“Seeing Mr. Ramirez run

with me made me feel proud

and made me realize that

anything is possible if you

put your effort and don't

give up,” said the 19-year-

old.

As the coordinator for the

Youth Leadership Associa-

tion, Oros felt happy to rep-

resent the Edinburg Housing

Authority during the event.

“Being able to participate in

the 10K along with other

residents was a very reward-

ing experience,” said Oros.

“Not only did we spent

Besides being one of the

poorest regions according to

studies, South Texas is also

affected by high obesity

rates due to unhealthy habits

and lack of physical fitness.

As a result, in an effort to

encourage public housing

residents to live healthy and

active lifestyles, staff from

the Edinburg Housing Au-

thority joined with residents

to participate in the 33rd

Annual All-America City

10K Run/Walk held Satur-

day, Feb.7, 2015 at the Ed-

inburg Parks & Recreation.

Participation in the event was

greatly encouraged by Execu-

tive Director Rodolfo “Rudy”

Ramirez since early January

with his goal to promote fami-

lies of staff and residents to

exercise. About 68 residents

and staff members participated

in the event.

“I am trying to lead by exam-

ple,” said Mr. Ramirez of his

own participation in the 10K.

“I find this method very effec-

tive.”

For Diego Oros, one of the

residents who ran the 10K,

seeing the executive director

take part in the event was en-

couraging.

EL REFLEJOEL REFLEJOEL REFLEJO F e b r u a r y 2 0 1 5 V o l u m e 3 , I s s u e 2

RODOLFO “RUDY” RODOLFO “RUDY” RODOLFO “RUDY”

RAMIREZRAMIREZRAMIREZ

Executive DirectorExecutive DirectorExecutive Director

A publication of the Edinburg Housing Authority.

BOARD OF MEMBERSBOARD OF MEMBERSBOARD OF MEMBERS

201520152015

“ED” GONZALEZ“ED” GONZALEZ“ED” GONZALEZ

CHAIRMANCHAIRMANCHAIRMAN

ARMANDO BARRERAARMANDO BARRERAARMANDO BARRERA

VICEVICEVICE---CHAIRMANCHAIRMANCHAIRMAN

JOE RODRIGUEZJOE RODRIGUEZJOE RODRIGUEZ

COMMISSIONECOMMISSIONECOMMISSIONERRR

CRIS TORRESCRIS TORRESCRIS TORRES

COMMISSIONERCOMMISSIONERCOMMISSIONER

JUAN GUZMANJUAN GUZMANJUAN GUZMAN

RESIDENT COMMISSIONERRESIDENT COMMISSIONERRESIDENT COMMISSIONER

Main Office

Ciro Trevino

Administration Building

910 S. Sugar Rd.

Edinburg, Texas, 78539

Mon.—Thurs.

8 a.m.—5:30 p.m.

Friday

8 a.m.—12 p.m.

Continued on Page 2

Running the DistanceRunning the DistanceRunning the Distance Staff and residents participate in 33rd Annual AllStaff and residents participate in 33rd Annual AllStaff and residents participate in 33rd Annual All---America 10KAmerica 10KAmerica 10K

P a g e 2

f bvxvbxvxAware that

technology is revolu-

tionizing and becoming

an important part of our

world, a group of Edinburg

Housing Authority students

participated in the Hour of

Code on Monday, Dec. 29,

2014.

The Hour of Code is a glob-

al movement dedicated to

reach millions of studies in

countries worldwide.

During the event, EHA stu-

A mong the many

efforts the Edinburg

Housing Authority is

doing through the new

partnership with the

University of Texas-

Pan American to bring

free opportunities for

its residents is working

with the Department of

Social Work to

develop and administer

a new survey that will

assess the needs of

residents.

Surveys are like

questionnaires that

agencies and

businesses often use to

collect data in order to analyze

features in areas or groups that

need improvement. Due to

constant changes, new

initiatives and programs EHA

has implemented in this past

year as well as others it plans to

bring, the agency would like to

conduct a new needs

assessment survey to analyze

the most recent needs of

housing residents.

“It just makes sense to partner

up with the University because

of all these services that we are

getting free of cost and we are

helping each other,” said Mr.

Ramirez in an interview for

UTPA’s campus newspaper, the

Pan American.

As a result, the Executive

Director Rodolfo “Rudy”

Ramirez and the executive

team members have been

working closely with John

Garcia, a UTPA graduate

student and macro social

worker developing the

needs assessment survey.

“Needs assessments are

done so we can determine

what type of help all the

people require, take that to

the University so that

departments can tailor

programs to help teach

them (residents) what they

need to get jobs and be

successful,” the graduate

student said

E L R E F L E J O

Continued from the first page...

quality time but got to show

the community that EHA is

engaged and moving for-

ward.”

Besides running in the 10K

or the Fun Run, a smaller

race, residents and staff had

the option to volun-

teer with the Youth

Leadership Associa-

tion to give water to

runners at different

water stations

throughout the race.

“Like Mr. Ramirez,

Olga Regalado the

Section 8 Supervisor

also enjoyed the run.

