19th Annual Eagle Pass Business Journal Award Winners
By: Jose G. Landa
An Exclusive Eagle Pass Business Journal News Story/Copyright 2013
San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro congratulated the 19th Annual Eagle Pass Business Journal Awards winners in his keynote speech at the premier community awards in Eagle Pass and the Texas Middle Rio Grande region on Saturday, March 30, 2013. Mayor Julian Castro was honored with a presentation of a Lifetime Achievement Award for his extraordinary leadership and public service in the State of Texas.
Master of Ceremonies Cecilia A. Mascorro and Ricardo E. Caldleron welcomed the over 400 persons in attendance at the 19th edition of the awards. The C.C. Winn High School 92nd Air Force Junior ROTC Color Guard presented the colors while Eagle Pass High School sophomore Jazmin Gonzalez sang a virtuoso National Anthem and led the guests in the Pledge of Allegiance.
The Reverend Ranulfo Garza of the Church of Christ delivered the invocation.
Southwest Texas Junior College President Dr. Ismael Sosa, Jr. was also honored during the awards with a prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award for his exemplary 46 years of leadership and as an educator who has made positive contributions to Eagle Pass and the Middle Rio Grande region.
The Restaurant of the Year Award went to Chop Chop Bistro. The Employee of the Year Award had a historic first two recipients in Mary Hughes of the Maverick County Hospital District and Tom Gonzalez of Eagle Pass High School. The Secretary of the Year Award was won by Nilda Esquivel of the Eagle Pass Independent School District.
The Non-Profit Organization of the Year Award was won by the Maverick County Environmental and Public Health Association. The Public Manager of the Year Award went to Cynthia O. Rodriguez of U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Eagle Pass Port of Entry Director. The Health Care Provider of the Year was won by Fort Duncan Regional Medical Center.
The Physician of the Year Award was presented to Dr. Hector Alvarez of Eagle Pass Dental Clinic and an Eagle Pass Independent School District Board of Trustees member. The Teacher of the Year was won by Randy Laurence of C.C. Winn High School. The Public Representative of the Year Award was won by Texas State Senator Carlos I. Uresti of San Antonio, Texas.
The Small Business of the Year Award was presented to Eagle Pass Dry Cleaners. The New Business of the Year was won by TownePlace Suites-Eagle Pass. The Franchise of the Year Award went to Cleo’s Papa John’s Pizza.
The International Business of the Year Award was presented to Falcon International Bank. The Big Business of the Year Award was won by Walmart Super Center No. 0461. The Business Manager of the Year Award went to Hector J. Cerna, President and Chief Executive Officer of IBC Bank-Eagle Pass.
The Business Advocate of the Year Award was presented to Maricela Brown of the Sul Ross State University Small Business Development Center. The Professional of the Year Award was won by Margaret Mejia of C. C. Winn High School. The Entrepreneur of the Year Award went to Sandra Ruiz-Rodriguez of Rio Insurance Agency.
Texas State Senator Carlos I. Uresti introduced Mayor Julian Castro for his keynote delivery. Texas Representative Poncho Nevarez accompanied Mayor Julian Castro during the awards and hosted a reception for him prior to the awards. Eagle Pass Mayor Ramsey English Cantu hosted Mayor Julian Castro during the awards and presented him with the Eagle Pass City Council’s highest award, the Keys to the City of Eagle Pass. Eagle Pass Independent School District Superintendent Gilberto Gonzalez also accompanied Mayor Julian Castro at the head table during the awards. United States Department of Agriculture Rural Development Acting Deputy Under Secretary Judith A. Canales represented President Barack Obama’s Administration at the awards and personally presented one of the awards. Congressman Pete P. Gallego’s Field Representative Matthew Davis Hall represented Congressman Gallego at the awards.
Representing Mexico at the awards were Mexican Consulate members Alejandro Alvarez, Jesus De Leon, and Sarahi Dominguez. Representing the Mexican National Institute of Immigration was Adrianna Bello. Representing the Mayor of the City of Saltillo, Coahuila, Mexico at the awards was Alberto Espinosa Garza.
