[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 152 (Thursday, September 21, 2017)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1246-E1247]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            CELEBRATING EL AVISO MAGAZINE'S 30TH ANNIVERSARY

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. LUCILLE ROYBAL-ALLARD

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 21, 2017

  Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD. Mr. Speaker, I rise to salute El Aviso Magazine, 
an award-winning Spanish-language weekly publication based in my 40th 
Congressional District, as it begins its 30th anniversary celebration.
  Since its establishment in 1988, El Aviso Magazine has focused its 
reporting on local areas with the highest populations of Latinos. The 
publication offers a unique blend of topics ranging from social and 
political, to health and welfare, to family, culture, and 
entertainment.
  At its inception, El Aviso Magazine shared an office with a travel 
agency in the City of Huntington Park, and only had two employees and 
five distributors. At that time, the magazine's weekly circulation 
reached an audience of 70,000, and its method of distribution was door-
to-door. Today, an average issue reaches an audience of more than 
600,000, and it can be found at over 10,000 points of distribution in 
136 cities and neighborhoods in the greater Los Angeles area, Orange 
County, the San Fernando Valley, and the Inland Empire.
  El Aviso Magazine has received countless awards from the National 
Association of Hispanic Publications, and has also received national 
recognition for its editorial content and covers. In 2004, it received 
an award for being the fastest-growing publication in the United 
States. At the 2014 National Association of Hispanic Publications 
Convention, El Aviso Magazine received the Gold Award for the Most 
Outstanding Newsprint Magazine.
  Over the past 30 years, Jessica Maes Zepeda and Jose Ramiro Zepeda, 
along with their family, have operated this family-owned magazine. Mr. 
Zepeda was born in Mexico, and immigrated to the United States in the 
mid-1980s in search of the American Dream. As he was searching for the 
right business, he witnessed the passage and implementation of the 
Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986. Mr. Zepeda saw the need to 
inform the Spanish-speaking community in a language they could read and 
understand. This led him to produce a Spanish publication that would 
serve the Latino community across Southern California--El Aviso 
Magazine. Mr. Zepeda has worked diligently for the past three decades 
and has made El Aviso Magazine a success story.
  Mrs. Zepeda, the magazine's co-owner and its director of public 
relations and community affairs, was raised in Southeast Los Angeles, 
where she attended local parochial schools and decided to pursue a 
career in real estate. In the early 1980s, she joined the Downey Board 
of Realtors and served as vice president. She then became the president 
of the Women's Council of Realtors, and the director of the California 
Association of Realtors.
  In 1994, Mrs. Zepeda became politically active and was elected to the 
Huntington Park City Council. Through her accomplishments, she became 
the first woman to hold the position of Mayor for the City of 
Huntington Park three years later.
  Mrs. Zepeda has received numerous accolades for her community service 
from elected officials in the State of California and Congress, and 
from non-profit organizations. The California Chamber of Commerce 
recently recognized Mrs. Zepeda with the 2017 Pioneer Empresaria Award.
  Mr. and Mrs. Zepeda believe in assisting the less fortunate and those 
in need. Their dedication to the community and their philanthropic 
activities are reflected through El Aviso Magazine's involvement with 
various non-profits, including the YMCA, Salvation Army, Boys & Girls 
Club of America, Human Services Association, Southeast Relay for Life, 
faith-based groups, and local schools.

[[Page E1247]]

  For the past ten years, the magazine has published a special edition 
bilingual magazine dedicated to the fight against cancer, titled ``El 
Aviso Relay for Life.'' In addition, through hard work, perseverance, 
and dedication to the communities it serves, the magazine has raised 
more than $120,000 for the American Cancer Society's Southeast Cities 
Relay for Life over the past ten years.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to please join me in sending best 
wishes and congratulations to Jose Zepeda, Jessica Maes Zepeda, and 
their El Aviso Magazine team on the celebration of their 30th 
anniversary. They have played a vital role in informing Latino 
communities across Southern California over the past 30 years.

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