by Legislative Media | Feb 10, 2015 | Politics
Featured, from left: Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburg, and former Rep. Mary Ann Pérez, D-Houston, on the floor of the House of Representatives in 2013.
Photography By HOUSE PHOTOGRAPHY
A proposal by Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburg, would prevent Texas restaurant owners from deducting from the tips of waiters and waitresses the transaction processing fees that businesses must pay when customers use credit cards to pay for their purchases. When his measure, House Bill 1215 – which was filed on Monday, February 9 – is considered by a House committee, Canales said he will add language to his proposal to forbid restaurants from deducting from the tips the processing transaction fees involved when a customer pays with a debit card. “Most Texans have no idea that when they include a tip on a credit card, some or all of that tip could be used by the restaurant owner to pay the transaction processing fees that are the responsibility of the business,” Canales said. “I was astounded when I found out that when I tipped my waiter or waitress, they may not have been receiving the full amount.” A tip, also known as a gratuity, is given to one who provides services and added to the cost of the service provided, generally as a reward for the service provided and as a supplement to the service provider’s income. “Every time a company is paid with a debit or credit card, the firm must pay a fee for that financial service,” Canales explained. “But for waitpersons in restaurants – those professionals who provide excellent service and depend on tips to make a living – it is unfair that they cover the restaurant’s cost of doing business.” The House District 40 lawmaker added that 15 percent of the nation’s 2.4 million waiters and waitresses live in poverty, compared with seven percent of all other employees.“Waiters and waitresses, who have many responsibilities which require multi-tasking skills, play a key role in the success of a restaurant, and they have my utmost respect,” Canales said. “I do not know how many Texas restaurants are taking money away from tips using this practice, but when my legislation becomes law, this injustice will be put to an end.” Canales is featured here in 2013 on the floor of the Texas House of Representatives with former Rep. Mary Ann Pérez, D-Houston.
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by Legislative Media | Feb 6, 2015 | Politics
Featured, from left: Texas Governor Greg Abbott and Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburg, on Thursday, January 22, at the Edinburg Conference Center at Renaissance.
Photograph By MARK MONTEMAYOR
Texas’ oil and gas industry and the state’s efforts to fight and prevent crime will be directly affected by Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburg, who on Wednesday, February 4, was chosen to continue serving on the two State House committees which first deal with those vital aspects of life in the Lone Star State. Canales was reappointed by Speaker of the House Joe Straus, R-San Antonio, as the only Valley state representative to the House Committee on Energy Resources and the House Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence. “Texas is one of the the world’s largest energy producers and it contributes significantly to our state’s economy and way of life, so the work of the House Committee on Energy Resources Committee will have a tremendous influence on the production, regulation, transportation, and development of oil, gas, and other energy resources,” the House District 40 lawmaker said. Equally important, in his role on that legislative panel, Canales will continue to expertly monitor – and shape state laws and policies – to promote the beneficial impact of two enormous energy producing regions, the Eagle Ford Shale in South Texas and the Burgos Basin in northern Mexico, on the state, especially for the Valley. “The Rio Grande Valley is centrally located between Eagle Ford Shale, which has produced billions of dollars worth of jobs, revenue, and taxes for Texas, and the Burgos Basin on the other side of the border, which, once in full production, will have a $1 trillion dollar economic impact over 10 years for Mexico,” Canales said. “By helping provide the skilled workforces, building up the transportation systems, and handling the distribution of energy to the rest of the nation and world, the Valley will be a key to the continuing economic development of Texas.” As for his role on the House Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence, Canales said his focus will be on supporting measures to help the state’s law enforcement entities in their battle against crime and help protect Texans from the scourge of criminals. “I am dedicated to helping provide the laws and powers to our police and courts that will make it easier for them to punish criminals, especially the violent cowards who prey on the most vulnerable in our families,” said Canales, who is an attorney. “All law-abiding Texans, especially innocent children, victims of domestic violence, mobility-impaired residents, and senior citizens, have a champion in me.”
