By Roberto Hugo Gonzalez
As originally published in Texas Border Business newsprint edition August 2018
It was one of the best nights of the year, The Greater South Texas Council selected and honored two people that embody the integrity and dedication that Girl Scouts instills in each one of their members.
The 2018 Award of Distinction Gala effort raises funds for their school outreach program and scholarships for summer camps. The leadership development programs that Girl Scouts offers for over one hundred years has produced some of the greatest leaders of this country.
Girl Scouts of Greater South Texas is a leadership development program and an incubator for the future female leaders of the United States. The two individuals honored on the night of August 2, 2018, truly symbolize the Girl Scouts’ mission of building girls of courage, confidence, and character who will make the world a better place.
Ms. Edna De Saro is Senior Vice President and Marketing Director of Lone Star National Bank. Her career spans eighteen years in bank marketing and advertising. She is an inspiration for Girl Scouts. De Saro’s passion for philanthropy has made her a great supporter of many nonprofit organizations in the Rio Grande Valley.
When Edna took over the podium, she said, “You have touched my heart in so, so many ways.” She continued, “I am completely humbled. I think I would like to thank my employers, I would like to thank our chairman of the board Alonzo Cantu, Mr. David Deanda, our bank president and all of our board of directors for giving me this amazing opportunity to work in the bank, which allows me to give back to so many people.”
She also said that the most important part of being present that night was also in honor of the girl scouts.
“I think it’s important to leave behind a mark. I haven’t been blessed with children of my own, but I always think about making an impact in the lives of the women around me and also uplifting people around me.”
She said that the act of giving back makes a difference especially when you love what you do. “I sincerely love what I do, and I hope that every one of you does too.” She said, “I have the amazing opportunity to work for people that I respect and I admire and every day I learn from them.
Edna was emotional, her very closest were seating around her including her mother. “Thank you for being my biggest cheerleader and my friend.”
She thanked the extension of her family being the Lone Star National Bank family. She said, “I actually spend more time with them than I do with my own family sometimes. But Mr. Deanda, thank you for believing in me sir. It’s been almost fifteen years with the bank.”
Edna mentioned that she vividly remembers when she was interviewed by Mr. Deanda and thanked him for believing in her.
“I truly am so thankful, because through my job I have the opportunity to touch the lives of so many people in our community and I never, never, take that for granted,” she finalized.
Also honored that night is Dr. Guy Bailey, president of the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, Dr. Bailey has been integral in promoting higher education to thousands of young men and women throughout the Valley. UTRGV is a game changer and is helping to create some of the country’s foremost female leaders in STEM, and liberal arts, just to name a few.
During the program, it was said that the one word that describes Dr. Bailey will be compassionate because he cares so much about students, his staff, his friends, and family. It was also said that his driving force in education is the thing that he puts first and foremost in all the decisions that he makes about the university.
He was also described as visionary for having a unique ability to stay focused on his mission. He doesn’t allow himself to be disrupted by all of the things that pop up in the day that sometimes disrupts, and he stays true to what he was hired to do. And that’s to project the university to the next level.
“It is a great honor to be here. A great honor to be honored,” Dr. Bayley said to a great audience attending the 2018 Award of Distinction Gala. He also said that sometimes you do great things for people, and make great impact on people’s lives, but then you look at the Girl Scouts, they have great impact even more. “I’ve been around a long time, but they’ve been around much longer.”
He continued, “What Girl Scouts has done in a broader sense; it’s helped us get a sense of women generally as leaders. And if you think about this, women are increasingly taking important leadership roles. I have ten people who report directly to me. Vice president’s, deputy president. Six of them are women, sixty percent. Think about that. Yeah, think about that”.
Dr. Bailey mentioned that someone asked him once, “You must have had a good affirmative action program?” He pointed out that he didn’t. He added, “If a man had been better for the job, I would have chosen the man, they were the best for the job.”
As he addressed the attendees, he said that girl scouts have taken an important role in this to help produce women leaders. He said, “To Girl Scouts, to the organization, we as a country have a debt of gratitude, we owe you a big thanks. Thank you to the girl scouts.
“Finally, I want to thank some people who are here tonight and who really are special. You heard from Dr. Janna Arney, she is the Deputy President. She’s the person I actually report to and runs the show. Veronica Gonzales, who is the best vice president for Governmental and Community Relations person in the State of Texas. And so, both of them are tremendous people,” he finalized.
