HARLINGEN — This Thanksgiving, local officials and community leaders shared what they are grateful for amid the turmoil that a global pandemic has caused in the Rio Grande Valley, where the toll on lives and livelihoods has been devastating.
Bill Reagan, executive director of Loaves and Fishes, needed to look no further than the men and women who help him every day, which he described as courageous and dedicated.
Reagan is grateful for their many sacrifices, he said.
“They are all frontline workers just like the people in nursing homes and hospitals. They have carried out their job without complaint and without fear. I just can’t begin to tell you how proud I am of them,” Reagan said.
“I am also grateful for the support of the community through the CARES Act to enable us to provide the kind of services we need to provide during this time,” he said.
Through the funding he received, Reagan said he had written $400,000 worth of checks to help people in need pay for their rent, utilities and sometimes mortgages.
“Personally, I am grateful for my family. I could not be more blessed,” he said.
Mayor Chris Boswell also said he was grateful for his family, along with the dedication of the many frontline workers.
“It [family] always comes first, but I am also very grateful to the community of Harlingen, who has persevered fearlessly during this pandemic. Our hospital workers and first responders and frontline workers at grocery stores have done their part to get us through this crisis. I am grateful for them and what they have done,” Boswell said.
“The focus is on everybody doing their part and working hard on the face of unusual situations,” he said.
City Commissioner Victor Leal said he is grateful for life and the country he lives in.
“There is too much to be grateful for. There are those of us who have been blessed to be healthy, and those we miss dearly. I have lost 12 people,” Leal said.
“When you ask me what I am grateful for, I am grateful for life. And even though we have differences, one day we can all sit on the same table, and I wait for the day we can do it again,” he said.
“I want a blessing on our city staff and all of our employees,” Leal added.
For City Commissioner Ruben De La Rosa, the community of Harlingen is one thing he is grateful for as well.
“I am thankful we haven’t had a number of deaths like other cities have had. Also, a lot of churches and the food bank have been giving a lot of food to the people that have been needy,” De La Rosa said.
“I, myself, participate. I go to the Rio Hondo Baptist Church, and at our church, we distribute food boxes to the people,” he said.
As a Scout Master with the Boy Scouts of America, De La Rosa is grateful for Zoom and technology.
“We haven’t been able to go camping, but we still meet over Zoom. And we continue to meet with our troops on Sundays. We are able to continue the program, and I have three Scouts right now participating with a project on city parks,” he said.
“There is so much, but it all has to do with the community,” De La Rosa said.
Cameron County Judge Eddie Treviño Jr. said he was grateful for the community, even those who disagreed with him, because it helped him think things through and make the best possible decisions.
“As difficult and as tragic and as trying as 2020 has been because of COVID-19, it’s also a stark reminder of the many blessings that many if not all of us take for granted on a daily basis. Unfortunately, it’s only when we have to deal with difficulties and tragedies in our lives that we realize and refocus on what’s truly important,” he said.
“So, I’m very thankful for my family and my children and my mom, my friends, and I’m thankful to the Cameron County community that has been so supportive of me and the difficult decisions that I’ve had to make during this trying time,” Treviño said.
Treviño said he was an optimist and is hopeful for better days to come.
“Having gone through loss in my own personal life, I’ve always tried to be a ‘half-full’ individual and more optimistic. I know that in spite of a difficult year that we’ve had I know that things will get better,” he said.
Brownsville Herald reporter Steve Clark contributed to this report.