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by Legislative Media | Feb 4, 2015 | Politics
Featured, from left: Sonia Marroquín, Assistant City Manager for Edinburg, Sofia Hernández, Vice President for Governmental Affairs, Doctors Hospital at Renaissance, and Mayor Richard García, gather at the Edinburg Conference Center at Renaissance for the mayor’s welcome of Gov. Greg Abbott on Thursday, January 22, as part of a legislative tour organized by the Rio Grande Valley Partnership.
Photograph By MARK MONTEMAYOR
Construction activities in Edinburg for 2014, not counting the ongoing and approved building of new facilities at The University of Texas-Pan American, was valued at more than $120.5 million, the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation has announced. The EEDC is the jobs-creation arm of the Edinburg City Council. That figure, which is based on the value of work listed in the required building permits issued by the city’s Code Enforcement Department, kept pace with construction activities in the city during 2013, which totaled more than $123 million. Both years’ separate totals are the highest in the city’s history, and do not include the value of three new major facilities and their furnishings and equipment at The University of Texas-Pan American, worth almost $140 million, which were approved for construction during the past two years by The UT System Board of Regents. If it did, total construction activities during the past two years in Edinburg would approach $376 million. Mayor García, who also serves as President of the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation, said additional significant construction projects are set to begin in 2015, notably the $55 million, 115,799 square-foot, 8,500-seat special events arena which will host major gatherings, such as concerts and conventions, as well as serve as the home for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, the professional basketball team which is part of the NBA’s Houston Rockets organization. With the City of Edinburg, the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation, and RGV Vipers in the final stages of the financing agreement that will lead to the construction of the arena, an announcement is expected soon on the groundbreaking date for the state-of-the-art sports and entertainment complex, to be built on a 40-acre site at the corner of Interstate 69 Central and Alberta Road in southeast Edinburg. “This is a tremendous opportunity for the City of Edinburg and the EEDC to improve the quality of life for residents without having to pay a single penny up front or take any from other projects,” the mayor emphasized. “This is definitely an achievement for our residents. An economic study conducted by The University of Texas-Pan American predicts a $45 million economic increase annually within the arena area, and $1.3 billion in economic benefits over the next 30 years in that region of our community.” Agustín “Gus” García (no relation to the mayor), Executive Director for the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation, said the EEDC and the City of Edinburg are also actively involved in the ongoing 140-day regular session of the Texas Legislature, which continues through the end of May, in promoting key measures that will help the city’s economic growth. “We have a full legislative agenda that seeks to improve the quality of life for all our citizens, from increased state funding for health care and education, to improvements to our state highway system and more growth at UT-RGV and its School of Medicine in Edinburg,” the EEDC Executive Director noted. One of the biggest construction projects involves the proposed construction of a $50 million, 124,3o4 square-foot Interdisciplinary Engineering and Academic Studies Building at the Edinburg campus of The University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley. That proposed state funding, being requested by the UT System Board of Regents, is included in Senate Bill 21, authored by Sen. Judith Zaffirini, D-Laredo.
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by Legislative Media | Jan 30, 2015 | Politics
Featured in this image during the Thursday, February 6, 2014 grand opening of the EEDC’s office in downtown Edinburg are, from left: Agustín “Gus” García, Executive Director, Edinburg Economic Development Corporation; Edinburg City Councilmember Richard Molina; Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburg, and Ramiro Garza, Jr., City Manager, City of Edinburg.