I wanted to show support to

our running team,” she said.

“It felt good to see many

community leaders wear

(our) shirt.”

According to Mr.

Ramirez, he hopes to con-

tinue encouraging physi-

cal fitness and health

amongst those his serves

and to participate in fu-

ture 10K’s.

“For sure I will do

next year,” Mr.

Ramirez expressed.

“My goal is to in-

crease our staff and

residents’ participat-

ing and maybe even-

tually promote our

own EHA Running

Team.”

Mr. Ramirez Executive Director

Diego Oros Resident

Members of the Youth Leadership Association volunteered at water station to give water to runners.

“I’ve asked these

kids what they

want to do when

they grow up and

99 percent said

they want to get

an education and

help (their) mom

and dad get out

of housing.”

Rudy Ramirez Executive Director

Assessing Your Needs

P a g e 3 V o l u m e 3 , I s s u e 2

A ware that a great number of

our residents could qualify

for President Obama’s executive

actions on immigration, this

month EHA commenced new

efforts with the UTPA Minority

Affairs Council and the DREAM

Home community organization to

help provide them with the most

accurate information.

The Minority Affairs Council

(MAC) is a University of Texas-

Pan American student

organization that focuses on

empowering and encouraging

education amongst minorities and

undocumented students. MAC is

led by students like Sarah

Chavez, Abraham Diaz and

Patricia Estrada whose efforts led

to the creation of the DREAM

Home initiative, a non-profit

group that will offer free housing

for undocumented students

attending UTPA.

First announced November 20,

2014, President Obama’s new

actions included changes to the

current DACA program and

allowed parents of U.S. citizens

and lawful permanent residents

who have been in the country since

January 1, 2010 and pass criminal

background checks the opportunity

to obtain deferred action and a

three year employment

authorization.

Early in February, the Executive

Director Rodolfo “Rudy” Ramirez

met with Chavez and Diaz to plan

the Immigration Outreach which

will help residents find out

whether or not they qualify for the

new relief and inform them of the

application process.

In the coming weeks, the

Immigration Outreach will be

having free DACA Days in the

community centers of each of the

developments where immigration

information and updates will be

shared as well as help answer

questions residents may have.

The first Immigration Outreach

meeting will be during the next

coming weeks in the

Administration Building. A

complete list of the dates, times

and locations of future meetings

will be provided for those who

attend. For more information

residents may contact Claudia

Lemus at 956-383-3839.

EHA’s Immigration Outreach

Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals | Deferred Action for Parental Accountability

The survey will ask residents

about their expenses, health

problems, activities, and their

access to the Internet and a

computer and will also determine

what their future ambitions are.

Ramirez and Garcia believe these

questions can potentially close the

digital divide, which is the social

inequality of persons and their

limited knowledge of technology,

and ultimately help the agency

bring opportunities to give them

access to the web.

Because according to Mr.

Ramirez, education is crucial is

helping families cycle out of

housing and become self-

sufficient, he hopes his efforts will

lead to students obtaining an

education and ultimately help their

families.

“If you stop and think about, they

(housing students) don’t have

educational goals because they

don’t want to burden (their) mom

and dad,” said the executive

director. “I know that education is

going to open doors.

When he’s asked students what

they want to do when they

grow up, Mr. Ramirez said

education was their top

answer.

“I’ve asked these kids what they want to do when they grow up and 99 percent said they want to get an education and help (their) mom and dad get out of housing,” he shared. As soon as the survey is finalized, EHA plans to have all residents complete it with the help of the Social Work Department in the coming months. With their needs in mind, the agency would like to ask residents to please answer the survey to the best of their ability and honestly as possible when the time comes.

“If you stop and think about it they (housing students) don’t

have educational goals because they don’t want to

burden (their) mom and dad.”

Rudy Ramirez Executive Director.

C o n t i n u e d o n P a g e 4

YOUNG SCHOLARS PROGRAM: APPLICATION CLOSES APRIL 14, 2015

The Young Scholars Program is a selective pre-college scholarship for high-performing middle school students

with financial need. The program includes academic advising, financial support and a pathway to the founda-

tion’s $40,000 per year College Scholarship.

The application is open to ALL students regardless of immigration status if they meet the criteria:

P a g e 4 V o l u m e 3 , I s s u e 2

But what about the temporary

injunction?

But what about the temporary

injunction?

Although a temporary injunction

on the president’s actions was

issued Feb. 17 by federal Judge

Andrew S. Hanen and the

immigration actions have been put

on hold until the lawsuit is

resolved, activist organizations like

National Council of La Raza

announced that they will continue

helping immigrants prepare their

applications for when the programs

are up and running again.

According to Cornell University

Law School, a temporary

injunction is a court order issued

early in a lawsuit that requires a

defendant to do or stop doing a

specific action to prevent possible

injustice. In this case, the

temporary injunction passed by

Judge Hanen caused President

Obama’s administration to

postpone the executive actions

until the case is settled.

White House officials announced

that they will be appealing the

judge’s ruling and even though

they will not be taking any

applications for undocumented

workers, they will continue

preparing to put the executive

actions into effect.

