Nation's Cities - December 5, 2011

HELO Honors Members of Congress
by Mary Gordon
During this year’s Congress of Cities,
the Hispanic Elected Local Officials
(HELO) President Sergio Rodriguez,
alderman, New Haven, Conn., presid-
ed over the group’s events. According
to President Rodriguez, “We need to
engage in more opportunities for training
our members so that we can expand our
professional development opportunities.
It is an even more challenging time for all
of us as we work to solve our hometown
problems in this economy. I am thankful
for the training sessions that we cospon-
sor so that we can gain new ideas and
refresh our viewpoints.”
An important focus for this year’s
HELO events was the Joint Constituency
Group Reception cosponsored with
NLC’s Asian Pacific American Municipal
Officials and Women in Municipal
Government. HELO honored two
national leaders at this year’s event: U.S.
Congressmen Raul Grijalva and Ed
Pastor, both of Arizona.

From left: HELO First Vice President Adrienne Foster; Jose Miranda representing Congressman Raul
Grijalva, award honoree, HELO President Karen Avilla and HELO Treasurer Julie Ruiz-Raber, award
honoree, during the Congress of Cities and Exposition in Phoenix.

Congressman Pastor was elected in 1991 and currently represents Arizona’s District 4. He is a member of the House Appropriations Committee and serves on the Board of Directors for the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials.

President Rodriguez offered an exten-
sive HELO President’s Report, which
highlighted his leadership activities over
the past year.
These included meetings at the White
House where President Obama spoke
and met with NLC officials; meet-
ings with the Board of Directors of the
National Association of Latino Elected
and Appointed Officials (NALEO) in
San Antonio, Texas; the HELO Board
of Directors Retreat in Fort Lauderdale,
Fla., where strategic discussions were held
to offer recommendations for NLC’s
immigration topics for the Phoenix
Congress of Cities; and dialogue with
the NLC Advisory Council.

Karen Avilla, City Treasurer, Carson,
Calif., was elected president.

“It has been said that ‘all politics are local’ and that mindset prevents some local elected officials from participating in the National League of Cities, a national lobbying organization, because perhaps it may not seem ‘local’ to some of them. When I began attending NLC conferences 10 years ago, the first group I joined was HELO, as I was on a quest to see the value in my participation at NLC to my city,” said President Avilla.

She continued, “Through that jour-
ney I discovered that ‘local’ government
must be actively involved in the fed-
eral legislative process as those decisions
trickle down to our bottom line and the
ability to provide services in our commu-
nities. ... The dreams of Hispanic constit-
uents are the dreams of every American.
Therefore, local elected officials repre-
senting those communities must engage
in and participate in the legislative policy
that affects our cities and towns. HELO
provides that vehicle through NLC, and
it is one that I encourage all member cit-
ies to participate in.”
The other newly elected officers are:
Adrienne Foster, mayor, Roeland Park,
Kan. (first vice president); T. Oscar
Trevino, mayor, North Richland Hills,
Texas (second vice president); Julie Ruiz-
Raber, councilmember, Carson, Calif.

see page 10, column 1

GLBTLO Hears from Equality Arizona
by Mary Gordon
This year’s Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and
Transgender Local Officials (GLBTLO)
Business Meeting provided the opportu-
nity for guest speakers to share informa-
tion about special programs or current
issues, especially in relation to advo-
cacy programs. Outgoing GLBTLO
President Greg Lemke, councilmember,
Moorhead, Minn., presided at the meet-
ing.

In 2010, approximately 594,000 same-sex couple households existed in the U.S., which is not statistically different from the 581,000 households report-ed in the 2009 American Community Survey. Nationally, about 1 percent of all couple households were same-sex couples. The percentage of same-sex couple households for the 50 states and the District of Columbia ranged from 0.29 percent for Wyoming and 4.01 percent for D.C. The legal recognition of same-sex couples varies by state.

Members of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Local Officials meet during NLC’s Congress of
Cities and Exposition in Phoenix.

Ray talked about his beginnings with the organization and about its purpose. He spoke about Equality Arizona’s efforts to organize the movement for equality, educate voters and influence policymakers. The organization continues to advocate for safe schools legislation and policies protecting students from anti-LGBT bullying, inclusive nondiscrimination and hate crimes protections statewide and equal legal recognition of gay and lesbian couples, among other issues.

Following their presentations and after other business, GLBTLO elected its new Board of Directors. Outgoing President Greg Lemke will be leaving elected office, and thus will not become the immediate past president of GLBTLO. Craig Lowe, mayor, Gainesville, Fla., currently immediate past president, will remain in that position.

GLBTLO’s officers are: Bob Gaiser, councilmember, Broomfield, Colo. (president); Keith McGlashan, mayor, Shoreline, Wash. (first vice president); Sam Toles, councilmember, Cathedral City, Calif. (second vice president) and Craig Lowe (immediate past president).

At-Large members are: Karen Kellen, councilmember, Lakewood, Colo.; Steve Kornell, councilmember, St. Petersburg, Fla., and Dominick Moreno, councilmember, Commerce City, Colo.

Newly elected President Gaiser stated, “I am excited to lead GLBTLO at this time when more gay men and lesbians are running for office. I hope to work together with similar groups like the National Association of Counties to see what we can do together as a group of elected officials.”