Photograph By MARK MONTEMAYOR
Edinburg’s unemployment rate for December 2014 was 4.8 percent, the best showing for the city during 2014, and the first time in almost seven years – since January 2008, which also achieved a 4.8 percent unemployment rate – that the city’s economy had registered such a strong figure in the jobs market, Mayor Richard García has announced. The EEDC is the jobs-creation arm of the Edinburg City Council. The annual unemployment rate in Edinburg for 2014 was 6.15 percent, the best 12-month average from January through December in seven years. Edinburg’s annual unemployment rates since 2005, which is the year in which the state government began preparing those figures using a more accurate formula, have registered as follows: 2014 (6.15 percent); 2013 (7.3 percent); 2012 (7.8 percent); 2011 (8.9 percent); 2010 (8.4 percent); 2009 (6.8 percent); 2008 (5.0 percent); 2007 (4.8 percent); 2006 (5.3 percent); and 2005 (4.9 percent). In deep South Texas, only McAllen registered a better December 2014 monthly unemployment figure than Edinburg’s 4.8 percent, but not by much, as the City of Palms came in at 4.6 percent. The statewide unemployment average in Texas for December 2014 was 4.6 percent, while the U.S. unemployment rate for that month was 5.6 percent. Agustín “Gus” García, Executive Director for the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation, says the ongoing improvements of the local and regional unemployment rates are tied into the strengths and diversity of the economies throughout deep South Texas. “Edinburg has our medical, educational and governmental sectors which help power our economy, while McAllen has their large manufacturing and retail industries,” he illustrated. “With the scheduled opening in February of the $180 million Santana Textiles denim manufacturing complex in north Edinburg, and with the continuing growth of The University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley and its planned School of Medicine in Edinburg, we should see more economic advances for our community and region.” García (no relation to Mayor Richard García) pointed out that the Valley is an economic success story which reaches beyond its four-county boundaries. “We are fortunate as a whole to be in a growing sector of the United States. Recently the Edinburg/McAllen/Mission/Pharr metropolitan statistical area was ranked as the second-fastest growth area in the Texas, and Texas has continually been ranked as the fastest-growing state in the nation,” the EEDC Executive Director continued. “The EEDC’s role as a center of economic development is to harness these opportunities. These and other positive economic achievements reflect the efforts of not only the EEDC Board of Directors and its staff, but also of the city management, and of course, our city leadership: Mayor García and the Edinburg City Council.”
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by Legislative Media | Jan 28, 2015 | Politics
Featured in this image during the Thursday, February 6, 2014 grand opening of Rep. Terry Canales’ District Office in Edinburg, are, from left: Edinburg City Councilmember Richard Molina; Agustín “Gus” García, Executive Director, Edinburg Economic Development Corporation; Fred Palacios, Secretary-Treasurer, Board of Directors, Edinburg Economic Development Corporation; Edinburg Mayor Pro Tem Elías Longoria, Jr.; Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburg; Erica E. Canales, wife of Rep. Canales; Rachel Borchard, mother of Rep. Canales; Alex Ríos, Director for Rep. Canales’ District Office; and Elva Jackson Garza, Edwards Abstract and Title Company.
Photograph By MARK MONTEMAYOR
A groundbreaking legislative internship program for qualified students of The University of Texas-Pan American has begun at the Texas Capitol, Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburg, who helped set it in motion, has announced. The fledgling program, featuring five students assigned to five Hidalgo County lawmakers, including Canales, promises to create a new generation of powerful political leaders who will be able to champion many of the dreams of deep South Texas, not just in future years, but during the current 140-day regular legislative session, which runs through the end of May. “The Texas Legislature, which meets every two years, approves hundreds of state laws and policies that affect almost every portion of our lives, from deciding how much of the estimated $200+ billion state budget over the next two years will be invested in the Valley, to acting on the other great issues of the day in Texas, from education reform proposals to anti-tax measures, and dozens more major legislative priorities,” said Canales. Influenced by his experiences in the Legislature, Canales wants more Valley residents to have the opportunity to develop the firsthand expertise needed to excel in the state legislative process. Opening the doors to the corridors of power and knowledge, as is currently being done by other major universities in Texas, is part of his vision. “It’s real simple,” Canales said of his hopes for the UTPA legislative internship program. “If we in the Valley are going to continue building on our influence in the Texas Legislature, we must bring more South Texans into this powerful arena, let them see in person how it really works, and help them take their rightful place as the future leaders of our great state.” The legislative interns currently participating at the Texas Capitol are: Carlos Aguayo of McAllen, serving with the Office of Rep. Óscar Longoria, Jr., D-La Joya; Jacqueline Sandoval of Harlingen, serving with the Office of Rep. Armando “Mando” Martínez, D-Weslaco; Lesley Andrea Marín of Weslaco, serving with the Office of Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburg; Johnathan Simcha Weisfeld-Hinojosa of McAllen, serving with the Office of Rep. R.D. “Bobby” Guerra, D-McAllen; and Shawna Miller of Wimberly, serving with the Office of Rep. Sergio Muñoz, Jr., D-Mission.
