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Another year has flown
by. It seems like it was
only yesterday when we
were planning for 2006;
now 2007 is upon us. For
those of you who are
parents, you can check
the door frame and
realize the time passed
by the notches measuring
the height of your
little loved ones. Come
to think of it, it may
not be a bad idea to do
that ourselves so we can
check how much we have
shrunk since last
Christmas. So what will
be the events that will
remain with us after the
year is gone? Well, I
imagine the marches will
be remembered for a long
time.
This demonstration of
Hispanic concern and
unity brought to the
forefront the desperate
need for immigration
reform.
To me, the fact that
hundreds of thousands of
people were able to
march peacefully was a
clear indication of
maturity and respect for
our country. Now, a new
Congress is about to
assume their
responsibilities and
indications are that
immigration reform is on
top of their agenda.
Maybe now some fair
resolution to the
problem will be
achieved.The midterm
elections brought back
by large margins all the
Hispanic members of
Congress and Senator
Menendez handily won re-election.
A significant result of
the election is that
Congresswoman Nydia
Velázquez will become
the first Latina to
Chair a Congressional
Committee when she
assumes the lead of the
Small Business Committee,
and Congressman
Silvestre Reyes has been
selected by House
Speaker elect
Congresswoman Pelosi, to
become the Chair of the
House Permanent Select
Committee on
Intelligence. These are
great achievements for
our community. The year
also brought us another
Latina to our top
leadership as Rosa
Rosales assumed the
presidency of LULAC. On
a smaller scale, the
LATINA Style
memories are many. Our
events for the year were
a great success and we
have already prepared
our agenda for 2007. The
LATINA Style 50
Awards and Diversity
Conference will take
place on February 8 in
Washington, D.C., the
LATINA Style
Business Series will
travel to seven cities:
McAllen, Seattle,
Dallas, Los Angeles,
Sacramento, Chicago and
Miami. The National
LATINA Symposium
takes place on September
6 and the Anna Maria
Arias Memorial Business
Fund Awards makes a
transition after five
years and 50 Latina
grants presented by
Wells Fargo Bank to some
of the most accomplished
Latina business owners
in the nation.
Personally, I will
remember Brigadier
General Angela Salinas’
promotion as one of the
highlights of the year.
I hope to see other
accomplished Latinas in
the service attain her
rank in the near future.
Through the LATINA
Style credit card
program we were able to
present in partnership
with U.S. Bank $50,000
in scholarships to
Latina and Latino
programs including NHLI,
HCF, and NSHMBA. All in
all, it has been a good
year for our community
and for us at LATINA
Style.
Finally, let us not
forget those who are
serving our country in
dangerous and far off
places. Lets keep them
and the families that
have lost loved ones in
the struggle in our
prayers.
Robert E. Bard |
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Congressman Silvestre
Reyes
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Congresswoman Nydia
Velásquez |
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