Over 50 guests at the awards traveled from out of town to attend the premier community awards in Eagle Pass and Middle Rio Grande region.
Mayor Julian Castro highlights 19th Annual Eagle Pass Business Journal Awards
By: Jose G. Landa
An Exclusive Eagle Pass Business Journal News Story/Copyright 2013
San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro highlighted the 19th Annual Eagle Pass Business Journal Awards delivering an eloquent keynote speech to the over 400 guests in attendance at the Residencial Reception Hall in Eagle Pass, Texas, receiving a well-earned standing ovation of several minutes from this United States-Mexico border community. Mayor Castro was accompanied by his beautiful wife, Erica Lira Castro.
Texas State Senator Carlos I. Uresti (D-San Antonio) introduced Mayor Castro to the attendees of the 19th Annual Eagle Pass Business Journal Awards, stating that Mayor Castro is a public servant genuinely dedicated to improving every Texan’s quality of life and Texas’ economy and future.
Mayor Castro stated that Eagle Pass is part of the dynamic South Texas region that comprises the Eagle Ford Shale, including l4 oil and gas producing counties of which Maverick County is one of them. Mayor Castro added that the Eagle Ford Shale and South Texas truly represent the future of Texas and the United States because today there is more economic opportunity in the history of Eagle Pass and South Texas as the Eagle Ford Shale oil and gas boom is creating unprecedented wealth and opportunities. Mayor Castro stated that the Eagle Ford Shale has invested $28 billion in the 14 oil and gas producing counties, the most invested in any similar oil and gas field in the world. Mayor Castro pointed out that the Eagle Ford Shale has also added a $20 Billion economic impact to South Texas and has directly and/or indirectly created 86,000 jobs tied to the oil and gas activity.
Mayor Castro stated that a second reason that Eagle Pass and South Texas have a bright future is because of the demographics of the region and State of Texas. “Eagle Pass, just like San Antonio, has everything that folks are going to look for in the 21st Century when they think about investment. It has a low-cost of doing business, access to natural resources, good access to infrastructure, and demographically looks like the Texas and United States of tomorrow. In San Antonio, we call it the New Face of the American Dream and this is just as true in Eagle Pass as in San Antonio,” said Mayor Castro. “I am convinced that in this 21st Century, cities such as San Antonio, South Texas, and other cities in the Southwest United States such as Phoenix, Dallas, Austin, and Albuquerque are going to define success in the 21st Century” just as cities like “New York, Chicago, and San Francisco did in the 20th Century.” “The future of this continent is going to be more about a North to South axis just as it used to be an East to West from New York to Los Angeles in the 20th Century,’ said Mayor Castro. As the population continues to grow in the future in Latin America and Hispanics in the United States, it is going to become more of a North to South axis so cities such as Eagle Pass, Del Rio, Laredo, San Antonio, Austin, Dallas, and Houston will become more and more prominent as the 21st Century goes along, added Mayor Castro.
Mayor Castro noted that the key factor in the future is what South Texas does with the unprecedented economic growth and investment in the region. Mayor Castro suggested that there are three key things that the region must do: first, to invest in “Brain Power.” “I am convinced that brain power is the new currency of success in the 21st Century. Those communities that embrace it will be those communities that thrive and does communities that don’t are going to be the ones that fall behind,” said Mayor Castro. Mayor Castro cited his SA 2020 Committee in San Antonio as finding that investment in educational achievement is the top priority among San Antonians. Under Mayor Castro’s leadership, San Antonio opened Cafe College, a one-stop center designed to provide expert college admissions, financial aid, testing counseling and filling-out applications to colleges and universities and financial aid to middle school to high school students for free. He added that since its opening, Cafe College has assisted over 20,000 students and in its three years of operation they are seeing results as there has been a 7% increase of San Antonio students attend college, more than 11,000 people. In November of 2012, San Antonio voters approved SA Pre-K to allow 5,700 children attend Pre-K school on a full-time basis instead of part-time or none at all.
