July 2024 newsletter

Friends and Neighbors –

The summer season is in full effect and may involve some fun trips to the lake on the weekends and a family vacation or two, but that doesn’t mean that me and my team aren’t still working diligently on the issues that matter most to you. In fact, our calendars have been packed with meetings, tours, conferences, town halls and Court sessions, which you’ll see a bit of further down in this newsletter.

Seeing our efforts to create positive change for our friends and neighbors in Bexar County come to fruition truly makes this role so fulfilling, and it is an honor to serve as your Commissioner.

For example, on June 17th, I paid a visit to a ‘Summer Boost’ local school site, the School of Science and Technology Hill Country Campus, to highlight our community’s significant partnership with Bloomberg Philanthropies’ Summer Boost initiative, focusing on accelerating summer learning for students. Our community has secured the second-largest investment from Bloomberg Philanthropies’ Summer Boost initiative, aimed at bridging post-pandemic learning gaps. There are 17 local schools selected for this opportunity.

This is really exciting for me and my Pct. 3 team, as this $10M investment into underprivileged children in Bexar County schools was funded nationally based on the County contribution that we championed and secured in Commissioners Court about a month ago!

Another big win that we’re incredibly proud of is one that we’ve been working hard on since March 2023. When we learned that we have Deputies being forced into overtime and then losing their earned vacation and holiday leave for that fiscal year, we knew we needed to act to rectify this issue. During Commissioners Court on June 18th, I led the effort to reverse this unfair practice that we’ve been fighting for over a year. This is a big win for our law enforcement and detention officers as the Court approved the ability for the Deputies’ unused vacation time to roll over into the next fiscal year.

In addition, we pushed for one Deputy Constable per precinct to serve as a weight enforcement officer, which is important for the integrity of our roads as we see more and more development in Bexar County. With this change, the Constables are able to better regulate shipping trucks, big rigs, and other overweight transportation vehicles that have a tendency to damage our roads and bridges if they are not following the requirements for proper weight. This effort took 9 months of concerted work on my team’s part, and we’re proud to see it pass in Commissioners Court. I’d like to also give a big thank you to Pct 3 Constable Mark Vojvodich for his leadership on this issue with his fellow Constable colleagues from the other precincts as well.

These are just a few of the important issues we’ve been working to address in Bexar County. Stay tuned for more!

Local Offerings

FREE Tech Training w/NPower

NPower, a national nonprofit dedicated to enhancing economic mobility for military veterans, veteran spouses, and young adults through IT tech training, is thrilled to announce that applications are now being accepted for the Fall 2024 cohort of its Tech Fundamentals program in San Antonio. This program offers no-cost tech training for military veterans and their spouses and young adults.

The program, which offers both a spring and fall program each year, offers invaluable technical instruction, job placement support and wrap-around services entirely free of charge.

Interested individuals can apply online at https://www.npower.org/apply/tech-fundamentals

FREE Box Fans for Senior Citizens

Project Cool helps seniors ages 60 and older or people with disabilities who are in critical need of a box fan to receive a free one.

The pick-up location for the box fan will be at the Northeast Senior Center, located at 4135 Thousand Oaks Drive on June 29 from 9:30 a.m.- 12:30 p.m.

https://www.ksat.com/news/local/2024/06/25/sa-district-10-to-give-box-fans-to-senior-citizens-in-need/

The Rock at La Cantera – a Family-friendly Venue with Something for Everyone

Have you been out to The Rock at La Cantera yet? The venue includes a large turf area, basketball hoops, a splash pad, a food and beverage trailer, a jumbo screen where movies and watch parties happen, and a stage for live performances. There’s also a brand new Chef Jason Dady restaurant located right next to it. There are many free events to join in on this summer!

As if that wasn’t enough to entertain local families, we’re now partnering with the Spurs to develop an additional County park facility at the adjacent North Park. It will be a great addition to The Rock and Coyote Dog Park, and will be another gem in Pct 3!

4th of July Family Fun

Check out this list of events and places to watch fireworks from KSAT.

https://www.ksat.com/news/local/2024/06/22/where-to-celebrate-the-fourth-of-july-watch-fireworks-in-san-antonio-and-the-hill-country/

Recent Events

I was happy to join Summit Church and offer a prayer for our fallen and their families for Memorial Day. Remember and Honor!

Our team attended BCSO’s Fallen Deputy Memorial to honor those who lost their lives in service to our community and their loved ones. Their sacrifice is not forgotten and their impact on our community lives on.

I’ve been working with U.S. Senator Cruz, Congressman Chip Roy, the rest of our Congressional delegation, and San Antonio leaders on securing a direct flight from San Antonio to Washington, D.C. Based on our latest conversations, it appears American Airlines will be stepping up to provide the service.

I brought a letter addressed to the transportation secretary requesting the federal government’s support of American Airlines providing service from SAT to DCA, and I gave it to the delegation to show my support of this effort.

5/27/24 Service Academy Send-off with U.S. Senator John Cornyn

I enjoyed leading the Pledge of Allegiance and recognizing members of the Air Force, Coast Guard, Merchant Marine, Military, and Naval Academies during their Academy Send-off.

Congratulations to all, and I’m excited for the journeys ahead of you as you embark on your military careers! I don’t regret a thing from beginning my own 25 years ago.

It was a joy to be a guest speaker as the Greater San Antonio Chamber announced their new initiative, Supporting Military Families-San Antonio, which focuses on healthcare and military spouse support. I shared my own experience having lived in 13 locations over a decade and the challenges my family faced with relocations, transitions, and access to healthcare.

Thank you for having me speak, Greater San Antonio Chamber, and thank you for spearheading this vital mission.

I sat down with Tony Plana, actor in productions like Ugly Betty, Bombshell, and Room 104 to discuss one of his passion projects, Seniors in Play.

According to Tony, what began as a desire to help those in their “second childhood” engage in more play has transformed into a curriculum-based national model to help seniors explore and develop their imaginations, improve their self-esteem, and empower them through the arts.

It was a pleasure to discuss the project and connect him with other senior-serving non-profits in San Antonio too!

I was honored to attend The 100 Club of San Antonio‘s annual awards ceremony that recognizes individual departments and officers for excellence in their fields of service.

Along with the awards, we got to hear poignant words from the daughters of Lt. Shody Henshaw, SAFD. One of his daughters received a scholarship to study physical therapy. Lt. Henshaw passed away in 2022 from occupational cancer.

Thank you for hosting this heartwarming luncheon and making a positive impact year after year, The 100 Club of San Antonio!

June’s town hall was a great opportunity to hear directly from our neighbors in the Timberwood Park community about their legitimate concerns with city affordable housing projects.

It was a productive meeting as everyone was able to communicate and share their concerns. We took away some action items and other issues we need to dig into further. More to come as we find answers and get feedback on our inquiries.

An insightful Q & A moderated by Association of General Contractors President, Lauren Mandel, in front of the Association of General Contractors PAC members, included discussion on why local government matters and why the construction industry should get involved.

I attended a public meeting regarding the State of ESD 3 and the relocation of Fire Station 103.

The Bexar-Bulverde Fire Department provides the fire and rescue emergency services to the residents and commuters in the corridor under the direction of ESD 3. This area will no doubt experience significant commercial growth for years to come and require more service and support. I’m confident ESD 3 emergency services is up to the task.

We hosted a breakfast at our field office to thank our boards and commissions appointees for their service to Bexar County.

We’ll continue to meet like this with our appointees regularly to ensure our boards and commissions are meeting the needs of the people we serve in Pct 3.