Courtesy of Seal Beach Lions Club
Ray Longoria will be the 2024 Christmas Parade grand marshal.
Longoria has been a Seal Beach resident for 42 years. He caught the community service bug 35 years ago when Jim Klisanin invited hi m to join the Seal Beach Lions Club. He has been an active community servant ever since.
The core of his community service has been through his work with the Lions Club but he has had roles with other organizations as well. For the past seven years he has served as a board Member for Friends of the Library and is currently the vice president. He has supported LOTE over the years in a support capacity and was instrumental in raising funds after the horrible Salon Meritage tragedy. Many years back, he assisted with Pier restoration and most recently donated historical items to the Seal Beach Historical Resource Foundation.
For the past years, Longoria has led a team of Lions and community members who clean up graffiti in and around Seal Beach. In the first year, more than 1,200 graffiti tags were removed or covered up with Longoria leading the way. This initial effort and subsequent years “control” of graffiti has kept Seal Beach mostly free of this blight. Longoria has deputized others to handle parts of the city but he personally takes care of “Old Town” where most graffiti is found. The Police Department, Public Works, the Chamber of Commerce, Orange County Transit Authority, Republic Services and many residents know to “just call Ray” whenever graffiti is found. His commitment is “same day removal”. Annually, he leads a larger team that cleans up the riverbed, San Gabriel River Bike Path, and areas in North Seal Beach in gullies where taggers like to hang out. In November 2024, Ray led a team of volunteers who painted over graffiti on the riverbed near College Park East.
Longoria is an active volunteer for California Lions Friends in Sight where he helps screen adults and children with vision problems. This work takes him all over Southern California and Mexico. He is a founding member of the Lions KIDSSIGHT program in Long Beach. This group of Lions conduct screenings for very young children at various schools each September and January
For many years, Longoria has been a big supporter of The Youth Center in Los Alamitos. He keeps our Lions Club supporting this important youth organization both financially and through volunteer efforts. He has become the ‘go to guy’ to support their fundraising events by running the bar and bringing lots of friends to the events.
Longoria has served as Lions president twice and chaired or co-chaired most large Lions projects over his 35 years. None have been more important than his leadership of the club’s opportunity drawing every July. When COVID hit and some suggested that the club should “take a year off” from fundraising, Longoria said no and took on the car drawing. Despite the naysayers and tough times, he was able to pull off a COVID Car Drawing that raised more than $50,000. He has led this important fundraiser for the past five years.
Longoria’s passion for community service has earned him many honors including: Lions International Life membership, Eleven Melvin Jones Fellowship Progressive Diamonds, Youth Exchange Life Membership, City of Hope Lion of Innovation Award, and he earned a US Presidential Lifetime Achievement Medal for Volunteer Service.
Longoria loves to help the less fortunate and improve his community. His resume of service is remarkable and grounded in the community.
Longoria and his wife Marilyn have been married for 37 years and live in Bridgeport. Longoria will be cutting the ribbon to start the 46th annual Seal Beach Christmas Parade on Dec. 6 at 7 p.m.