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by Legislative Media | Jan 24, 2015 | Politics
From left: Rep. Giovanni Capriglione, R-Southlake, Rep. Celia Israel, D-Austin; Rep. Poncho Nevárez, D-Eagle Pass; Rep. Rafael Anchía, D-Dallas; Rep. Jim Keffer, R-Eastland; Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburg; Rep. Tony Dale, R-Cedar Park; Rep. Lon Burnam, D-Ft. Worth; and Rep. Chris Paddie, R-Marshall, during a legislative hearing in Edinburg in late September 2014.
Photograph By MARK MONTEMAYOR
Students at The University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley would be able to vote this fall on an official athletics nickname for their school, which would best define the image of students, former students, graduates, staff, faculty, and administrators, while still keeping Vaqueros as the mascot, Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburg, featured fourth from right, has proposed. “Holding an election on an issue of such importance – deciding on what the world will call the people of this incredible university – is the ‘American Way’,” he said. On Friday, January 23, the House District 40 lawmaker, who represents the Edinburg campuses of UT-RGV, filed House Bill 901, which would require the UT System to allow students to determine the name by which they will be known. The House District 40 lawmaker represents the largest campus – both in enrollment and physical size – of UT-RGV, along with a major component of the UT-Rio Grande Valley School of Medicine. Under HB 901, the students at UT-RGV, which is also set to open its full-fledged medical school in late summer 2016, would be able to choose from “Broncs”, “Ocelots” and “any other options the university chooses, including nicknames nominated by students and approved by the university.”
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by Legislative Media | Jan 21, 2015 | Politics
Featured, from left: Congressman Joaquín Castro, D-San Antonio; and Mayor Richard García, President, Board of Directors, Edinburg Economic Development Corporation.
Photograph by ISMAEL GARCÍA
Edinburg’s retail economy for the month of November 2014 was 6.69 percent better than the same month in 2013, a figure that was best among all major Valley cities, and higher than the growth rates for all cities combined, respectively, in each of the four Valley counties, Mayor Richard García, President, Board of Directors, Edinburg Economic Development Corporation, has announced. The EEDC is the jobs-creation arm of the Edinburg City Council. Based on the amount of local sales taxes collected, which reflects the strength of an economy, Edinburg’s retail sector generated more than $1.5 million in local sales taxes in November 2014, compared with more than $1.4 million in November 2013 – producing the improvement of almost seven percent. Among the Valley’s largest economies, Edinburg’s improvement rate of 6.69 percent was followed by Pharr (5.56 percent), McAllen (5.07 percent), Mission (4.76 percent), Brownsville (4.30 percent); Weslaco (2.79 percent), and Harlingen (-1.57 percent). In addition, from January through November 2014, Edinburg’s retail economy maintained a double-digit upswing over the same 11-month period in 2013, generating $16,848,135 in local sales taxes, compared with $15,292,818 for January through November 2013 – a rise of 10.17 percent. This latest data was released on Wednesday, January 7, by the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. The local sales tax figures represent sales reported by monthly filers in November sent to the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts in December, and returned as sales tax rebates to the respective local government entities in January. The local sales tax is used in Edinburg to help pay for many city services, while the EEDC uses its one-half cent local sales tax to help generate economic development in the city. Augustín “Gus” García, the EEDC’s Executive Director for the Edinburg Economic Development, said the performance of the city’s retail economy for 2014 has come from a combination of proven leadership by the Edinburg City Council and EEDC Board of Directors, the strategies they have developed and put into place through the city and EEDC staffs, and by the vision of business owners and their employees in the city to provide high-quality goods and services that draw consumers from Edinburg and beyond “EEDC’s projects constantly bring together leaders who craft state policy, influence economic advancement and have the capabilities to effect change at a regional and global level. EEDC works with them to promote leadership, information exchange, training and experience,” García said. “The future of Edinburg lies before us, fraught with issues, yet poised with promise. On the threshold of a new turning point, 2015, we are presented with limitless opportunities.”
