive officer of CenterPoint Energy. “Our goal is to build the most resilient coastal grid in the nation to benefit our customers and communities.”

The overview: Technosylva's platform combines outage forecasting, storm modeling, flood risk analysis and wildfire monitoring into a single system. According to a news release from CenterPoint, the platform helps teams track weather conditions several days in advance, position crews and equipment before storms arrive and improve restoration planning. The National Weather Service forecasts eight to 14 named storms in the Atlantic basin this season, including three to six hurricanes, according to CenterPoint.

Nearly $8.4 billion in new state funding was not enough to save Texas public school districts from budget shortfalls and campus closures, school administrators said June 1.

What happened: During a 10-hour public hearing at the state Capitol, school district leaders spoke of efforts to stretch their budgets amid high inflationary costs as teachers explained their decisions to leave the classroom due to pay cuts and large class sizes.

The big picture: Last year, Texas lawmakers passed House Bill 2, a $8.4 billion school finance bill designed to increase educator salaries, create a new pot of money for fixed costs, provide more training for teachers and boost special education resources.

Roughly one year later, districts across Community Impact’s coverage areas are cutting staff and closing campuses, citing enrollment declines and budget shortfalls. 

Quote of note: "This funding deficit is the final straw for me, and it will be for countless other educators across the state who must leave or who lose their jobs," Austin ISD French teacher Rachel Preston told lawmakers June 1.