As a result, with the same hope

and intentions, our agency as well

as MAC and DREAM Home still

plans to offer residents

information about DACA and

DAPA in case they begin

accepting applications again the

coming months.

It is important that individuals

know that the temporary

injunction does NOT affect

those who obtained and qualify

for the president’s 2012 DACA.

If you have questions or any

concerns we ask that you please

attend the Immigration Outreach

meetings and become informed.

Remember EHA is here to help.

If you have questions or any

concerns we ask that you please

attend the Immigration Outreach

meetings and become informed.

Remember EHA is here to help

but we can only provide you

with information and not legal

counseling.

Want a $40,000 scholarship for your son/daughter?

Although EHA would love to make programs available in all of the developments, due to limited

space and resources, opportunities like the folkloric classes in the dance studio can only be held in

certain developments. We kindly ask that residents are patient towards one another and understand

that our agency is doing everything it can to provide these programs even if they are made availa-

LIMITED SPACE

Selection Criteria

High Academic ability

Demonstrate financial need

Leadership

To apply

3 letters of recommendation

Financial information of last

3 years

There is no application fee and no social security number required

Eligibility

Be a current 7th grader

Mostly A’s and B’s in core subjects

Have a family income under $95,000

Plan to attend high school in the U.S.

If you would like your child to apply for the program and need help or information you may contact Claudia Lemus at

956-383-3839 or visit the website www.jkcf.org/scholarship-programs/young-scholars.

P a g e 5

Southwest NAHRO Scholarship www.swnahro.org 800-617-2900

shelli@brazosnet.com

Texas NAHRO Scholarship www.txnahro.org 800-617-2900

txnahrobrazosnet.com

HAVE Scholarship Visit EHA for application.

The Edinburg Housing Authority is pleased to announce the following scholarships

for Public Housing and Section 8 High School seniors graduating June 2015.

TUTORING

COMPUTER

ESL

ART

STEM

MUSIC

CLASSES

Kara Shearer Scholarship Application available Feb. 2015 at EHA

Estella Lane Trevino Endowed

Scholarship 956-665-5301

PHADA Scholarship www.phada.org

If interested in applying for any of these scholarships, please call your manager at 956-383-3839. Also contact the financial aid counselors at your school.

IRS tax filing deadline is April 15, 2015. All wage earners—regardless of their immigration status—are required to pay feder-

al taxes.

Immigrants Can File Taxes With ITIN The IRS provides ITINs to people like undocumented immigrants who are ineligible

for an SSN so they can comply with tax laws. An Individual Taxpayer Identification

Number (ITIN) is a 9-digit tax processing number issued by the U.S. Internal Reve-

nue Service (IRS).

ITINs are issued by the IRS specifically as a means to pay federal taxes and can

sometimes be accepted for other purposes, such as for opening an interest-bearing

bank account, in employment dispute settlements, or for obtaining a mortgage.

For more information on how to obtain an ITIN call or visit:

IRIS Tax Office

1810 Hale Ave.

Harlingen, TX 78550

(956) 365-5185

BE AN IMMIGRANT TAXPAYERBE AN IMMIGRANT TAXPAYERBE AN IMMIGRANT TAXPAYER

RENT DEADLINERENT DEADLINERENT DEADLINE Due monthly by the 1st, but EHA

gives you until the 5th to pay in full.

There is a $15 late fee for late

payments.

COMMUNITY SERVICECOMMUNITY SERVICECOMMUNITY SERVICE Residents 18+ years old who are not

employed 30 hours or more a week, must

comply with the 8 hour HUD’s

community service requirement.

REMINDERS

SCHOLARSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

With more than 65 years of service, the Edinburg Housing Authority

takes pride in providing assistance to those who need it most in the Rio

Grande Valley.

As a result, throughout the years we have focused our agency’s efforts

and resources to ensure struggling low-income families with an equal oppor-

tunity to obtain safe, decent and affordable public housing, and thus improve

their quality of life.

But even though we help hundreds of families in need, we realize that to

truly help impoverished residents rise out of poverty and better themselves

our agency has to do much more than providing them with a place to live.

As a result, in addition to providing housing for our residents we have

now made it our mission to promote self-sufficiency throughout the agency

and do everything in our power to help those we serve develop the necessary

work skills and education to succeed and ultimately provide for their loved

ones on their own.

With dedication, integrity and compassion we take pride in helping our

residents each and every day. We believe and ardently hope that through eve-

ry family we help we make a difference in the present and someday future of

the city of Edinburg and the Rio Grande Valley.

Interested in finding out what’s happening at EHA or your development?

Come find out at our next Resident Council Meeting. Meetings are led

by the Executive Director Rodolfo “Rudy” Ramirez and residents. Our

next meeting will be:

March 12, 2015 @10 a.m. in Lantana (Snacks will be provided)

Contact your property managers for the complete schedule of days and locations

RESIDENT COUNCIL MEETINGSRESIDENT COUNCIL MEETINGSRESIDENT COUNCIL MEETINGS

SERVING FAMILIES SINCE 1949