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by Legislative Media | Jan 19, 2015 | Politics
From left: Bernice Espinosa-Torres, Committee Clerk, House Committee on Energy Resources, and Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburg.
Photograph By MARK MONTEMAYOR
Forged search warrants, which were used by the now-disgraced and defunct Panama Unit anti-narcotics law enforcement task force to threaten the innocent in Hidalgo County, would be more difficult to counterfeit under legislation pre-filed on Friday, January 9, by Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburg. The Panama Unit – created in 2010 and disbanded in January 2013 – was made up of a small group of area law enforcement officers who wound up breaking the law themselves by stealing from, or working with, drug dealers. Canales’ House Bill 644 seeks to close what he contends is a potential legal weakness in the search warrant process, which was prompted by the infamous Panama Unit law enforcement scandal. The House District 40 lawmaker’s HB 644 requires that the name of the judge or magistrate, who are authorized to issue search warrants, must be typewritten on that powerful legal document. “Currently, a search warrant requires a judge or magistrate to sign their name on it, but many people have signatures which are too difficult to make out,” explained Canales, who is a lawyer. The Panama Unit would just scribble names on search warrants, making it difficult to verify because no one could read the judge’s supposed signature. “If our bill would have been a law already, we might have caught the Panama Unit much sooner,” Canales said. The second-term lawmaker added: “The actions of the Panama Unit, whose members have been convicted of their crimes, painted a very unfair and negative image of our law enforcement professionals in Hidalgo County. But this tragic episode shed light on a weakness in the search warrant process, and by passing this measure, a very important improvement can be made in the name of justice and civil liberties.” The plan is being supported by the Texas Municipal Police Association, the largest law enforcement association in Texas, which represents more than 21,000 local, county and state law enforcement officers.
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by Legislative Media | Jan 6, 2015 | Politics
Construction surging in Edinburg
Mayor Pro Tem Elías Longoria, Jr., featured left, a former member of the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation Board of Directors, and Francisco Fernández, M.D., the founding Dean of The University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley School of Medicine.
Photograph by MARK MONTEMAYOR
Mayor Pro Tem Elías Longoria, Jr., featured left, a former member of the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation Board of Directors, and Francisco Fernández, M.D., the founding Dean of The University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley School of Medicine, reflect on the economic and medical care impact of the $54 million Medical Education Building during a Tuesday, August 26, 2014 groundbreaking ceremony at UT-Pan American. Construction activities in Edinburg during the past 23 months, based on the value of the work listed in the required building permits issued by the city’s Code Enforcement Department, have reached more than $236 million between January 2013 and November 2014. The city’s $236 million figure does not include the value of three new major facilities and their furnishings and equipment at The University of Texas-Pan American, worth almost $140 million, which were approved for construction during the past two years by The UT System Board of Regents. Already opened, or approved for funding since January 2013, are $135.9 million for new facilities at the Edinburg university campus – a $70 million science building annex, a $54 million medical education building, and a $11.9 million student academic center. UT-Pan American, which will be renamed UT-Rio Grande Valley next August, is a state entity, so the city does not issue building permits or include the value of any construction at the university campus in the data put together by Edinburg’s Code Enforcement Department. If it did, total construction activities during the past two years in Edinburg would approach $376 million. The EEDC, led by Mayor Richard García as the President of the EEDC Board of Directors, is the jobs-creation arm of the Edinburg City Council.
