Garland police officer Matt Pesta was honored at a recent City Council Meeting for being named a 2021 finalist for Who’s Who in America’s Neighborhoods in the Government category. The award is given by Neighborhoods USA.
When Mayor Scott LeMay presented the award, he explained that Pesta was being recognized for the investment and care that he has demonstrated in Garland’s neighborhoods.
“He’s active in neighborhood meetings, assists with cleanups and also can be found celebrating at block parties,” LeMay said.
The mayor jokingly added that he had even seen Pesta dance.
After serving many years as a neighborhood police officer, Pesta is currently one of the Garland Police Department’s Public Information Officers. He has also taken on the responsibility of the Garland Citizens Police Academy program.
Pesta said that it was truly an honor to receive the award.
“I’m actually at a loss for words for once,” he said. “It’s a great honor to receive this but the men and women of the Garland Police Department and city of Garland work tirelessly every day to provide the utmost service in the community.”
Pesta added that he was humbled by the honor and said that it was for everyone – all of the police officers, paramedics and firefighters that work hard every day.
“We’re honored to work for this city and it’s a great community to work for. So, thank you very much.”
About: Neighborhoods, USA: NUSA is a national, nonprofit organization committed to building and strengthening neighborhood organizations. Created in 1975 to share information and experiences used to build stronger communities, NUSA continues to encourage networking and information-sharing to facilitate the development of partnerships among neighborhood organizations, government, and the private sector for the ultimate goal of strengthening every neighborhood. NUSA’s organizational mission is to build and strengthen neighborhood associations and to promote productive communications and collaborations among those associations with both the public and private sectors.