LEGENDS GALA & HONOREES

Welcome to the 2025 Legends Gala!

Join us for an unforgettable evening on Friday, November 7, at the Embassy Suites by Hilton at Brooks, as we celebrate the 18th Annual SoTX Legends Gala. This signature event honors remarkable individuals whose leadership, vision, and service have made a lasting impact on San Antonio and South Texas.

We are proud to recognize our 2025 Legends Honorees:

Jesse Borrego
David Monroe Posthumously
Suzanne Scott
San Antonio Charro Association

Don’t miss this inspiring evening of celebration and community. Registration is now open for table reservations, sponsorships, and program advertising opportunities—a perfect way to highlight your business while supporting this meaningful event.

Reserve your table today and join us in honoring the leaders and legends who continue to make a lasting difference across San Antonio and South Texas.

Here: Register for the Legends Gala

2025 LEGEND HONOREES

Jesse Borrego

Jesse Borrego is a veteran of stage, screen, and television. Joining the cast of the Hit TV Series FAME in 1984 with Debbie Allen and Janet Jackson, he went on to star in several memorable films including NY Stories Directed by Martin Scorscese, Con Air with John Malkovich and Nicholas Cage, I Like It Like That with Lauren Velez and Lisa Vidal, Colombiana with Zoe Saldana, Lone Star with Chris Cooper and Elizabeth Pena , and TECUMSEH: THE LAST WARRIOR for TNT.

In 1994 he starred in the Hollywood Pictures classic BLOOD IN BLOOD OUT (recently nominated for Registry in the National Library of Congress) starring Benjamin Bratt, a collaboration that would last through two more films at Sundance Film Festival, FOLLOW ME HOME starring Alfre Woodard and LA MISSION both directed by Peter Bratt. Over 100 episodes of television including 24, DEXTER, VIDA, and FEAR THE WALKING DEAD.

Currently he can be seen in the comedy PHOENIX OREGON starring James LeGros, Diedrich Bader and Lisa Edelstein, and the release of FOLLOW ME HOME The Directors Cut. .

In 2019 he was back on stage with the FAME cast in FAME REUNION UK in Liverpool with a planned release of the Musical Performances later this year. In 2021 he became a Member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and a voting member on the Oscars.

As a member of the Advisory Council of Radio, TV, Film at San Antonio College he has helped initiate a Certification in Film Production at SAC. He continues to support the local Arts and Culture of San Antonio performing with local theatres and cultural centers. He currently also serves as the Chair of the Board of the SA Philharmonic and also serves on the board of the American Indians of Texas. His nonprofit Cine-Studios SA is a culmination of Creative and Professional experience focused on the sharing of stories and knowledge for the greater Cultural Community.

David Monroe Posthumously

David Monroe was the Founding Chair and CEO of SAMSAT, the San Antonio Museum of Science and Technology.

David was born with a love for science, engineering and technology. He related stories to friends, passed on from his Mom, about how she relied on him to fix things around the house from a very young age. The book The Boy Electrician was among his most valued possessions in his collection. His Mom took the picture below, which we believe was a science fair project of a young David Monroe in his tweens.

He spent one year in the computer science program at the University of Kansas. As David told the story, the Chair of the Math Department (there were no CS departments then) denied David’s request to enter the computer science program as a freshman. Later that year, the same professor thought a student in a meeting looked familiar. That student had built an electronic data capture and graphing tool that enabled a $2 million National Science Foundation grant. David reminded the professor– “I’m the student you turned down.” That evening, David had dinner with Dr. Schweppe and his wife. About three years ago, on Dr. Schweppe’s passing, he left his lifelong computer science library to David and SAMSAT

That summer, through Dr. Schweppe’s recommendation, David arrived in San Antonio for an internship interview at Computer Terminal Corporation, soon to be known as Datapoint Corporation. He arrived by plane, having earned his pilot’s license before his driver’s license. David would become a very young Vice President in Datapoint’s engineering team, influencing the instruction set of the microprocessor that Intel would eventually turn into the 8080, 80×86, Pentium, and i3/5/7/9 processors. Datapoint grew to 13,000 employees as David contributed to innovations including local area networks, laser printing, and early wireless communications (his wireless network connected the Datapoint buildings).

It was in this time frame that David began his museum collection. He spent well over forty years collecting museum quality artifacts.  Among his collection have been an Enigma machine, Edison Menlo Park light bulbs, early Edison dynamos and electrical components, a GE lighting collection, an 1851 telegraph machine, an Edison phonograph machine, a deep collection of early telephones and telephony equipment, and so much more. He also accumulated what we believe to be one of the deepest computer history libraries in the world.

