To celebrate the opening of the Student Union and the Kinesiology buildings, Los Medanos College prepared a ribbon-cutting ceremony. However, due to COVID-19 precautionary measures, the ceremony was put on hold in 2019. After two years of the COVID-19 lockdown and the return to normalcy for LMC, the event was held Wednesday, April 6 at 11 a.m. as a way to honor the opening the buildings never had.

The thirty-minute event featured heartfelt speeches and a crowd of cheering people who finally had their chance at celebrating since the ceremony was put on hold.

“Although both [buildings] have been in operation for some time, we still want to commemorate the completion of the buildings and celebrate what these state of the art facilities provide for our students, Los Medanos College and our community,” said LMC President Bob Kratochvil in his speech.

Along with District Board Vice President Fernando Sandoval who was in attendance, Interim Chancellor for the Contra Costa County College District Mojdeh Mehdizadeh was also present and gave a speech too. In her speech, she recognized and thanked the people and contractors involved in the creation of these buildings.

Not wanting to shy away from student representation, Kratochvil passed the podium to LMCAS President Luisa Velazquez who shared a few words with the audience.

“These buildings commemorate the stride towards a better and more normal feeling campus, one which seeks student success, achievement, and engagement as its priority,” said Velazquez. “Having safe and welcoming spaces for students becomes important in their college experience.”

She emphasized the importance of having these spaces, and having these spaces can make the student presence more prevalent and pivotal in their educational journey.

When it came time to cut the ribbon in front of the Student Union building, the honor was given to Sandoval and Velazquez. The crowd was then asked to move to the Kinesiology and Athletics Complex, where the ribbon was cut by Kinesiology Department Chair Colleen Ralston and Governing Board President Judy E. Walters, who represents Ward 2.

This event to celebrate the construction of these two buildings was more important now than ever. Velazquez said in her speech how during lockdown, students were glued to their screens and were missing out on that human connection in their college life. 

This event also signified LMC’s efforts to make sure that human connection returns in the lives of its students. In the words of Mehdizadeh, “It’s a great day to be a Mustang.”