[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 157 (Friday, September 11, 2020)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E832]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  HONORING MS. LUSILA ``LUSI'' ORTEGA

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. FILEMON VELA

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, September 11, 2020

  Mr. VELA. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the 
accomplishments of a remarkable community leader from my district, Ms. 
Lusila ``Lusi'' Ortega.
  A native of Lozano, Texas, Ms. Ortega, got her first job as a teacher 
at the Rio Hondo Head Start in 1971. At the time, the Head Start 
program did not provide transportation, so she, along with her husband 
Juan Alaniz, retrofitted an old GSA van and drove it to transport 
children in the surrounding rural areas. She also organized many 
fundraisers and fun family events to benefit the Head Start children 
and families. Ms. Ortega's dedication and success caught the eye of her 
supervisors and she was promoted to work at the administrative level as 
a Parent Involvement/Volunteer Services Coordinator. With the support 
of her peers and community leaders, she helped build a phenomenal 
Parent Involvement Program that was recognized at the national level. 
Ms. Ortega spearheaded many fund raising events that provided parents 
the opportunity to travel and advocate for Head Start in the state of 
Texas and across the country.
  In 1990, Neighbors In Need of Services, Inc. (NINOS) was awarded the 
Head Start grant and Ms. Ortega was promoted to Assistant Head Start 
Director. During her tenure, the Head Start Program grew from serving a 
few hundred children to now serving over 2,900 Head Start and Early 
Head Start students. Ms. Ortega served on the National Head Start 
Association Board of Directors and she was the first Head Start staff 
member elected to preside over the Texas Head Start Association (THSA) 
Board of Directors. The THSA continues to honor her service by awarding 
a yearly scholarship in her name. Ms. Ortega was also selected to 
represent Region VI at the White House when President Bill Clinton 
signed a bill into law that broadened the Head Start Program to include 
children under the age of three.
  Ms. Ortega was a member of the National Head Start Association Board 
of Directors, the Texas Department of Human Services Licensing Advisory 
Council, the University of Texas at Brownsville Child Care and 
Development Advisory Council, the Rio Grande Valley OIC Foster 
Grandparent Advisory Council, and was the Region VI Head Start 
Association Board of Directors officer. She was also a fellow with the 
Johnson & Johnson Management program and served as intergovernmental 
staff in the Office of Children and Families Region VI for one year.
  Anyone who knows Lusi Ortega knows her as the ``Voice of Head 
Start.'' I wish her a happy retirement and thank her for her lasting 
contributions to the educational and personal development of the 
children of South Texas.

                          ____________________