Mountain Views News, Combined Edition Saturday, January 6, 2024

7

ARCADIA -MONROVIA-DUARTE

Mountain View News Saturday, January 6, 2024 

January Events 
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DUARTE SELECTS NEW LEADERSHIP

At the Duarte City Council meeting on 
Tuesday, December 12, the Council hosted 
its annual reorganization and selected Vinh 
Truong, District 2, to represent Duarte as 
Mayor and Cesar A. Garcia, Dis-trict 6, as 
Mayor Pro Tem. 

“General Colin Powell once said ‘Great 
leaders are almost always great simplifiers 
who can cut through argument, debate, 
and doubt to offer a solution everybody can 
understand.’ Everybody does deserve an 
opportunity, but when we sit here on this 
dias, that opportunity is for our constituents 
and our residents, not for us. I believe that 
is who I am and who I will continue to be.” 
said newly appointed Mayor Vinh Truong. 
“ Not only do I have all of Duarte to repre-
sent but I have to represent my kids and my 
wife at home.”

Vinh Truong’s family migrated from 
Vietnam to the United States in the late 
1970s and settled in Duarte in 1985. He 
has held a seat on the Duarte Economic 
Development Commission and served 
as a board member of the Santa Anita 
Family YMCA. In 2019, Mayor Truong was 
appointed to Duarte’s Financial Advisory 
Task Force, which allowed him to learn 
about the City’s financial condition and 
engrain in him the value of economic 
growth. He is a team player and leader and 
looks forward to building a solid foundation 
and stable city for the next generation in 
Duarte.

Cesar A. Garcia was appointed by the City 
Council to fill the District 6 vacancy in 
December 2021. Mayor Pro Tem Garcia was 
raised in the City of Duarte and his family 
has lived in Duarte for over 27 years. His 
positive experiences beginning at a young 
age in the City of Duarte inspired him to give back to Duarte’s unique community. He 
cares deeply about the City of Duarte and its residents, includ-ing its youth, seniors, 
and families. He values teamwork and strives to serve the community with confidence, 
pride, respect, and re-sponsibility.

“To be able to sit here with the rest of my colleagues is truly a full circle moment for 
me. I always knew I would continue to serve my community but I never thought at this 
capacity,” said newly ap-pointed Mayor Pro Tem Cesar A. Garcia. “The greatest lesson 
my family ever taught me was how to serve others. It feels really good to be serving this 
community because of my family’s history with Duarte. My grandparents bought their 
first home here, my parents met at Mike’s Food, and this is also where I met my wife. I 
am humbled and will continue to serve this community in any capacity.”

A representative from the office of Senator Susan Rubio presented Councilmember 
Jody Schulz with certificates from Senator Susan Rubio and Assemblywoman Blanca 
Rubio thanking her for her service as Duarte’s Mayor. 

“This has been a tremendous honor and one of the most profound things I’ve done 
professionally,” said Councilmember Jody Schulz. “The amount that I’ve learned about 
myself, others, government, the residents and the connections I've been able to make 
with the residents in the community is something I’ll cherish forever.” 

Councilmember Schulz further expressed her gratitude to her husband, Gunther, and 
her daughter, Isabel, who is the reason she initially ran for office and continues to be her 
inspiration. She stated, "The most fulfilling and proudest part of serving is having my 
daughter by my side and flourishing in the public arena, as a person with autism, who 
has grown tremendously being at the fore-front of events in the City with her mother as 
Mayor. It has been such a blessing, and I'm very grateful that I had this opportunity to 
share with her. I'm incredibly grateful for my husband and for all the support my family 
has received from people in the community as well as my colleagues and City staff."

For additional information about the Duarte City Council, please visit the Duarte City 
website or contact the City Manager’s Office at (626) 357-7931.


Mayor Vinh Truong


Mayor Pro Tem Cesar A. Garcia

MONROVIA NEWS:

1111 Encino New Park Name Recommendation 

As many of you may know, the community was gifted a piece of land behind the new Chik-
fil-A and Star-bucks near 1111 Encino. City Officials would like to give a special 'thank you' 
to the Hale Corporation and, specifically, Dick Hale, for the land donation to be used as our 
newest City Park. 

Last Fall, the City Council solicited names for the park (as part of our Facility Naming 
Policy), and we received 19 difference recommendations. Several focused on honoring 
Asian Americans for their contributions to Monrovia, and for many of our local history 
buffs, the name Satoru Tsuneishi stood out for many reasons including being the first Asian 
American to graduate from Monrovia Arcadia Duarte High School (image above: far left in 
second row from top). 

He ran a fruit stand and farmed strawberries before World War II along Historic Route 66 
and four of his sons served in WWII when the remainder of his family were sent to Japanese 
internment camps. Upon their return, they resided next to Louis and Lucinda Garcia! By the 
80s, he was invited to participate in the Monrovia Days Parade as the oldest living graduate 
from MAD High School. 

Staff will be recommending the park be named Satoru Tsuneishi Park as way to honor him, 
his family and the countless Asian Americans who have contributed so much to our City's 
culture, histo-ry and quality of life. Per our Facility Naming Policy, staff will present their 
recommendation to the Community Services Commission on Tuesday, January 9, and a 
recommendation will be forwarded to the City Council for consideration at their meeting 
on Tuesday, January 16th. 


Mountain Views News 80 W Sierra Madre Blvd. No. 327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.609.3285 Email: editor@mtnviewsnews.com Website: www.mtnviewsnews.com