Texas Border Business
The McAllen City Commission chose Monday, August 8, 2016 as “Elva Cerda Day” in honor of a long term community volunteer. The award followed Cerda’s recent induction into the Texas Festivals and Events Hall of Honor at their state conference held in Corpus Christi, Texas for her work and dedication in the creation and development of the McAllen PalmFest Folklife Celebration. She served as the founding Chair for the event which made its debut October 2006 at the McAllen Civic Center. Today, the festival has expanded and accommodated approximately 52,000 visitors at the 2015 event which is now held at the McAllen Convention Center grounds and the indoor facility.
At the city commission meeting, the proclamation was read before a capacity crowd by former Mayor Richard Cortez. Cerda commented that being a volunteer is deeply ingrained in who she is and credited her father with instilling in her that serving others should always be key in her life with no expectations of getting anything in return.
Her volunteer service in McAllen includes advocating for affordable housing through her long term board service with Affordable Homes of South Texas where she also served as President of the board and on the Presidents Council. She works closely with construction industry issues on the Government Affairs committee of the RGV Builders Association and currently serves on the board of the McAllen Housing Authority. Cerda is a graduate of Leadership McAllen and one of the founders of the LM Alumni Association. She is also a founding member of the McAllen Heritage Center museum of history and culture.
Upon receiving the proclamation she went on to say, “Although a volunteer is simply someone that does work without getting paid, I believe we do get paid, just not monetarily or with anything deemed of monetary value. We get paid by the level of gratification we gain when we see a project come to fruition that is of benefit to others and to our community and through the team building which many times result in added lifetime friendships. Receiving such payment is truly priceless.”
Cerda went on to say that many accomplishments in our community are the result of volunteer work for which no one has to foot the bill. She then dedicated her recognition and special day to the many volunteers that work tirelessly for our community towards improving quality of life, in the arts and historic preservation, education, affordable housing, women’s safety and health needs and children’s insurance needs.
She especially noted the work of Stephanie Contreras, an educator and tireless volunteer advocate working to improving mental health services, Melissa Hinojosa Zamora who started the RGV Chapter of (American Foundation for Suicide Prevention) and Jennifer Rodriguez, a McHi school teacher who started a volunteer group of students to fight bullying in our schools. Cerda closed by asking everyone to consider becoming a volunteer in one of the many opportunities available in order to improve life for someone or to better our communities.
