Tuesday was a very special day at Houston City Council, as the city’s municipal government took some time to honor the work of one very special Houstonian.  Here’s the story from the Houston Chronicle…

Houston Chronicle columnist Lisa Falkenberg was honored by Houston City Council Tuesday after being awarded the 2015 Pulitzer Prize for Commentary.

Houston Mayor Annise Parker officially proclaimed June 2, 2015 as Lisa Falkenberg Day in a ceremony in council chambers.

The proclamation, in part, states that the “City of Houston commends and congratulates Lisa Falkenberg for her commitment to exposing problems in local public policies and systems in order to encourage improvements therein and extends best wishes on her future endeavors.”

Lisa’s work is certainly cause for celebration within Houston, as she claimed the first ever Pulitzer Prize awarded to the Houston Chronicle, and the first for Bayou City journalism since Gene Goltz of the Houston Post won 50 years ago.  But above all of the fanfare, Falkenberg’s writing shined important light on the unfairness of how Texas chooses its grand juries.  HB 2150, a bill that would scrap Texas’ current “pick-a-pal” system of Grand Jury Selection, awaits the signature of Governor Abbott before it can become law.  The bill was sponsored by Houston Area Legislators Rep. Harold Dutton and Senator John Whitmire.

So for now, Falkenberg will continue to be Texas news instead of just writing about it.  Congrats, Lisa… can’t wait to see what’s ahead for you!

Feature Photo Credit:  Mayra Beltran of the Houston Chronicle