The Woodlands Lifestyles and Homes magazine Dec 2009: Business in the Woodlands

Jason Griffith, M.D., reproductive endocrinologist, joined the team of specialists at Houston Fertility Institute. Dr. Griffith practices from the Houston Fertility Institute offices in The Woodlands and Willowbrook area.

Dr. Griffith joined Houston Fertility Institute after completing his residency and fellowship in reproductive endocrinology at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. He served six years in the U.S. Army Medical Specialist Corps. Dr. Griffith is board certified by the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

Jimmy Gill, M.D., medical director and founder of Houston Fertility Institute, said, “We are delighted to have Dr. Griffith join our team of infertility specialists. He has a wonderful, caring rapport with his patients and is truly dedicated to applying his expertise and training to help them achieve their dream of parenthood. We are very proud of our success rates at Houston Fertility Institute and are enthused to have Dr. Griffith on board to further our achievements. ”

Yvette Aquino, chair of The John Cooper School board of trustees, flanked by the board ’s newest members Johnna Edone, Richard Avant, Mark Farley and Sanette Austin.

The John Cooper School Board of Trustees has named its new officers for the 2009-2010 year. They are Yvette Aquino, chair; Gerald Glenn, vice-chair; Phil Pace, treasurer; and Bob Udell, secretary. New to the board and elected to serve one-year terms are Sanette Austin, Richard Avant, Johnna Edone and Mark Farley.

Aquino has served in numerous capacities on the Cooper Board of Trustees, including secretary, chair of the Program (Education) Committee and chair of the Ad Hoc By-laws Committee. For the past two years she has chaired Cooper ’s very successful annual giving campaigns. Aquino recently served as president of Harris County Medical Society Alliance-North, was a former board member of the American Heart Association and former board member of The Woodlands Symphony Orchestra.

Memorial Hermann The Woodlands Hospital will break ground on a new, seven-story patient tower early next year. The cost of the project is roughly $104 million.

Phase one of the 240,000-square-foot expansion will add eight state-of-the-art surgical suites and surgical support services, including pre-operation and recovery rooms, waiting areas and sterile processing. Additionally, a patient care unit with 36 beds and a parking garage will be added. This will bring the hospital ’s total bed count to 288. Three shelled floors will accommodate future growth and could include additional patient beds, an expanded emergency center and clinical support services.

This is the third major expansion project undertaken by Memorial Hermann The Woodlands in the past decade. In 2003, the hospital completed a six-story patient tower and a third medical office building was opened on campus in 2005.

St. Luke’s The Woodands Hospital has achieved world-class scores on nursing engagement in the Gallop Employee Engagement Survey. In addition, the hospital ’s overall GrandMean score rose once again this year to the highest percentile.

Debra F. Sukin, CEO of St. Luke’s The Woodlands Hospital, said, “This is world class success ... We know firsthand how this translates into great nurse managers, patient safety and an overall quality work environment, which is the heart of who we are at St. Luke ’s The Woodlands Hospital.”

(L-R) Nick Wolda, The Woodlands Township vice president of marketing; Bob Eury, president of Central Houston; and Joe Esch, executive director, business and intergovernmental relations for the city of Sugar Land.

Nick Wolda, The Woodlands Township’s vice president of marketing, was a featured speaker at a recent Urban Land Institute membership luncheon regarding hotel development and its impact as an economic driver.

Susan Love Fitts Communications Inc. has been included on the Houston Business Journal’s list of the 25 Largest Public Relations Firms in the Greater Houston market.

Fitts, president of the Montgomery County-based firm, founded the company in 2005 after several years of freelancing for the Houston Chronicle, Houston Business Journal and other local and regional publications.

Fitts approaches public relations primarily as an art, in which all her communications skills are employed to accomplish the individual goals of each client. Fitts is a member of the Public Relations Society of America, Society of Professional Journalists, National Association of Real Estate Editors, Greater Conroe Chamber of Commerce, South Montgomery County Woodlands Chamber of Commerce and the Montgomery County Association of Business Women.

Daniel Toro has been named the executive chef for AVIA The Woodlands, a new-concept boutique hotel set to open in early winter 2009. Offering a style that he attributes to travels and experiences living in different cities, Toro plans to introduce a new epicurean experience to the market through simple, yet memorable dishes infused with a Texan sensibility.

Toro brings over a decade of professional experience in the culinary arts to AVIA The Woodlands. He was most recently sous chef at the Alden Hotel in Houston. Prior to that, Toro offered his expertise and creative delights to guests of private clubs and hotels including The Petrossian Paris in New York City; Fuego at La Posada Resort in Santa Fe, N.M.; and The Remington at St. Regis, Shade Heights, Royal Oaks Country Club and Glass Wall Heights, all located within the Houston area.

Toro began his career as an honorable student at the U.S. Navy Mess Specialist Service School in San Diego and was awarded a Navy Achievement medal. He later earned degrees at the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco.