I have a Santa Question

As long as I can remember the Santa Claus on the East side of the Hidalgo County Courthouse has always symbolized the arrival of the Christmas holidays to Edinburg. I have one question. When was the first time that Santa made his appearance there? I'm 44 and I don't think he's ever been absent. I know one year he stood proud on the south west side of courthouse grounds because of construction. Anyone out there that knows please post date. Thanks!

Photo Contest Deadline Extended

Just got word that the "Reflections of Edinburg" photo contest registration has been extended to December 28th. The contest however has already started.

Awards, Friends, Music, and Fun

Yes its the annual City of Edinburg Employee Christmas party and service awards banquet. There was not an empty table in the Activity Center Saturday night. I was pleased to see our employees come out to celebrate another year gone by with their peers. Awards were given out to five, ten, fifteen, twenty, twenty five, and thirty year employees. I have to say our Christmas committee did an outstanding job in preparing the center for this special night. Mayor Garcia and I had the pleasure in presenting these awards to the hard working, and loyal employees of this great city. During the event there was over sixty door prizes given to the lucky winners. Let me say thank you to the local merchants who donated the prizes. Oh, by the way did I mention the food was great!! I was joined at my table by my brother and his wife, and my compadre David "Jello" Garza and his wife. I tried to make my rounds to thank all the employees for their service with a hand shake and a pat on the back. To those that I may have missed, THANK YOU, for ALL that you do! After all the eats and awards it was time for some great music and dancing. I left the party in good hands of our dedicated employees around 11:00 for some coffee and menudo. For those of you employees that did get to make it, you missed another great party!

Wonderful Night In Edinburg

What a wonderful night in Edinburg! Just got home from a very well attended Night of Lights Parade. The Edinburg Chamber did an outstanding job in organizing this years Christmas Parade. This year I decided to watch the parade instead of riding in it. My daughter Cora has had an exceptional year in band so I thought it would be nice if I cheered for her along the parade route. All three high school bands performed together, and they sounded great. This weekends cold air snap has put everyone in the Christmas mood. Congrats to the Chamber!

Leadership Edinburg To Host Photo Contest

The Leadership Edinburg Class and The Edinburg Chamber will be holding a photo contest. The name of the contest is "Reflections of Edinburg". The contest is open to amateur adults as well as youths. The awards and prizes are money and an opportunity for the winning photographs to appear in an annual publication called "Reflections of Edinburg Magazine". The categories are culture, people, places, and nature. The key to the contest is that all photos must be taken within the city limits. I think its a good idea! You don't have to have the expensive photo equipment to take a photo of your favorite Edinburg spot, any digital camera will work. Start coming up with ideas! For more information call Letty at the Chamber 383-4974 or Myra at City Hall 383-5661. Registration deadline is December 15th. Good Luck!

A Gentle Giant Has Left Us!

Got word Saturday that my friend Arnold Vera has gone to be with our Lord. Arnold was one of my greatest supporters. He was a friend, supporter, and my city advisor when I had questions about drainage, streets, and politics. He had been fighting leukemia in Houston for sometime. Arnold always had time for anybody that needed help. After one of those hard rain storms Arnold was always the first person out on the streets checking on our city ready to help. I remember calling him whenever I had received a concern from a citizen. His response was a always happy "I will make sure it gets done today". Arnold was a caring man, he loved his family, Edinburg, and his friends. It's amazing, as I type I can see his face and smile clearly. God bless his family and all the people he touched with his heart and wisdom.

I Can See A New Sunrise Soon!

EWBC "Into The Wetlands"

Went by to support our Edinburg World Birding Center fundraiser. This was my sons first time he has given back to his community. He donated several photos from his portfolio to the silent auction. To our surprise the photos and my son drew a lot of attention. The supporters in attendance could not believe a 12 year old boy had taken them. I must say my son was really humbled with the attention. The author of Hummingbirds of Texas Mr. Mark Klymn asked my son to autograph the photo he won in the auction. That photo is the one on top of this posting. Congratulations go out to the staff at the birding center for doing an outstanding job on an event that is sure to be a yearly event. For those of you that have not made it out to the center, right now is a great time! The first and third picture were taken at the EWBC, and the second photo was taken at Ebony Golf Course.

Councilman Fred Longoria Passes Away

I received word this morning that my friend Fred Longoria has gone to be with the Lord. I just asked his daughter about him last week. Strange how things happen. I met Fred when I first started serving on city boards and committees in 1985. Fred severed on the city commission with my Uncle now Judge Charlie Espinoza. In 2002 I ran against him, not because he was doing a bad job but because I had some ideas I wanted to put into play. This is a perfect example of politics is politics and friends are friends. After that election Fred continued to be a supporter of mine. I always remember when Fred had his place of business on the south side of the square. The black and white photo in the newspaper with his pants rolled up standing in knee high water will be remembered as the campaign photo of that race. Fred was a good man, he would always say remember how and who made this city. Referring to the leaders before him. I know that I didn't get to see him very often these past years, but I made it a point to ask his family for his well being. In my 2008 election I ran into him coming out of the polls. He looked at looked at me and said, Geno, I came to vote for you. To the Longoria family, God Bless You, and I will pray for your peace. Remember God will never give us anything we can't handle.

Congrats To Returning Council

The filing deadline has come and gone. It looks like Councilman Gus Garcia,and Councilman Noe Garza will be returning with no opposition. Former Mayor Richard Garcia will be back as the top elected official of Edinburg. I believe after May you will have an entire council that has the whole city at heart and mind.

