Who you gonna call?
The new Tourist Assistance agents are here to help you with issues big or small.
By Richard Scott for RockyPoint.com
Sworn in on Friday to help with the Viva Peñasco Festival, the new Tourist Auxiliaries will be out on their quads, bikes, and on foot to assist tourists. With what? This bilingual force may be the first ones around when your truck is stuck in the sand, or you need to know how to get help when you are sick. They may even stop to let you know that you just rolled through a stop sign, saving you from talking to a police officer next time.
“They are here to protect, and to be a guide. They are bilingual, well trained, and know all about available city services after six weeks in class” said Mayor Ernesto “Kiko” Munro. Kiko swore in the Tourist Auxiliaries in a Friday ceremony at the cities Expo Center, where they will have their headquarters.
Mayor Munro took the occasion to introduce a new City of Peñasco application for mobile phones as well. Providing information for tourists, it will include a one touch button for making 911 emergency calls.
In attendance were Donna Whitman, director of the Sister City Program that connects Tucson with Puerto Peñasco, and Luis Molina, the Director of the Tourist Auxiliaries Program. After the speeches and swearing in ceremony, the auxiliaries demonstrated riding skills, and techniques to diffuse potentially aggressive situations.
Also in attendance were members of the Tourist Assistance Advisory Committee. Sonoran Resorts Sales Manager Jim Reinquist is the head of these volunteers. They will work to keep a flow of communication going between the force, and the local community.
Steve Schwab, President of Seaside Reservations, on hand to review the new force, committed to become a part of the advisory group as well. He said that he hopes his expertise in vacation rental properties will offer a helpful perspective for the program.
So, the next time you are in Rocky Point, keep an eye out for those distinctive white shirts, and the white and orange four wheelers. Strike up a conversation and find out more about what they do. The Tourist Assistance Auxiliaries are a great addition to Peñasco’s tourist scene, making the town one of the select few in Mexico who are going the extra distance to make everyone’s vacation a safe experience.