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McALLEN — Nearly 40 years total in public service.
Decades with the city of McAllen, including nearly 3,000 hours spent at over 600 McAllen City Commission and more than 200 public utility meetings.
Working with hundreds of employees and department heads, as well as scores of local and foreign dignitaries.
How does one distill the monumental work of one’s career into a few short sentences?
For McAllen city leaders and Roel “Roy” Rodriguez, the longtime city manager who, on Friday, will begin a well-deserved retirement, those numbers helped quantify things during a farewell celebration at McAllen City Hall on Monday.
But Rodriguez — known far and wide for his stern, blunt demeanor — added a bit of emotion that may have come as a surprise to the public, but not for those who have spent some of those years working closely with him.
“Thank you so much, mayor and city commissioners, my staff, assistant city managers, 35 department heads and 2,500 employees,” Rodriguez said with his characteristic straightforwardness while standing at a lectern to face the audience that had gathered for the farewell.
But that facade broke just the tiniest bit as emotion briefly, quietly, flowed across the longtime leader’s face.
Rodriguez tapped the palm an open hand over his chest — over his heart — as he added, “Thank you. I love you.”
Rodriguez thanked the McAllen community “that has treated me better, certainly, than I deserve,” he said, adding that he hopes the public’s memories of him are that of equitable treatment.
“I hope that when you look back, you just feel that I treated you, as a citizen, fairly and that I provided the best possible service that I could,” Rodriguez said as the entirety of the city commission stood behind him.
Moments earlier, the commissioners had read from a proclamation declaring Monday to be “Roy Rodriguez Day.”
They recited his long history of service, not only to the city of McAllen, but also to Weslaco, Harlingen, Jefferson County and other places where he spent his career lending his expertise in civil engineering or public administration.
“There isn’t much more for me to say. It is certainly very, very bittersweet for this day to come,” Rodriguez said, adding that he nonetheless had had his retirement date marked on a calendar.
“I couldn’t be more grateful for the time that I’ve been able to spend in this amazing city, (this) really, really amazing city that has adopted me — (though) not everybody, right?” Rodriguez said, quipping about reactions his tough demeanor has elicited.
“I’ve got some ‘other-than-friends’ out there, but I love them anyway, because this community is really amazing,” he said.
Reflecting on Rodriguez’s tenure with the city, members of the commission also made a point of emphasizing that public facade, saying it belies Rodriguez’s big heart.
“Roy’s really a Care Bear,” District 5 Commissioner Victor “Seby” Haddad said.
“He cares deeply about the city of McAllen, and most of all, he cares most about the people. He’s got a tough exterior — and I think he needs to have it, that sort of very poised, stern demeanor has served us well — but, once you get to know Roy, you’ll realize he cares more than anyone else,” Haddad said.
And that tough exterior, in turn, is evidence of the high standards the city manager has not only held himself to, but those he works with, Haddad said.
“He’s demanded a lot and created excellent leaders from the various city departments, but he also demands a lot from the city commission and from the mayor,” Haddad said.
That demand for excellence is part of what has made McAllen so successful for so long, what Haddad described as the city being at its “pinnacle.”
For McAllen Mayor Javier Villalobos — whose day job has involved serving as a city attorney for various municipalities across South Texas — Rodriguez’s drive for excellence has created something even more unique — a leader whom Villalobos can truly call a friend.
“I’ve been doing governmental work for so many years, and it’s very few people that I can say that they’ve become my friends — either commissioners, city managers or anything. I’m very glad that I can call Roy my friend,” Villalobos said.
For the mayor, Rodriguez has become a brother. For Haddad, the city manager’s steadfast leadership has set an example where nothing is impossible.
“The beauty about talking with Roy is that … we don’t start with talking about constraints, we talk about the idea,” Haddad said.
And that makes Rodriguez’s departure all the more “bittersweet.”
Nonetheless, though the commissioners expressed their sadness in seeing Rodriguez retire, the atmosphere at city hall Monday remained one filled with hope and excitement about the future.
Rodriguez leaves behind a team of public servants who won’t skip a beat, Villalobos said. And they’ll have the benefit of his protege, Isaac Tawil, taking over the reins.
The city commission appointed Tawil, who has served as the McAllen city attorney since 2021, to succeed Rodriguez as city manager.
“We’re ready to go. Ike is ready to go. The team is ready to go,” Villalobos said.
Rodriguez’s retirement officially begins at 5 p.m. on Friday.
