[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 27 (Thursday, February 13, 2003)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E249]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




IN HONOR OF MARIANO VEGA, JR., RECIPIENT OF THE HISPANIC AMERICAN GOOD 
                              SCOUT AWARD

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. ROBERT MENENDEZ

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, February 13, 2003

  Mr. MENENDEZ. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Councilman Mariano 
Vega, Jr., who was honored on February 7th at the Hispanic American 
Good Scout Award Dinner at the Robert Treat Hotel in Newark, New 
Jersey.
  Mr. Vega's career demonstrates his dedication to social service and 
his compassion for families, children, and the elderly living 
throughout our community. Before serving on the City Council, he was 
director of Hudson County Department of Public Resources, chief of 
Hudson County Division of Social Services, and director of the Jersey 
City Division of Welfare.
  A dedicated educator, Councilman Vega has worked in many capacities 
as part of his commitment to improving education. A former teacher and 
counselor, he also served as assistant director of Admissions at 
Montclair State College in New Jersey, and as acting director for the 
Equal Opportunity Office at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of 
New Jersey.
  A graduate of Montclair State College, Mr. Vega also studied at 
Rutgers University School of Social Work, School of Law, and Graduate 
School of Education; Cornell University School of Industrial and Labor 
Relations; and has participated in the Leadership Institute on 
Workforce Development and the Hispanic Leadership Opportunity Program. 
Mr. Vega was a National Policy Fellow at the former Department of 
Health, Education and Welfare, which today is known as the U.S. 
Department of Health and Human Services.
  Councilman Vega has served as president of the Jersey City Board of 
education and Jersey City Borinquen Lions Club and commissioner of the 
Jersey City Planning Board. He founded the Liberty Soccer Club and 
International Recreation and Educational Exchange Program, and was a 
founding member of the Liberty Academy of Visual Arts and the Hispanic 
Leadership Association.
  Today, I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring Mariano Vega, Jr., 
for his contributions to the City of Newark and the state of New 
Jersey, and his continued dedication to public service.

                          ____________________