Kleberg Bank CEO Gabe Guerra and First Community Bank CEO Wes Hoskins were sworn in Thursday, January 6, as members of the Port of Corpus Christi Commission.
Guerra was appointed to the Port of Corpus Christi Commission by the City of Corpus Christi City Council and commences his first term as Port Commissioner. Hoskins commences his third term on the Commission as a San Patricio County appointee. Nueces County Judge Barbara Canales administered the oath of office to both Guerra and Hoskins at the Congressman Solomon P. Ortiz International Center. Guerra succeeds Richard R. Valls Jr., on the Port Commission.
The Port of Corpus Christi Commission governs the Port of Corpus Christi Authority, an independent political subdivision of the State of Texas, and is comprised of seven commissioners who serve without pay. Each commission term is a three-year appointment, and a commissioner may serve no more than four full terms. Three commissioners are appointed by the Corpus Christi City Council; three commissioners are appointed by the Nueces County Commissioners Court; and one is appointed by the San Patricio County Commissioners Court. The Port of Corpus Christi is the nation’s largest export gateway for U.S. produced energy such as liquified natural gas (LNG) and crude.
Guerra has nearly three decades of business and management experience. He currently is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Kleberg Bank, where he has worked since 2007. Prior to his appointment to the Port of Corpus Christi Commission, Guerra served on many community boards, including as Chairman of the Corpus Christi Regional Economic Development Corporation (CCREDC). Additionally, Guerra has served as Chairman of the Corpus Christi Chamber of Commerce, Chairman of the Del Mar College Foundation Board of Trustees, Chairman of the United Way of the Coastal Bend and member of the Board of Directors of the Christus Spohn Health System.
Commissioner Hoskins’ civic and professional experience includes serving admirably on such boards as the San Patricio County Economic Development Corporation, the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas, the American Bankers Association PAC Committee Chair, the Texas Bankers Association Chairman, the American Cancer Society of South Texas, the American Heart Association of South Texas, the South Texas Children’s Heart Institute and the Driscoll Foundation.
“We enthusiastically welcome Gabe to the Port of Corpus Christi Commission. His vast community leadership and business experience in the South Texas Coastal Bend is well known, and his business acumen and past board memberships will undoubtedly serve him well as a Port of Corpus Christi Commissioner. We also wish to heartily welcome back Commissioner Wes Hoskins to his third term as a San Patricio County appointee and look forward to his continued leadership and support,” said Sean Strawbridge, Chief Executive Officer for the Port of Corpus Christi. “As the largest economic development agency in South Texas, the 100-year old Port of Corpus Christi Authority continues to pursue large-scale private industrial investments in the region through the deployment of its own capital in public private partnerships and transportation infrastructure. We look forward to the positive contributions of Wes and Gabe to the Port of Corpus Christi as we usher in a new era of economic prosperity for the region.”
“I am honored and humbled to serve our community as a Port of Corpus Christi Commissioner. The Port is the primary economic engine of our region, impacting the quality of life for all citizens,” said Commissioner Gabe Guerra. “Having been born and raised in Corpus Christi, it’s a tremendous honor to join this exceptional team of leaders working towards a common goal of fostering the economic growth and prosperity of our region.”
“The Port of Corpus Christi not only is a key economic engine for the Coastal Bend region and our customers, but a key supporter for many community organizations and agencies that represent and benefit underserved populations in our area,” said Charles W. Zahn Jr., Chairman of the Port of Corpus Christi Commission. “I look forward to discovering what fresh insights and perspectives Commissioner Guerra brings to the Port of Corpus Christi, and I am eager to continue collaborating with Commissioner Hoskins in his third term. Our future is bright at The Energy Port of the Americas, as we have ambitions to establish the Port of Corpus Christi as the nation’s premier clean energy hub with hydrogen exports, Carbon Capture Use and Storage and renewable energy projects.”
