Mission honored her most outstanding citizens in a special presentation by the Progress Times at the Greater Mission Chamber of Commerce Annual Banquet held Tuesday evening at the Club at Cimarron.

Joe Roseland and Yvonne Salinas were named Mr. Mission and First Lady of Mission for 2009, and Tomas Tijerina and Norie Gonzalez Garza were honored as Man of the Year and Woman of the Year.

Mr. Mission and First Lady of Mission awards are for ongoing, outstanding service to the community for a period of 11 years or more.

To be considered for these awards, individuals must have provided long-term service to Mission through a civic or church group or through charitable or benevolent service to the community. The criteria for Man of the Year and Woman of the Year awards are similar, except the term of service may be for two years or more.

Jim Brunson, publisher of the Progress Times said, “It is fitting that as a community we take this time to pay honor to those who have given so much to our city. It is the service of dedicated citizens such as those that were honored that has enabled Mission to become the prosperous and well-respected city that it is today. On behalf of the entire community, I extend not only congratulations, but our appreciation for these remarkable people.”

Mr. Mission

Joe Roseland has served the City of Mission for over 35 years, quietly and consistently making a difference on city, school and church boards.

As Jim Brunson introduced this year’s Mr. Mission, he said, “Through that dedication, our honoree has been instrumental in improving our schools and Shary Golf Course; he has worked on the new bridge project, and he has worked tirelessly, serving on numerous boards. His influence, while perhaps not often in public view, has had a profound impact on the success of Mission. He has been an important part of the solid foundation of service that Mission is built upon.”

Roseland served on the finance committee of St. Paul’s Catholic Church for 15 years and as a lector with the church for 20 years.
The Mission Service Project received his attention for 15 years where he volunteered his time as a team captain to build houses for the needy.

His spirit of volunteerism is further evident in his membership in the Mission Lion’s Club and on the boards of Shary Golf Course and the Mission/McAllen Beef Syndicate.

A past board member of the Mission Chamber of Commerce, Roseland served as Chamber president in 1979-80. He also served on the board for Texas Tropical Center for Mental Health and Mental Retardation in the early 1980s.

Roseland was first appointed to the Mission Economic Development Corporation in 1995, where he has served as a stable, guiding influence, Brunson said. He served eight years as president of MEDC and currently serves as board secretary.

He was a founding member of the Mission Redevelopment Authority in 2001 and currently serves as the vice-chairman.

He held an elected office as a Mission CISD school trustee from 1986 to 1995, serving as president in 1988, and again in 1992.

“All of this has been accomplished without fanfare while he has owned and operated Mission-Duncan Insurance for over 30 years,” Brunson concluded.

First Lady of Mission

While Yvonne Salinas, wife of Mission Mayor Norberto Salinas, may have been called Mission’s “First Lady” in the past, she now bears that title officially.

Salinas was described in her nomination for First Lady as a woman with a can do attitude, who has the best interest of the city at heart. She takes on projects that she wholeheartedly believes in, volunteering countless hours of her time and resources, never expecting anything in return.

As she introduced this year’s First Lady of Mission, Mendi Brunson said, “She has quietly volunteered those countless hours with several organizations and on numerous projects.”

Salinas has served as co-chair of the annual gala fundraiser for the North American Butterfly Association Park. The funds raised are helping to build a new visitors’ center.

Her efforts as a member of the advisory board of the Upper Valley Art League helped to secure renovations for the UVAL facility, which actively promotes the arts with ongoing exhibits and classes.

She helped lead a drive to re-stock the Mission Food Pantry, personally printing and distributing fliers throughout the Cimarron area. She worked to prepare the pantry by cleaning and organizing the shelves and spearheading renovations. She now makes it her personal goal to make sure the pantry remains fully stocked.

The First Lady has been involved with the Mission Historical Museum’s Dia de los Muertos exhibit since its inception.

She served on the Centennial Committee, which led the charge in hosting the yearlong celebration commemorating 100 years of Mission’s growth and prosperity.

