New city outreach coordinator begins job in Santa Maria

Tuesday was the first day on the job for Eddie Galarza. The Santa Maria native has been hired by the City for the newly-created position of Outreach Coordinator.

“I’m so excited,” Galarza said. “This an exciting job and I’m ready to make a difference in our community.”

The position, f {“html”:”n&#lt;iframe width=” 480″ height=”270″ src=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/eZr6LFny8W0?feature=oembed” frameborder=”0″ allowfullscreen=”allowfullscreen”&#gt;&#lt;/iframe&#gt;n”,”author_url”:”https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxmQQLsT8WFw1MKMG9c1_Tw”,”url”:”https://youtu.be/eZr6LFny8W0″,”thumbnail_width”:480,”provider_name”:”YouTube”,”thumbnail_height”:360,”type”:”video”,”version”:”1.0″,”title”:”New city outreach coordinator begins job in Santa Maria”,”author_name”:”Dave Alley”,”provider_url”:”https://www.youtube.com/”,”height”:270,”width”:480,”thumbnail_url”:”https://i.ytimg.com/vi/eZr6LFny8W0/hqdefault.jpg”} ormally approved by City Council in June, has been created to help reduce youth violence in the community.

“I think this position is really important to help the City of Santa Maria a safer place,” said Galarza. “There’s more violence, there’s more drugs. I love this community, this is my community. I want the people to feel safe.”

Galarza brings a wealth of experience to the job. He worked for more than 20 years at the Boys and Girls Club of Santa Maria as Director of Character and Leadership. During his tenure, he created a number of successful programs that benefited the lives of countless youth.

He also worked with Fighting Back Santa Maria and holds a certificate from the Strengthening Families Foundation as a Family Coach Trainer.

“I love our youth,” said Galarza. “I love the City of Santa Maria. “I’ve worked with our community for many years. I have built that trust, not only with the parents, but with our youth.”

Galarza will initially work out of the Recreation and Parks Department. He will also work with a number of different agencies within the city. According to the City, Galarza will build community outreach and engagement efforts by collaborating with agency partners.

“We just have a lot of faith in him,” said Teresa Reyburn, Santa Maria Recreation Services Manager. “He’s going to have lots of support from community groups, City Council, the City Manager’s office, the Police Department.”

Just a couple of hours into his new role, Galarza emphasized that despite a lot of work ahead, the future is bright for Santa Maria.

“There is hope” said Galarza. “There is a lot of hope and that’s what my job and I believe I am going to make a difference.”