[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 27 (Tuesday, March 12, 2002)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E321-E322]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  HONORING JOHN L. HUERTA AS AN OUTSTANDING MEMBER OF THE TUCSON AND 
                        SOUTH ARIZONA COMMUNITY

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. ED PASTOR

                               of arizona

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, March 12, 2002

  Mr. PASTOR. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate an outstanding 
member of the Tucson and Southern Arizona community. Mr. John L. 
Huerta. John has always served his community and his country with 
distinction, and although he has traveled extensively and held 
important positions at the national and state level, he has remained El 
Tucsonese at heart. On March 22, 2002, the University of Arizona 
Hispanic Alumni Association and the Concerned Media Professionals will 
gather to applaud and honor John for his many contributions to the 
cultural and educational vitality of the greater Tucson area. Today I 
join his family, friends and colleagues in expressing my sincere 
admiration for his many accomplishments.
  John was born in Tucson, Arizona, and graduated from Tucson High and 
the University of Arizona. While at the U of A, John co-founded the Los 
Universitarios, a social club for the university Hispanic community, 
which fostered many of today's innovative leaders in Tucson. After 
college, John worked as a Juvenile Probation officer and then joined a 
task force that was successful in bringing the ``War on Poverty'' 
programs to Tucson. John's effective leadership in these programs 
brought him to the attention of national leaders who encouraged him to 
relocate to Washington, DC, where he joined the staff of the Postmaster 
General as a Special Assistant.
  John's career in Washington, DC, moved upward through several 
positions in the Department of Health Education, and Welfare, including 
Assistant Director of the Office for

[[Page E322]]

Community Planning (Model Cities Program), Director of the Office for 
Community Development, and Director for the Office for Rural 
Development. In 1975, John decided to move closer to home. He relocated 
to Phoenix and became the Director of Arizona's largest agency, the 
Department of Economic Security, which had a yearly budget of half a 
billion dollars. Throughout his government service, John was an adept 
and respected leader.
  In 1978, John returned to Tucson and became involved in the private 
sector as a successful businessman. His skills with money soon lead to 
a position with the University of Arizona Development Office where he 
founded the Office of Minority Programs. This office, almost unique 
among all colleges and universities, raises funds to benefit Hispanic, 
African-American, and Asian American scholarship endowments as well as 
special emphasis programs. Under his guidance, the Hispanic Alumni 
endowment enjoys a market value of $1.7 million, the largest fund of 
its kind among all public universities, and the Black Alumni endowment 
is $500,000.
  Throughout his career, John has brought success to many community 
activities and is especially proud of his work with the Hispanic Alumni 
Board, Omega Delta Phi (the first Hispanic fraternity at the UofA) as a 
founder of the Tucson International Mariachi Conference, the Hispanic 
Professional Action Committee, the UA Hispanic Alumni, the Tucson 
Chapter of the America Israel Friendship League, and El Centro Cultural 
de las Americas.
  In addition to his many career and community activities, John has 
enjoyed a rich and rewarding family life. He and his wife Nancy, high 
school sweethearts who recently celebrated 50 wonderful years together, 
raised 6 accomplished children. Now he enjoys being tata to his 
talented grandchildren. I am proud to enter John L. Huerta's name into 
the official records of our nation. He represents an American life 
well-lived for his family, for his community and for his country.

                          ____________________