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  • ✈️This 'F' is a strong grade for growth; Catholic Charities pulls $47M suit; Texas AG not happy with Colgate, Crest.

✈️This 'F' is a strong grade for growth; Catholic Charities pulls $47M suit; Texas AG not happy with Colgate, Crest.

Plus, more bite-size news about business in Tarrant County.

Aurora, working out of the Mobility Innovation Zone at Alliance, has successfully deployed a completely driverless semi-truck to Houston and back this week, making it the first company to operate a self-driving, heavy-duty truck on public roads.

D-FW International Airport and American Airlines agreed to accelerate and expand the scope of the airport’s new Terminal F by doubling the number of gates, adding facilities to grow international operations, expanding customer amenities, creating a single building for passenger check-in and more. The agreement extends AA's lease and increases the estimated cost for Terminal F to $4 billion.

TCU's Special Collections department has acquired the personal collection of Dan Jenkins, Fort Worth native, TCU alumnus, author, and award-winning sportswriter. The Dan Jenkins Collection includes materials dating from the 1940s through 2017. The majority covers Jenkins’ most active years -- 1966 to 2017 -- highlighting his contributions to sports journalism and fiction writing.

Roy Cooper, an eight-time world champion and icon of calf roping, has passed in a house fire. The Decatur cowboy was 69. In 1983, he won the PRCA all-around title, and by 2000, had a record-breaking $2 million in earnings.

The downtown Fort Worth regional office for the Federal Emergency Management Agency is on the sales block. Located at 501 W. Felix St., it has been listed by the U.S. General Services Administration as available for “accelerated disposal.” Inside the 894,000-square-foot building are the U.S. Geological Service, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the local branch of FEMA and warehouse space.

Citing more than $25 million in debt, Fort Worth-based Balkan Express and its affiliate, Balkan Logistics, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Texas. Balkan Express is a dry van trucking company that has been operating since 2007. It has 166 drivers and 159 trucks/trailers. 

Catholic Charities Fort Worth dropped its $47-million lawsuit against the Trump administration over refugee funding the federal government initially withheld. Ted Waters, an attorney for Catholic Charities, told The Texas Newsroom that, “Right now, the refugee resettlement program seems to be working pretty good, so we didn’t want to overstay our welcome at the courts."

Golfer Rory McIlroy’s investment firm, Symphony Ventures, is teaming with Fort Worth-based private equity firm TPG to start TPG Sports, a fund that “will place bets on businesses across the sports industry,” according to the New York Times. McIlroy and business partner Sean O’Flaherty will be operating partners. 

Attorney General Ken Paxton has sent Civil Investigative Demands to Colgate-Palmolive Company and Procter & Gamble Manufacturing Co., which owns Crest, for marketing toothpaste products to parents and children in ways that are misleading, deceptive and dangerous because of excessive fluoride exposure. 

The Fort Worth Economic Development Partnership is one of 20 EDPs nationwide to be honored by Site Selection magazine as a recipient of the 2024 Mac Conway Award for Excellence in Economic Development. It is considered the most prestigious award given in the industry. 

Gray Dawes Group, a large independent travel management company, has signed a multi-year agreement with Sabre as its sole global distribution platform partner. 

Former head football coach Gary Patterson heads the TCU Athletics and the TCU Block T Association 58th Hall of Fame class that will be inducted this fall.

TCU’s LEAD ON: Values in Action Strategic Plan has four high-level goals for 2035 in each of its pillars. As part of those goals, plans for fiscal year 2026 have been outlined.

After Fort Worth absorbed MedStar into its EMS department, it hired Dr. Jeffrey Jarvis, formerly with MedStar and the leader of the transition, as its EMS medical director. His contract is for 10 years, starting at $270k annually. 

Notable and quotable: “It took me seventeen years to get three thousand hits in baseball. It took one afternoon on the golf course.”

—Hank Aaron (1934-2021), Major League Baseball right fielder and Hall of Famer with 755 home runs

The Cowboy Channel, based in Fort Worth, has added two series: Let's Freakin' Rodeo, and The Luke Branquinho Show. The channel says it will deliver 24/7 of unfiltered, authentic content for Western sports fans.

A $70-million U.S. Navy F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jet rolled off an aircraft carrier in the Red Sea after the ship swerved to avoid Houthi militant fire.

Elon Musk wants to create his own city... Starbase in south Texas. Saturday's election is likely to go his way because most of the voters work for him.

Nothing to do with business: Here’s a map showing the most popular beer brand in each U.S. state, courtesy of Visual Capitalist. Commence debating.

Snippets:

  • GM shareholders: Here is CEO's letter after quarterly results.

  • Fashion alert: Justin Boots has four new styles in its acclaimed Frontier Collection.

  • Believe it or not: A speedboat that flipped midair in a 200 miles-per-hour crash wins race on an Arizona lake.

Daily digit: 4.95% = percentage of the 1.28 million eligible Tarrant County voters that cast their ballot in person or by mail during the early voting period. Election Day is tomorrow (7 am-7 pm). Visit your county's election website or the Texas Secretary of State’s website to check your polling location.

Significant stats: Dallas County has 1.4 million registered voters. Tarrant County has almost 1.3 million, Collin County has around 738,000 and Denton County has nearly 649,000.

Announcements:

  • Red Productions: Promotes Sami Brown to Operations Manager.

  • Texas State Board of Marriage and Family Therapists: Russell “Russ” Bartee of Fort Worth re-appointed for term to expire February 1, 2031.

  • Vetter Financial: Launched by Owner/Financial Controller Patricia Vetter.

  • The Net FW: Elects Kelly Hart attorney Drew Neill Board Chair. 

  • Texas Women’s University: Names Lourdes Ramboa Associate Director of Business Development for the Center for Women Entrepreneurs.

  • Rotary Club Fort Worth: Presents its Minority Business Award to Varghese Summersett law firm.

  • Creative Solutions in Healthcare: Promotes Chelsea Jordan to Vice President of Data Integration and Payroll,

  • JS Business Advisors: Adds Chris Jarrard as business strategy consultant.

  • OneSight EssilorLuxottica Foundation: Promotes Tyler Emler to Sr. Manager, Global Business Development.

  • LINE-X: Honors Fort Worth group led by owner Sabre Bowman with Oval of Excellence award. 

  • Girls Inc: Adds Adam Szaronos, CEO of Iantrek, and Lauren Findley, Vice President at Texas Wesleyan University, to its Board. 

  • Southern Sky Aviation: Adds Ralph Crosby as Vice President of Business Development.

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