After Datapoint, David became a serial entrepreneur. He was a co-founder of Image Data Corporation, the founder of Phototelesis, and the founder of e-Watch Corporation. David’s 53 patents were earned during this period of his life. At Image Data, he helped create the first image transmission product over phone lines, contributing to the first hospital-to-home teleradiology product. At Phototelesis, he patented the first use of a camera in a cell phone. You can see this phone in SAMSAT AREA 21®.

During this period, he also served on the Board of St. PJ’s Children’s Home, supported a children’s museum in Houston, and served on the Board of SASTEMIC, a San Antonio STEM non-profit. These experiences led to his final chapter, as the founder of SAMSAT, the San Antonio Museum of Science and Technology. Building on his collection, and his unbridled ability to build technology and programs that inspire people, David stood up the SAMSAT History Center at Port San Antonio, and then in 2022, SAMSAT AREA 21® at the Boeing Center at Tech Port.  Through the end of his life, he relentlessly pursued his vision of what a science and technology museum should be. Thanks to David, San Antonio has such a museum that will inspire students, families, and the general public for generations to come.

Suzanne Scott

Suzanne Scott has dedicated her professional career to protecting and improving natural resources for people and the environment. She rallied local and federal funding for major expansion and restoration to the San Antonio River. She led state efforts to plan for future water supply and protect the health of bays and estuaries. She promoted the value of nature to address the impacts of a changing climate and to protect people from the impacts of floods. She continues to raise awareness of watershed health and the importance of habitat and species protection.

Suzanne currently serves as the State Director for the Nature Conservancy in Texas. She works to protect wide-open spaces, wildlife habitat, a strong farming and ranching culture, thriving cities and healthy rivers, aquifers, and coasts. As State Director, she establishes conservation strategies and public policy leadership to protect the state’s cherished landscapes and support ecology, economy, public health, and equity through on-the-ground nature-based projects and science-based conservation.

Prior to joining the Nature Conservancy, she had a 20-year career with the San Antonio River Authority serving as its General Manager for 13 years. At the River Authority, she steadfastly elevated the agency’s crucial role and impact and implemented more than $600 million in highly visible river and creek improvement and restoration projects. She also guided the development of successful programs to improve flood protection, water quality, habitat restoration, and increase access and use of the river and its tributaries for recreation and public enjoyment.

Growing up on the Southside of San Antonio, Suzanne takes immense pride in her work completing the restoration of the Mission Reach of the San Antonio River which included reconnecting the environmental link of the San Antonio River to each of the historic San Antonio Missions along its banks. One of her proudest moments was celebrating the inscription of the San Antonio Missions as a World Heritage Site in 2015 and the recognition by UNESCO of the importance the of the restored San Antonio River in telling the story of Spanish Colonial life at the missions to today’s visitors.

Suzanne chaired the South-Central Texas Regional Water Planning Group and the Guadalupe and San Antonio Rivers Bay and Basin Area Stakeholder Group. She also led the first Interregional Planning Council, created by the Texas Water Development Board. Currently, she serves on the State Flood Planning Group for the San Antonio River Basin and the City of San Antonio Stormwater Management Committee.

Suzanne serves on the Executive Committee for the Brackenridge Park Conservancy. She has served as its treasurer and is the incoming board chair for 2026-2027. member of the Board of Directors of Arboretum San Antonio. She chaired the Arboretum’s master planning committee and the CEO search committee. Suzanne obtained her undergraduate degree from Texas Tech University and a Master of Science in Urban Administration from Trinity University. Suzanne is proud of her South San Antonio roots where she grew up with her mother and brothers and attended Ball Elementary, Connell Middle School and Highlands High School.

San Antonio Charro Association

The San Antonio Charro Association, founded in 1947, is dedicated to preserving the traditions of charrería, Mexico’s national sport. The organization was given asr land near Mission County Park in 1959 and developed it to host charreadas, or Mexican rodeo events. This facility includes stands and other amenities to showcase the sport and promote cultural education.

The association hosts events year-round, with significant participation during Fiesta San Antonio, where it is an official event. In addition to public charreadas during the summer, their venue is also available for private rentals. This dual focus on cultural preservation and community engagement ensures its continued impact on San Antonio’s heritage.

The San Antonio Charro Association also holds state titles among its members. The organization has been finalists in the National State Championships and has earned the honor of competing in the Mexico Nationals, showcasing their dedication and excellence in the sport of charrería