The second important key is that “we invest in infrastructure, that is on our roads and the availability of water. The truth is that we in South Texas live in the fastest growing area of the state. But you wouldn’t know it by the investments made in the area in the past. If you look at investments in road and bridges, like road options, you would find that we have fallen behind in South Texas. Not just the infrastructure that is physical, but also like my brother, Congressman Joaquin Castro has pointed out, investment in our schools, colleges and universities. Why don’t we have a law school in South Texas? How about a Dental School? What about great engineering programs? We are finally going to get a medical school in South Texas, but that just ought to be the beginning of significant investments of this kind that can ensure folks achieve their dreams in life,” said Mayor Castro.
Finally, the third key is to “ensure that we work regionally to accomplish the goals that we have set out,” said Mayor Castro. “in this global economy in the 21st Century, there is no one city or community that can attain success on its own. Whether we’re taking about education, water or anything else, the most successful places in the United States and around the world are those places that work together and look out for each other interests,” said Mayor Castro. Mayor Castro noted it is important to let the state legislature and Congress know that we are working together, collectively to make an impact on where investments are made in Austin and Washington, D.C. Mayor Castro pointed out that the region has great public leaders who can convey this message and that the region will be the “beneficiary” of this regional collaboration.
Mayor Castro noted that at the Democratic National Convention, he had an opportunity to speak about his grandmother, Victoria Castro, who immigrated from the State of Coahuila, Mexico to the United States at the age of six years old in 1922 and that she had entered the United States at the Eagle Pass Port of Entry. Mayor Castro stated that “for her Eagle Pass was her Ellis Island, it was the place of America, her first impression of America.” Mayor Castro stated that everyone has had an immigrant family member just like her grandmother and that if everyone works hard together, the dreams of past and future generations of Americans can become true and that of a more powerful and stronger America can be accomplished and a stronger 21st Century.
Following his keynote speech, Mayor Castro was presented a Lifetime Achievement Award for his extraordinary leadership and public service in the State of Texas by Eagle Pass Business Journal Publisher Ricardo E. Calderon and awards co-host, Cecilia A. Mascorro. Mayor Castro thanked the community of Eagle Pass and Maverick County for the warm hospitality provided to him and his family, including his wife, Erica Lira Castro. Mayor Castro also was accompanied to Eagle Pass by his dearly beloved daughter, Carina Castro, and mother, Rosie Castro.
18th Annual Eagle Pass Business Journal Awards Winners
The 18th Annual Eagle Pass Business Journal Awards were a great success as nearly 400 persons attended and enjoyed the keynote presentation by Mr. Geronimo Gutierrez Fernandez, Managing Director of the North American Development Bank, who was presented a Lifetime Achievement Award for his extraordinary public service, leadership, and passion for improving the quality of life of the more than 13 million U.S.-Mexico border residents, as well as the presentation of the 18 awards categories.
The Restaurant of the Year Award was presented to Parrilla de San Miguel; the Secretary of the Year Award went to Gloria Capetillo of the Eagle Pass Independent School District; the Employee of the Year Award was presented to Nestor Bonilla of the Maverick County Hospital District; the Non-Profit Organization of the Year Award went to the Girl Scouts of Southwest Texas-Eagle Pass Service Unit; the Public Manager of the Year Award was presented to Daniel Valenzuela, of the City of Eagle Pass; the Health Care Provider of the Year Award went to Remnant Health Systems, Inc. and the Physician of the Year Award was presented to Dr. Jorge E. Olaya of United Medical Centers.
The Teacher of the Year Award went to Gloria Leticia Guerra; the Public Representative of the Year Award was presented to Humberto Duran of the Maverick County Hospital District; the Small Business of the Year Award went to Southwest Texas Optical, Inc.; the New Business of the Year Award was presented to Elysa USA; the Franchise Business of the Year Award was presented to Cleo’s Subway; the International Business of the Year Award went to IBC Bank; and the Big Business of the Year Award was presented to H.E.B. Grocery #419.