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by Legislative Media | Oct 14, 2014 | Politics
Photograph by MARCO MARTÍNEZ
http://www.EDINBURGPOLITICS.com
Edinburg’s key governments and businesses were among the big winners in the 2014 Monitor’s Readers’ Choice Award, according to the McAllen-based newspaper, which honored all recipients of that honor during a ceremony on Tuesday, September 30, at the McAllen Chamber of Commerce. “For nearly three decades, Hidalgo County institutions have looked forward to The Monitor’s annual Readers’ Choice Award,” the publication stated in its Wednesday, October 1 edition. “Among the big winners were the City of Edinburg, with many businesses there garnering the endorsements of Monitor readers.” In addition to Edinburg being named the Best City, the Edinburg school district was named best school system, and the Edinburg Chamber of Commerce took to top ranking in its respective category. Featured, seated, from left: Imelda Rodríguez, Director of Tourism, Edinburg Chamber of Commerce; Letty González, President, Edinburg Chamber of Commerce; Sonia Marroquín, Edinburg Assistant City Manager; Myra C. García, First Lady, City of Edinburg; Nicole Sosa, Kids’ Kollege Learning Center; and Concepción “Connie” S. Hernández, New York Life Insurance. Standing, from left: Agustín “Augie” Lozano, Bert Ogden Rio Grande Valley; Edinburg City Councilmember Richard Molina; Dr. René Gutiérrez, Superintendent, Edinburg Consolidated Independent School District; Edinburg School Board President Juan “Sonny” Palacios, Jr.; Edinburg Mayor Richard García; Alex Ríos, Kids’ Kollege Learning Center; and Velma Sue De León, Memorial Funeral Home. See story later in this posting.
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Photograph By MARK MONTEMAYOR
http://www.EDINBURGPOLITICS.com
Amidst the pomp and circumstance of community-wide events on Tuesday, September 16 and Wednesday, September 17, honoring the 100th anniversary of The Edinburg Review, the milestone for the newspaper also provides residents with the opportunity to appreciate a free and independent press, city and state leaders say. “There is a saying that the press can be good or bad, but most certainly without freedom, the press will never be anything but bad,” said Edinburg Mayor Richard García. “In honoring The Edinburg Review on its centennial, we are also paying respect to the most important right of every American – freedom of speech.” García, who also serves as president of the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation Board of Directors, was joined by the Edinburg City Council on Tuesday, September 16, to present the leadership of The Edinburg Review a city proclamation honoring the history and impact of newspaper on its hometown and region. Featured at Edinburg City Hall on Tuesday, September 16, are, front row, from left, representing The Edinburg Review: Ricardo De Luna, Account Executive; Pedro Pérez, IV, Editor; Gustavo Díaz, Advertising Director; Laura García, Staff Writer; Linda Medrano (holding framed proclamation), Publisher, The Edinburg Review/Town Crier; Claudia García, Fulfillment Specialist; Javier Silva, Account Executive; and Jimmy Rocha, Production Manager. Back row, from left: Councilmember Richard Molina; Mayor Pro Tem Elías Longoria, Jr.; Mayor Richard García; Councilmember J.R. Betancourt; and Councilmember Homer Jasso, Jr. See story later in this posting.
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Photograph by DIEGO REYNA
http://www.EDINBURGPOLITICS.com
If there were ever any doubts, a music video featuring almost 200 Edinburg residents, including the cheerleaders and other key staff for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, the NBA-affiliated professional basketball team, shows that the community is optimistic about the present and future – and its people used rhythm, dance and video to let the whole world know. In a first-class production by the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation, entitled “Edinburg EDC IS HAPPY”, the positive and catchy music of Pharrell Williams’ smash hit, Happy, serves as the soundtrack for the five minute and 22 second local music video. By utilizing YouTube, the EEDC is getting their message out on a global level, since the video sharing website, by its own accounting, “allows billions of people to discover, watch and share originally-created videos. YouTube provides a forum for people to connect, inform, and inspire others across the globe and acts as a distribution platform for original content creators and advertisers large and small.” Mayor Richard García, who is no stranger to the spotlight, and who as a younger man performed in a band, praised everyone who volunteered for the music video. “I know a picture tells a thousand words, but this music video goes even further,” the mayor said. “This is an extraordinary and true representation of the people of Edinburg, the Rio Grande Valley, and South Texas. We are energetic, intelligent, confident, diverse, young, strong, successful, accomplished, experienced, wise, beautiful, handsome, and full of hope.” “Edinburg EDC IS HAPPY” had its “world premiere” on Thursday, July 24, before a packed house of more than 220 area business and community leaders who had gathered at the Edinburg Conference Center at Renaissance for the quarterly Public Affairs Luncheon organized by the Edinburg Chamber of Commerce. (The “Edinburg EDC IS HAPPY” video is available online at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XaApcFHVr3o). More than 2,000 views had been registered of that video as of August 15. Featured on Tuesday, July 29, reenacting their performance for the “Edinburg EDC IS HAPPY” music video are, kneeling, from left: Nallely Cáceres; Ashley Torres; Sarah Echevarría; and Laura Perales. Middle row, from left: Liana Cisneros; Hondo Candelaria; Rebecca Sweat; and RGV Vipers mascot Fang. Back row, from left: André Burns; Laura Cisneros; and Gabriel Ramírez. See story later in this posting.
