Del Rio council honors victims, officer Toro, young volunteers
Council began with silence for Uvalde and Joseph Toro, then set Elsa Reyes’ first office hours at 100 W. Ogden St. and honored young volunteers across Del Rio.
The most immediate change for Del Rio residents from Tuesday’s City Council meeting was a new way to reach Councilwoman Elsa Reyes. She said she will hold office hours starting Wednesday, June 3, from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at 100 W. Ogden St., a location tied to the city’s transportation depot and easy for riders already using the fixed-route system at 101 W. Ogden St. That service runs Monday through Friday from 6 a.m. to 5:45 p.m. and serves 26 stops across the city, which makes the depot a practical place for constituent contact as well as transit service.
The council opened the meeting with moments of silence for the victims of the Robb Elementary School shooting in Uvalde and for former Del Rio Police Department Senior Officer Joseph Toro. The Uvalde attack on May 24, 2022, killed 19 children and two teachers and remains the deadliest shooting at a Texas public school. Mayor Al Arreola also raised the idea of a citywide Memorial Day celebration, possibly at the veterans’ memorial at the Del Rio Civic Center, 1915 Veterans Blvd., giving the city a possible next step for public remembrance.
After the solemn opening, the council recognized a long list of young volunteers and student participants tied to Keep Del Rio Beautiful efforts in April and May 2026. Those efforts included Earth Day activities, a Coca-Cola/Southwest Beverages sustainability cleanup and the H-E-B Our Texas/Our Future Grant Program. Honorees included Evelyn Dominguez, Bella Dominguez, Natalia Limon, Marie Nope, Victoria Gonzalez and Nathaniel Diaz, along with members of the Miss Val Verde court, the Miss Del Rio court, students from Buena Vista Elementary and Ceniza Hills Elementary, the Heritage Academy student council, the Brown Plaza Association and the Miss Fourth of July court. Severe weather kept some honorees from attending in person, but the city still used the meeting to put civic service in the spotlight.
The meeting also reflected a changing council. All seven members were present, and the council welcomed Leno Hernandez Jr. as the newest member while saying goodbye to District 2 Councilman Jim DeReus. The city’s council roster lists Reyes and LeRoy Briones as elected May 2, 2026, and shows Arreola’s mayoral term expiring in 2026. Del Rio is now headed toward a June 13 mayoral runoff between Arreola and Efrain V. Valdez, a race residents will be watching alongside the city’s next decisions on remembrance, access and public events.
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