City of South Gate gathers community, introduces brand

By Kevin Camargo

The City of South Gate hosted local schools and organizations at “Family Day in the Park” in South Gate Park on Saturday, as they presented the new city brand.

“A brand is our logo that tells a story. The story is South Gate is that we are a community-based city. We depend heavily on volunteerism,” said South Gate Mayor María Belén Bernal.

Bernal said that residents are the reason why the city does these events because they make up the social fabric of South Gate.

“A lot of times the mass community is not always involved, so now we’re going to start to the get that reaction and how the community reacts to this logo, and we’ll go forward,” said Al Rios, South Gate council member and ELAC’s Dean of Performing Arts and Design for the Division of Continuing Education and Workforce Development.

Prizes were given through raffles, and schools and organizations in attendance had their own booths with activities and information.

Schools included South East High School, South Gate middle School, San Miguel Elementary School, and many more. Some organizations included the Police Department, Walmart and the LA84 Foundation.

“The goal (was) to bring resources to community members about programs at our schools, at our healthcare centers through different nonprofits that are operating here and for the community to get to know who their elected officials are,” Bernal said.

The event also showcased performers and speakers such as California Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon and the mariachi band from South East High School.

Rios said that these events were started about 23 years ago by the police department to bring the police closer to the community; but also brings residents together.

“It’s important that we have a community college (in South Gate) because not all of our students go straight to a university. A lot of them have to stop at the community college, and (South Gate) is a perfect place to have a campus,” Rios said.