%20(1).png)
I want to extend a warm welcome to all from the ASCE Orange County Branch. I am very proud to be President of the Orange County Branch for the 2024-2025 fiscal year. The Orange County Branch is one of the country's premier ASCE branches and has served the county's civil engineering community well for nearly 70 years. My name is Nestor J. Godinez, and I am a Senior Engineer at SLR International Corporation.
The 2024-2025 fiscal year starts with a bang at our Annual History & Heritage/Student Scholarship Night (HHSSN), held at the Tustin Ranch Golf Course on November 7. HHSSN celebrates the legacy of the Orange County ASCE Branch, which includes all ASCE Orange County members, from university students starting their civil engineering journey to Life Members enjoying their retirement. The event was the Installation of Officers for the Board and Technical Institute Chairs. I was highly honored to receive the Branch President's Plaque from our now Past President Roger Chung.
Presentation of the President's Plaque
The history theme for this year's event honored the Mission and Ranchero era of California. A few historical highlights: Orange County was first inhabited by indigenous peoples about 9,500 years ago. In 1776, the Mission San Juan Capistrano was established as the first permanent European settlement in the area. Spain and then Mexico gave large land grants to connected individuals who established Ranchos. Eventually, these Ranchos were subdivided, gifted, or sold, sometimes to develop new cities such as Santa Ana.
HHSSN started with a career fair that featured 21 companies—the night continued with the presentation of 16 scholarships by the Orange County Branch and the Technical Institutes. A total of $19,000 was awarded to very deserving university students from our 3 university chapters of CSU Fullerton, CSU Long Beach, and UC Irvine. This year we presented a new scholarship, the Tom Broz Memorial History and Heritage Scholarship, to pay tribute to Tob Broz, an ASCE Orange County legend and longtime History & Heritage Chair.
Gabreelle Gonzalez - Outstanding Young Government Civil Engineer of the Year Award
Melissa Hilsabeck - Edmund Friedman Young Engineer Award for Professional Achievement
We also had the great pleasure of serving as the presenter of the prestigious ASCE Society Awards that were originally to be presented at the National Convention in Tampa, Florida, which was unfortunately canceled due to Hurricane Milton. We honored Gabreelle Gonzalez with the Outstanding Young Government Civil Engineer of the Year Award. We also honored Melissa Hilsabeck with the Edmund Friedman Young Engineer Award for Professional Achievement.
Finally, our University Outreach Committee presented the university student chapter of the year. This year's winner was California State University Fullerton!
CSU Fullerton - Student Chapter of the Year
About the Author:
Nestor Godinez is a Senior Engineer at SLR International Corporation. He is currently the ASCE OC Branch President. Nestor can be contacted via email at ngodinez@slrconsulting.com.
Comments