| Espaņola Mayor and League President Joseph M. Maestas has received the prestigious Premio Ohtli Award, presented by the Instituto de los Mexicanos en el Exterior, an agency within the Secretariat of External Relations of Mexico that promotes ties between Mexico and the Mexican communities in this country. The Mexican government, acting through the Instituto, created the award to recognize persons who have promoted the prosperity of Mexican communities abroad. Mayor Maestas was nominated for the award by the National Association of Latino Elected Officials (NALEO). 
League President and Espaņola Mayor Joseph Maestas receives the prestigious
Premio Ohtli Award from the Mexican Government.
At right is Candido Morales of the Instituto de los Mexicanos en el Exterior. Photo by Rodney Choice
Ohtli means path, or road, in Nahuatl. In granting the Ohtli, the Government of Mexico recognizes distinguished individuals who have blazed a path for and improved the lives of members of the Mexican community beyond Mexico's political borders. Mayor Maestas has been an effective and vocal national advocate for fair, comprehensive immigration reform. During his tenure as a member of the National League of Cities' (NLC) Board of Directors and President of Hispanic Elected Local Officials (HELO), he helped initiate and craft NLC's policy process and position in support of comprehensive immigration reform. Under his leadership, the 2006 National League of Cities Hispanic Elected Local Officials' Summit brought comprehensive immigration reform to the top of the organization's policy agenda, focusing on the role of Latino municipal officials in helping to shape fair reform and address the local impacts of immigration policies. A native of New Mexico, Mayor Maestas was born in Santa Fe and raised in Santa Cruz. He is a product of the Espaņola public school system and earned a Bachelor's Degree in Civil Engineering from the University of New Mexico and a Master's Degree in Civil Engineering from Arizona State University. He is a registered professional engineer in the State of New Mexico. NALEO is a non-partisan membership organization whose constituency includes the nation's more than 6,000 Latino elected and appointed officials. Source: http://www.nmml.org/Municipal%20Reporter/2007%20Reporter%20August.pdf
THE MUNICIPAL REPORTER, August, 2007 |