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Photograph by JOSUE ESPARZA
http://www.EDINBURGPOLITICS.com
Five cadets in The University of Texas-Pan American’s U.S. Army Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) were commissioned on Friday, August 22 during a ceremony held at UTPA’s Albert L. Jeffers Theatre. Col. Hugh Davis, adjunct professor at the National Defense University Eisenhower School of National Security Strategy and Resource Management, commissioned the cadets as second lieutenants in the U.S. Army during the ceremony attended by family, friends and university officials. Since its inception in 1981, 272 students in the UTPA ROTC program have transitioned from cadets to commissioned U.S. Army officers serving in active, national guard or reserve duty. Featured from left at the ceremony are: Second Lieutenants Leslie Amaya (Reserves); Manuel Aranda (Active Duty); José Nava López (Reserves); Betty Preciado (National Guard); and Amara Ríos (Reserves). For more information on UTPA’s ROTC program, call 956/665-3600 or 3601.
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Photograph Courtesy of U.S. LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
http://www.EDINBURGPOLITICS.com
Hidalgo County is asking for area residents to provide information about women from the region who participated in the “Rosie the Riveter” movement during World War II. “Rosie the Riveter” was the star of a U.S. government campaign aimed at recruiting women for the munitions industry. In movies, newspapers, posters, photographs and articles, the campaign stressed the patriotic need for women to enter the work force and many did. “We are reaching out to everyone for information on women, especially those from the Rio Grande Valley, who answered the call to duty during World War II as widespread male enlistment left gaping holes in the industrial labor force,” explained Julie Benítez Sullivan, Director of Public Affairs for Hidalgo County. “Rosies were crucial to the war effort and Hidalgo County would like to help recognize them for their service to our country.” Individuals are asked to contact Sullivan via email at [email protected] or by phone at 956/292-7026. In this image, provided by the U.S. Library of Congress, a man and a woman riveting team in 1942 work on the cockpit shell of a C-47 transport aircraft at the plant of North American Aviation, Inc. in Inglewood, California. More than six million female workers helped to build planes, bombs, tanks and other weapons that would eventually win World War II. They stepped up to the plate without hesitation and gave up their domestic jobs to accomplish things that only men had done before them. They became streetcar drivers, operated heavy construction machinery, worked in lumber and steel mills, unloaded freight and much more. Proving that they could do the jobs known as “men’s work” created an entirely new image of women in American society, and set the stage for upcoming generations. Every day the women, both young and old, would punch into work at the shipyards, factories and munitions plants across America. During the war the women increased the workforce by 50 percent. Racial barriers were broken as various minority members went to work. Coming from all walks of life, there were those already working who switched to higher-paying defense jobs, those who had lost their jobs due to the Depression, and then of course there were the women who worked at home.
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Photograph By RONNIE LARRALDE
http://www.EDINBURGPOLTICS.com
The Edinburg Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors and Staff are planning the Annual Installation Banquet scheduled for Thursday, October 23, 2014 at 6 p.m. The banquet will take place at the Echo Hotel and Conference Center, located at 1903 S. Closner Boulevard in Edinburg. The banquet will honor Edinburg Municipal Court Judge Toribio “Terry” Palacios as incoming chairman and Robert McGurk, featured in this image, as outgoing chairman for the Edinburg Chamber of Commerce. The banquet will also feature dinner and the announcements of “Man and Woman of the Year”, “Leadership Award” and “Ambassador of the Year”. Tickets to attend the Annual Banquet are $30 per person, or $300 for a table of 8. Attire will be business casual and is open to the public. For more information, please call the Edinburg Chamber of Commerce at 956/383-4974. Dina Araguz, immediate past chairwoman of the Edinburg Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, also is featured in this image.