Edinburg Casa Cultura

The non-profit and by-laws are finalized and getting processed for this great venue. The Casa Cultura committee has been meeting to prepare for the next stage of this arts center. Anybody wanting to be part of this happening should call Letty at 383-6246 at our Edinburg Sekula Library. I think this is going to be a great anchor for what is soon to be a make over of the area around the square. I will reveal more of my ideas for the square in a later post.

An End To A Long Season

Well the sun has set on another whitetail deer season. I have to say that this season was a bit to long for this man "could it be that my age is sneaking up on me". As I unpacked my hunting gear I realized that this is the first year in the last 20 years that I had not harvested a deer. As the years go by I have great satisfaction watching my son go through the same hunting routine as I do. He has developed into a great steward of the land. Enrique (age 11) did harvest a management buck this year. He has shot a deer every year since he was five. This year however we spent half the time shooting with the Canon instead with the Remington. Above are two photos that my son took from the deer blind this year. First buck is a yearling that was a frequent visitor to the feeder. The sunset photo was beautiful! It was taken about 15 minutes before he shot his deer. Well time to dust off the golf clubs!

No Buscar Reeleccion - Will Not Seek Re-Election

Some important city election news has surfaced today in the La Frontera newspaper. It is in spanish, but it clearly states that Joe Ochoa is not seeking re-election according to the interview with La Frontera. I guess only time will tell as this pans out.


Alcalde de Edinburg no buscará reelección
January 15, 2009 - 9:01 AM
Quetzalli B. Prado
La Frontera
EDINBURG - Queriendo darle oportunidad a otros de servir como dirigente municipal, Joe Ochoa, actual alcalde de Edinburg aseguró no buscara mantener su puesto en las próximas elecciones. "No voy a seguir, voy a darle oportunidad a otras personas. Además estoy muy ocupado por mi trabajo y ya no me permite continuar. Ya han sido 13 años como alcalde y quiero buscar por otro lado", comentó Ochoa a La Frontera. Sin embargo aseguró querer terminar sus últimos meses con los proyectos en proceso como las reparaciones y ampliación de la calle Canton, terminar con la nueva alcaldía y sus edificios municipales anexos, además de seguir adelante con el desarrollo económico. Para terminar sus tres años de presidente municipal, tiene programado presentar su último informe de gobierno dentro de los primeros 15 días del mes de febrero. Ochoa dijo que agradece todos los comentarios que ha recibido de los residentes de su municipio que a lo largo de su gobierno lo han apoyado. "La mayoría esta triste, pero los que conocen mi trabajo saben que ya no tengo tiempo para seguir, ya fue mucho tiempo en la ciudad y 9 años en la mesa directiva escolar, ya toca hacer algo nuevo", externó el aún alcalde. SATISFACCIONES Ochoa dijo estar satisfecho con su trayectoria como dirigente de Edinburg ya que según él se ha comprobado que durante sus años como alcalde se ha dado el mayor crecimiento del municipio. En cuanto sus últimos tres años dijo que le quedará la satisfacción de haber mejorado la infraestructura, la creación de nuevas zonas residenciales y nuevos negocios, incluyendo la instalación de la planta de manufactura textilera Santana Textiles proveniente de Brasil. "Estoy muy agradecido por todo el apoyo que he tenido siempre, por lo pronto seguiré echándole ganas para seguir con los proyectos de la ciudad hasta mi último día", concluyó quien había sido alcalde por 9 años antes de que Richard García fuera electo alcalde y quien fue reelecto para el puesto en el 2006. Quetzalli B. Prado cubre asignaciones generales y la puede contactar en el (956) 683-4852.

New Respect For Band Students

It all started with summer band camp. The dedication these students showed was unbelievable!! My daughter Cora(freshman) was one of the brave. I remember telling myself, "if she survives band camp that will be a great accomplishment". Well not only did she finish band camp but she developed into a excellent clarinet player. My hat off to all the ENHS band directors for putting together a excellent show. Watching these students practice and perform made my chest swell up with pride knowing that they were representing not only their school, but our city as well. After work my wife and I would sit in the stands to watch the band practice. The year was filled with great competition. The band placed well in Laredo, Edinburg, McAllen, and San Antonio. Spending time with the other band students,parents and ENHS staff was very enjoyable. To all the band students of ENHS, "great job and thanks for a wonderful show".

Valley Land Fund Photo Contest

It was a very busy year for me in 2008! Aside from my job and city business, I found some wonderful time to spend with my son. Early in 2008 Enrique(age 11) decided he wanted to enter the prestige's Valley Land Fund Photo Contest. I was my son's guide as we hunted for some great photos. After visiting some of the local ranches as well as Santa Anna Refuge, Edinburg Birding Center, McAllen Birding Center Enrique put together a award winning portfolio. The photo above is one of the photos in the mammal category. In his first year competing he won Third Grand Prize! Congrats to my son for all his dedication to nature photography. Look out for the always beautiful Valley Land Fund Book that will be on sale this fall. Next post I will feature my daughters great work at school as well with the Mighty ENHS Cougar Band!

Light City Agenda

Tuesday will mark the first city council meeting of the new year. The agenda is a little light, but I expect that to change by the second meeting. As posted earlier we will be starting the Jackson Road project soon. There is an item on the agenda to approve the water line relocation for this road. This is needed before we start actual road construction. Be on the look out for those road construction signs and try to plan accordingly. Also on the agenda is an item to approve 5 new police units for our police department. The rest of the agenda is made up of zoning items and inter local agreements with the county on "I" road.

On another note, I guess everyone has read the Monitor in regards to the ULB (Coyotes). Just as a note, the league is paid up in full (up to date) and has not indicated to us that they will not be coming back. Only time will tell. Filing for chapter does not mean you are automatically out of business, however that does send that type of message. I hope they can pull through.