Carlos Ealy is assistant secretary of state for Mexican and Border Affairs in the Office of the Texas Secretary of State.

Ealy spoke at a reception held for the Texas Port to the Stars FDI Summit hosted by RioPlex at the Westin Galleria in Houston.

Here are his remarks from the stage.

Go to www.riograndeguardian.com to read the latest border news stories and watch the latest news videos.

HOUSTON, Texas - Valerie G. Segovia is vice of president of investor relations for the Texas Economic Development Corporation.

Segovia spoke at a reception held for the Texas Port to the Stars FDI Summit hosted by RioPlex at the Westin Galleria in Houston.

Here are her remarks from the stage.

Go to www.riograndeguardian.com to read the latest border news stories and watch the latest news videos.

PHARR, Texas - The Pharr EDC Foundation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing scholarship opportunities for graduating students residing in the city of Pharr.

The foundation supports both college and trade school career paths.

One of the foundation’s main fundraisers is an annual Casino Night. This year’s event will be held at the Regency Hall in Pharr on April 17.

To learn more about the foundation, the Rio Grande Guardian interviewed one of its founding board members, Veronica Gonzales.

“The Pharr EDC Foundation was a spin-off of the Pharr EDC, but the intent of the foundation was simply to raise money for students that are from the Pharr area, so that they can continue their education, whether that means going on to a two-year school, a technical school, a four-year school. We just want them to have the skills that they need to have a better quality of life,” Gonzales said.

“And so that's why the organization was formed. And it's been around since 2021, right after the pandemic, or the tail end of the pandemic. And it's been very successful. Already it has benefited over 515 students and given away more than $1.3 million in scholarships.”

Gonzales continued: “As time goes by, you kind of learn what works best. We have really firmed up the criteria for students that want to apply. They have to be from the Pharr area or at our high school. They have to be a high school senior. They have to also engage in some community service, at least 15 hours of community service, because we truly believe that when students get engaged in their community at an early age, that they're going to make it a habit in their lives to do that. And we want these students to be very well-rounded students, so either have an internship or 15 hours of community service, and then a grade point average of about 2.5 or higher.”

Gonzales says the Pharr EDC Foundation has two big fundraisers every year.

“We have a Golf Tournament that we do in the summer, and we also have a Casino Night, and our Casino Night is actually coming up. It's going to be on April the 17th, at the Regency Hall in Pharr. It's a lot of fun. You walk in, you think you've gone into a casino, and it's not a bunch of speeches. It's about having fun, having a little bit to eat and drink, and then just getting to play some fun games and networking with others in the community. But every dollar that we raise through the Casino Night goes to support these scholarships. And the scholarships are, I think, very good scholarships. They are $2,000 scholarships for students, $1,000 in the fall, $1,000 in the spring. And like I mentioned, we've given 515 of them away. So, the more you contribute at the Casino Night, the more goes to help these students and they can continue their education.”

Asked if there was anything else she wanted to add, Gonzales said: “I want to thank Mayor Ambrosio Hernandez, because he's the one that initially had the idea of doing this. And Victor Perez at the EDC. The city helped with funds at the beginning, but now we are becoming self-sustaining by doing these fundraisers. So, I do want to give a shout out to the mayor, to the city commission for being very supportive of this program, and, of course, to everyone over at the EDC Foundation, the staff who work very hard to make these events a success.”

Go to www.riograndeguardian.com to read the latest border news stories and watch the latest news videos.