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Photograph by RONNIE LARRALDE
http://www.EDINBURGPOLITICS.com
The Edinburg Chamber of Commerce will host its Public Affairs Luncheon on Thursday, October 16, at the Echo Hotel & Conference Center, 1903 S. Closner Boulevard in Edinburg. The topic will be a legislative update, featuring highlights from the regular session of the Texas Legislature held in the spring of 2013, and looking ahead to the upcoming five-month regular session, which begins in early January 2015. Sen. Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa, D-McAllen, Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburg, and Rep. R.D. “Bobby” Guerra, D-McAllen, are the invited speakers. Featured promoting the event are, from left: Letty González, President, Edinburg Chamber of Commerce; Lucy Canales, partner, Linebarger, Goggan Blair & Sampson, LLP; Kelly Rivera Salazar, Linebarger, Goggan Blair & Sampson, LLP; and Elva Jackson Garza, Vice President, Marketing & Business Development, Edwards Abstract and Title Company. For more information or to make a reservation for the luncheon, please call the Edinburg Chamber of Commerce at 956/383-4974. The October 16 luncheon also allows business professionals to meet, network and create opportunities for the companies they represent. Cost to attend the luncheon is $12 per person or $125 for a table of 8, and includes a hot lunch, beverage and dessert. The Public Affairs Luncheons are an initiative introduced in 2006, and since then have featured popular topics with speakers who cover important community and legislative issues. The vision is to inform, involve and educate chamber members and civic leaders. For 38 years, Linebarger Goggan Blair & Sampson LLP, a nationally-recognized business, has successfully focused on helping local governments ensure that all taxpayers meet their legal obligations. The firm is a major player in public-sector collections, serving more than 2,300 clients from offices in California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Illinois,Michigan, Missouri, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Texas.
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Photograph by MARTHA E. PEÑA
http://www.EDINBURGPOLITICS.com
Elected officials and higher education leaders from across America came together at the St. Regis Washington, D.C. Hotel on Tuesday, September 30, to honor the South Texas College Dual Enrollment Academies program as a Finalist among America’s top programs that increase academic opportunities and increase achievement for Latino students. The South Texas Dual Enrollment Academies program was selected from among 217 competitors from 26 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico as one of 14 Finalists for the 2014 Examples of Excelencia Award. Conceived and run by Excelencia in Education, this is the only national initiative to systematically identify, recognize, and catalogue evidence-based programs that improve Latino college success. Featured at the STC Pecan Campus in McAllen are, front row, from left: Bianca Peralez, STC Secretary for High School Programs; Rickey Banda, STC Academies Specialist; and Alejandra López, STC Academies Specialist. Back row, from left: Javier González, STC Academies Specialist; Rebecca De León, STC Coordinator for High School Programs; Kimberly Crawford, STC Director of Academies and High School Projects; and Alejandro A. García, STC Training Manager. See story later in this posting.
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Photograph by MARK MONTEMAYOR
http://www.EDINBURGPOLITICS.com
McAllen Mayor Jim Darling, featured left, observes as Edinburg Mayor Richard García on Tuesday, August 26, signed a Memorandum of Understanding between the University of Texas System and the cities of Edinburg, McAllen, Pharr and Mission, along with Hidalgo County, to provide $47.5 million over the next 10 years to support medical training operations in Hidalgo County. The agreement was part of a groundbreaking ceremony at The University of Texas-Pan American, which will be home to a significant portion of a Valley-wide UT medical school. The gathering was the official kick-off for the beginning of construction of a $54 million medical school academic building in Edinburg. Occupying more than 88,000 square feet, that complex will be a teaching facility that promotes faculty and student interaction at the beginning stages of medical school. The building will include an auditorium, digital library, clinical skills center, pre-clinical laboratories and an anatomy teaching facility. Multiple small classrooms, seminar rooms and other features will offer opportunities for small group problem solving and inter-professional educational experiences. UT System Chancellor Francisco Cigarroa, second from left, and Mission Mayor Norberto Salinas, both featured in the background, took part in the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding. See lead story in this posting.
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