Good afternoon, everybody. How’s everybody doing today?
I want to thank each and every one of you for being here today. I want to start off by thanking Judge Hinojosa, for doing me the honor of swearing me in today. Judge, thank you so much.
I want to start off also by thanking Mayor Molina, Council Member Salinas, and Council Member Enriquez for their service. After today they leave serving our city government and I want to thank them because I know it takes a lot of sacrifice from their family and from their business. So, let’s give them a hand of applause, please.
You know, none of this would have been possible without the support of so many of you. Having served the Edinburg community before, I got here in the year 2000 and I served this community as the EDC director, as city manager. And the honor you bestowed on me to be elected as your next mayor, it is very special to my family because it is almost full circle.
A special thanks to my wife Maria. As previously stated by the other new council members, it takes a family to run this. When I decided to run it was her support and (that of) my family. I want to thank her for her support for everything that I always do and for being there for me and my family. Thank you, Maria.
I want to thank my children for their continued support. They always look at me, Dad what are you going to do now? They are always supportive and I thank them. Just know that your mother and I are very proud of you, kids. Thank you.
I have no doubt that my father is looking down today, very proud, at us. And I will lead and make sure that he continues to be proud. But, my mother’s here today and I want to recognizer her, Anita Garza. I am very grateful to her. If any of you went to the polls you probably saw her there. She was with me every single day. We were there right before 7 o’clock in the morning and she would be there with me. She gave me the strength, the motivation, to continue going with dignity and respect. And I so very much appreciate her support in going through this journey together. Because literally, she was there with me… and sometimes she would take food to the polls and she would treat almost the entire area there. I know people are going to miss her food. We are going to try to get her to start a restaurant somewhere. Let’s give her a hand, please, she is amazing.
I want to thank my brother and my nephew also for being here. My sister is not able to be here but also for their support over the years. And my sister-in-law Gracie, my mother in law, Marcela, thank you so much for being here. Thank you.
And now to my campaign team of volunteers. You guys are awesome. I see so many of you here. I think almost all of you are here, that helped in one way or another with this campaign. Thank you.
I want to recognize my campaign treasurer, Alma Garza. Please stand up, Alma. She was one of my earliest supporters, she was there, helping, selflessly throughout the entire campaign. Thank you for believing in me and my family and for being there every which way and I so very much appreciate it, Alma. Thank you.
To the rest of my campaign team, there are just so many of you, I am so grateful for all of your support. For putting up with me sometimes, at times, because, as you know, this is a long process.I really appreciate everything everybody did to make sure that we came out on top. You know the results of this campaign prove what I always live by and that is if you work hard and do the right thing something good is going to happen. And that is exactly how we feel about our campaign.
Now, let me talk to the citizens of Edinburg. I want to thank you for giving me this opportunity to lead this city as your mayor. Whether you voted for me or not, I vow to work hard for each and every one of you. By electing me you decided you would like a fresh start and I have every intention to ensure that we bring back trust to our city government and that we do away with politics as usual.
You know, this campaign is over and now it is time to govern and I will lead with integrity and the highest ethical values. Being mayor comes with great responsibility and I fully intend to embrace that responsibility by bringing the entire community together, including all the other entities that are here today, which I appreciate very much, and move our community together for the betterment of our city.
Now, to all the employees of the city. I see many of you here. I am honored and privileged to be back as part of the city team. I am eager to get up to date on all the city operations and learn how we can move our city forward and ensure that we have a working environment where you will love coming to work.
To my fellow council colleagues that are here, everybody that is here, I look forward to working with each and every one of you. Each of us may have different views and goals but we shall never forget we are one team, Team Edinburg and we are here to serve the great citizens of our city. Working together I know we can be the best city in Texas.
May God bless our city family as we embark on this new chapter, for Edinburg together. Thank you all for being here and may God bless you. Thank you.
Editor’s Note: The above commentary was made by the new mayor of Edinburg, Ramiro Garza, at his swearing-in ceremony, held Dec. 20, 2021 outside Edinburg City Hall. He was sworn in by federal judge, the Hon. Ricardo H. Hinojosa.
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