Much of her work goes on quietly behind the scenes in organizations such as Our Lady of Holy Rosary Catholic Church, the Texas Citrus Fiesta, and the board of directors for the Club at Cimarron.

She joined the Foundation at the Mission Regional Medical Center and currently heads the Foundation in its philanthropic fundraising activities to support the hospital.

As food service director in Mission, she directed efforts to raise scholarship funds for the children of food service workers.

Her passion and dedication in helping indigent people is not limited by geographical borders. In the City of Mission’s Sister City Program, she has made a personal commitment to take on a major project in each of Mission’s Sister Cities in Mexico. She has secured medical supplies, orthopedic equipment for children, supplies for rehabilitation clinics, school supplies, books, coats, sweaters and more for those less fortunate in those areas.

Woman of the Year

Norie Gonzalez Garza, currently a Mission city councilwoman, has an extensive history of service in all segments of the community.

Brunson said, as she introduced Garza as the Woman of the Year, “At first glance, you might ask yourself, ‘Where did she ever find the time?’”

Garza is a member of Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church, where she has served as a CCD assistant.

Her school involvement has included working with the Mission High School and Mims Elementary PTOs and serving as vice-president with the Mission Junior High PTO. She also served as the president and as vice-president of the Agape Christian School PTO.

She took her educational involvement to the next level when she served three terms as Mission CISD board member, serving as president, vice-president and secretary during her terms in elected office.

Her interest in youth continued as a member of the Mission High School Site-Based Decision Making Committee and as a director and vice-president of the Boys and Girls Club of Mission.

The honoree has served as a director with the Texas Citrus Fiesta, and as an interim Justice of the Peace, Hidalgo County Pct. 3 in 1992.

As a member of the Mission Junior Service League, she served two terms as president, and also served as vice-president, treasurer and board advisor.

The city benefited from her talents when she served on the Mission Financial Review Advisory Committee and on the Mission Planning and Zoning Commission from 1985 to 1998 and again from 2005-2007.

A real estate broker since 1990, Garza is the broker-owner of Real Estate Investments Co.

Man of the Year

Although Tomas Tijerina already juggles a restaurant and retail business, along with a real estate and insurance business, this 2009 Man of the Year is constantly seeking ways to help those who are less fortunate.

His letter of nomination for the award says when he learned that a water well was needed in Africa in an area where people had no clean water available, he simply asked how much it would cost to drill the well, and made the donation.

Several years ago, he and his wife went on a business trip to California. While there, they met people who annually held a Thanksgiving dinner, which fed thousands of needy people. He decided this was an idea that could greatly benefit the needy of Mission.

Upon returning home, he and his wife began a plan to feed 1,000 needy people in Mission on Thanksgiving Day, 2006. They organized, and over time, with the cooperation of the Mission Police Department, Palm Valley Church, volunteers from the community, the South Texas College Culinary Arts Department, and his own employees, the dream became reality.

Seeking to improve on the project, in 2007 over 1,200 people were served a Thanksgiving feast, and he incorporated a plan that allowed home deliveries to the homebound.

Still not satisfied, he made plans to make it bigger and better the next year, with a goal for 1,500 needy persons to receive a meal.

Hurricane Dolly hit and Tijerina delivered $4,000 worth of food from his restaurant to the Mission Food Pantry for distribution to the community.

Due to the Hurricane Dolly experience, he became aware of the needs of the Food Pantry and he soon met with the city to organize collections for the Pantry.

He became the catalyst in organizing a food drive called “Curbing Hunger,” enlisting the help of the City of Mission, the Chamber of Commerce and a host of volunteers to conduct the successful drive this past summer.

Recently, he hosted his Fourth Annual Breast Cancer Awareness Breakfast. Everything served up on the breakfast menu for the event is pink; and the pink turns to green donations that he sends to MD Anderson for breast cancer research.

He hasn’t stopped there. He’s passing his generous spirit of giving on to the next generation. He and his daughter collected 1,000 new and gently-worn tennis shoes to donate to needy children.

Tomas Tijerina and his wife, Renee, are the owners of Renee’s of Sharyland.

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