Dn. Mario A. Guerra came from Cuba on one of the first “Viaje De Libertad” (Freedom Flights) at the age of 6 and was raised locally. Dn. Guerra was elected and served as Mayor for the City of Downey in 2006- 2014. Dn. Mario was appointed by Army Secretary Eric Fanning and currently serves as Civilian Aide to the Secretary of the Army, which carriers a 3 Star General Protocol. He was sworn in at the Hall of Heroes at the Pentagon in January 2017. He served as President of Independent Cities Association representing 53 Cities and over 7 million people in the greater Los Angeles area. Dn. Guerra had the distinction of being the only Catholic Clergy to hold elected office in the country for 8 years. He was ordained in 2002 and was one of the youngest Deacons ever ordained at that time. He currently serves as Chaplain of the Downey Police Department and is a member of the International Conference of Police Chaplains. Mario is the author of Embracing Change: An Immigrant Saga. Mario and his wife Ann live in Downey, where they raised their five children and are proud of their three grandchildren.

GOVERNMENT SERVICE:
Civilian Aide to the Secretary of the Army - 3 Star General for Protocol; Elected Mayor of City of Downey 2009-2014; Downey City Council 2006-2014; President of Independent Cities Association 2010-2014; Elected Treasurer of California Republican Party; California State Senate candidate nominee; Founding Chairman Grow Elect; Government Affairs Chairman Contract Cities Association; Founding Chairman Healthy Downey Coalition.

MEMBERSHIPS AND OTHER AFFILIATIONS:
He serves on the U.S. Army Community Advisory Board for the past 8 years. Dn. Guerra also serves on several executive boards including the Josephson Institute of Ethics, Financial Partners Credit Union, St. Piux X Matthias Academy, St. John Bosco High School, and the Living Tree Foundation serving Veterans. Dn. Guerra also served as President of Independent Cities Association and Executive Board member of Contract Cities Association.

He and his wife Ann are co-founders of Angel Tree for Downey and also founded the Diakonia Foundation which gives scholarships to local High School students for community service and outreach to others.

He was President and Co-founder of one of the Top 100 largest insurance brokers in the country and is currently an executive with Arthur J. Gallagher Insurance, the 3rd largest in the world. He is a published author, has been a guest or keynote speaker at USC, UCLA, LMU, Azuza Pacific University, and has received several Professional and Humanitarian awards.

AWARDS:
First recipient of the Romualdo Pacheco Award and Pioneering accomplishments as a Latino Leader in California ● Non-Partisan Elected Official of the Year, Los Angeles County ● First recipient of Making a Difference in Public Service Award, St. Piux-Matthias Academy ● People Helping People Award, Touching Lives Organization ● Humanitarian Award, Sister Cities Association ● Public Official of the Year, IAAO ● Top 10 Largest Insurance Brokers in California, Los Angeles Business Journal ● Top 100 Brokers in United States, Insurance Journal / Champion Of Hope Award, National Community Renaissance