Ricardo Lopez Seeks Election to Eagle Pass City Council Place 3
I am Ricardo Lopez born and raised in Eagle Pass, Texas, which I still call home. I am running for City Council to be of service to you and our beloved border community. As a proud grandfather, father and brother, I care about and will advocate for child and family services. I will advocate for international sports, trade, and tourism. Recreational sports can generate money and give youth an outlet for fun and camaraderie.
I am committed to public service. I am here to listen to and advocate for what’s important to you, the citizens of Eagle Pass. I promise to be honest, collaborative, visionary, and faithful to our city. I come to you with years of experience working in city and state agencies and volunteering in the community where I learned how to navigate government processes, the ins and outs of city budgets, and the importance of community engagement processes.
In my early days, I worked for the City of Eagle Pass Model Cities Program. While there I supported a Citizen Participation Board, composed of neighborhood leaders, in assessing their neighborhood needs and then creating city budget and planning recommendations accordingly. This resulted in pairing federal grants with city dollars to build four new neighborhood centers, widening of a creek to manage flooding, distribution of continuing education scholarships, development of youth programs, and street paving.
I then took a job with the Texas Department of Community Affairs, Office of Economic Opportunity as a program development specialist. In this role, I collaborated with community service agencies across the state to access federal dollars and bring resources to low income neighborhoods. My contribution as a team member helped lead to one of the first summer nutritional programs.
I have also served on the Eagle Pass Adjustments and Appeal Board and the Planning and Zoning Commission. During these decades of service, I realized the importance of city, county, and school board collaboration, which I will work towards as your Council Member.
My views and values are shaped not only by my professional experience but also by my education and life journey. My parents and siblings are Mexican immigrants. From them, I came to appreciate my mixed culture identity and the hard work necessary to establish oneself in a new country.
No work was ever beyond me. During my high school years, I found myself traveling over 100 miles to pick watermelons in Cotulla, Texas and then as far as Minnesota and Wisconsin to work in a nursery and cannery respectively. We need all forms of employment in our city. We can tap into an unprecedented amount of federal dollars available to cities. Let’s invest in business development, which can help increase job opportunities.
My hustling nature led me to begin my studies at Sul Ross University and later graduate from the University of Texas at Austin. Then I dedicated myself as a public school teacher for 19 years. I know the value of an education and will seek out opportunities for Eagle Pass to host higher learning education facilities.
In 1968, I was drafted into the U.S Army where I served for two years, because my country called me to duty. In the army, I gained discipline and a respect for systems of order. I carry this commitment to country and teamwork in all I do.
As a senior, I believe more can be done to ensure seniors and our most vulnerable communities have the resources they need to live comfortably. Most importantly, I am deeply committed to be of service to our city and advocate for the issues that are important to us. I humbly ask for your vote for City Council Place 3 this coming election.