The Business Manager of the Year Award went to Arturo Lopez of Maverick Arms, Inc.; the Business Advocate of the Year Award was presented to Lourdes M. Perez of Fort Duncan Regional Medical Center and William Davis of Davis Used Cars and Parts, Inc.; the Professional of the Year Award went to George Kypuros of United Medical Centers; the Entrepreneur of the Year Award was presented to Willie Velasquez of Rio Grande Heating and Cooling; and the Publisher’s Award went to Fort Duncan Regional Medical Center.
17th Annual Eagle Pass Business Journal Awards Winners
The 17th Annual Eagle Pass Business Journal Awards were a great success with over 400 persons attending the premier community awards program on Saturday, January 22, 2011, at the Residencial Reception Hall in Eagle Pass.
University of Texas at San Antonio President Dr. Ricardo Romo presented a heart warming keynote speech highlighting the salient values instilled upon him by his parents, family, teachers, and coaches which developed and nurtured a keen intellectual curiosity in him on how to succeed as a student, teacher, administrator, and former world-class track and field athlete.
Dr. Ricardo Romo received a Lifetime Achievement Award for his extraordinary contributions to education and as a public administrator of one of the fastest growing and most dynamic universities in the United States of America, the University of Texas at San Antonio.
Also receiving a Lifetime Achievement Award was longtime resident and local archaeologist and historian John H. Stockley for his extraordinary dedication and preservation of Eagle Pass and Maverick County history. Stockley is the director of the Fort Duncan Museum and a Commissioner of the Maverick County Historical Commission.
The Restaurant of the Year Award was won by Danny’s Restaurant. The Employee of the Year Award went to Ana R. Chong of United Medical Centers. The Secretary of the Year Award was won by Gabriela Rodriguez of Maverick Arms, Inc.
For Non-Profit Organization of the Year Award, Sul Ross State University-Rio Grande College was the winner. The Public Manager of the Year Award went to Marga Lopez, Executive Director of the City of Eagle Pass International Bridge System. For the Physician of the Year Award, Dr. Hector R. Villaseñor of the South Texas Cardiology Group was the winner.
The Teacher of the Year Award was won by Raúl Olivas of Eagle Pass High School. For the Public Representative of the Year Award, Eagle Pass Mayor Ramsey English Cantu was the winner. The Small Business of the Year Award went to VDC Corporation.
For New Business of the Year Award, Ashley Furniture Home Store was the winner. The Franchise Business of the Year Award was won by Wing Stop. For the International Business of the Year Award, Companía Cervecera de Coachuila, S.A. de C.V. was the winner.
The Big Business of the Year Award was won by Ancira Eagle Pass Ford Mercury. For Business Manger of the Year Award, Rene Lopez, Chief Executive Officer of Fort Duncan Regional Medical Center, was the winner. The Business Advocate of the Year Award went to Larry Martin of IBC Bank.
For Professional of the Year Award, Dr. Carlos E. Hernandez of Maverick County Hospital District Board of Directors was the winner. The Entrepreneur of the Year Award went to Ray and Claudia Ruvalcaba of Eagle Pass Collision. For Publisher’s Award, Eagle Pass attorney and Master of Ceremony Cecilia A. Mascorro was named the recipient.
Masters of Ceremony were Eagle Pass attorney Cecilia A. Mascorro and Eagle Pass Business Journal Publisher Ricardo E. Calderón.
Presentation of Colors was presented by the C.C. Winn High School 92nd Air Force Junior ROTC and the pledge of allegiance and national anthem was sung by Jazmin Gonzalez of Eagle Pass Junior High.
Accompanying Dr. Ricardo Romo was his lovely wife, Dr. Harriet Romo, professor of Sociology and Director of the UTSA Mexico Center and Creator of the Bank of America Child and Adolescent Policy Research Institute at UTSA.
Congratulations to all the nominees and recipients of the 17th Annual Eagle Pass Business Journal Awards.
