Meet Our Leadership
Paul J. Puente, Executive Secretary
Houston Gulf Coast Building & Construction Trades Council
Paul J. Puente is the Executive Secretary and Delegate of the Houston Gulf Coast Building and Construction Trades Council representing the various construction local unions and (20) twenty counties.
Paul was elected to a four-year term of office in January 2013 by the affiliated local construction unions and delegates. The council is made up of twenty-four construction unions, fifteen different crafts, and thirteen apprenticeship programs all having Joint Apprenticeship Training Committees (JATC).
He began his career in the electrical industry in 1990 working in the chemical refinery plants along the Gulf Coast. He earned a Degree in Electrical Technology from San Jacinto Jr. College.
Paul prides himself as a family man with his beautiful wife Janie and father of six children (3 girls & 3 boys).
Paul became familiar with the skilled trades midway through his career and is currently registered with the State of Texas as a Journeyman Wireman Electrician and a member of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local Union 716 and an Organizer and Assistant Business Manager.
Paul is also a Delegate for the Harris County AFL-CIO Central Labor Council, member of the Houston Business Roundtable, Delegate for the Houston Construction Industry Council, member of the A. Philip Randolph Institute, member of the E.W.M.C. (Electrical Workers Minority Caucus), a member of the L.C.L.A.A. (Labor Council for Latin American Advancement), President of the West Gulf Ports Council affiliated with the Maritime Trades Department and Labor Liaison for Congressman Al Green, Board of Director for Gulf Coast Trades Center and Raven School in New Waverly TX, Executive Director for The Building Trades Multi-Core Curriculum (MC3), Pasadena ISD Parent Advisory Council, Port Of Houston Small Business Advisory Board Member., Trustee for the Tideland Central Labor Council, Greater Houston Partnership, Pasadena ISD District Education Committee, San Jacinto Community College Bond Committee, Co-Chair to Mayor Turner’s Executive transition team, Board of Director member for Houston First, a member of LULAC 4967, Hispanic Advisory Board and American Leadership Forum Fellow Houston Gulf Coast Chapter Class 40., Apprenticeship and Training Advisory Committee.
Dale Ray Sanford, ARP/ MC3 Coordinator/Trainer
Gulf Coast Built-Rite Partnership, Inc.
Dale Sanford is the Apprenticeship Readiness Program / Multi- Craft Core Curriculum (ARP/MC3) Training Coordinator at Gulf Coast Built-Rite Partnership, Inc., where he started his coordinator/training career in May 2018. Dale entered the Insulators Local 22 apprenticeship program in 1977 and turned out as a Journeyman in 1981. Since then he has held several positions from Journeymen to Insulator Foreman, General Foreman over all crafts, Superintendent, and Manager. In 2015 Dale became an Executive Board member of Insulators & Allied Workers Local #22 where he currently holds the position of President.
Veronica Chapa Gorczynski
Veronica Chapa Gorczynski is the President of the East End District, a geographic area serving approximately 16 square miles east of downtown Houston. The District’s services include public safety programs, an award-winning graffiti abatement program, maintenance of major thoroughfares, and disposal of illegally dumped trash. The District’s grant-funded capital program focuses on connecting neighborhoods and business to transit and resulted in $31 million in improvements through 2017, with an additional $45 million in new investments pending during her tenure.
A native of the Rio Grande Valley, educational and job opportunities have taken Veronica to live in San Antonio, New Orleans, Washington, DC, Austin, and now Houston. She is formerly the Executive Director of Early Matters, a historic coalition of business, civic, education, philanthropic, and nonprofit organizations, working together through a collective impact approach to raise awareness about the importance of high-quality early childhood education as an investment in the Greater Houston community. She has worked in government, nonprofit organizations, and education efforts—always focusing on ways to help the community gain resources and investment. In 2010, she was recruited by Mayor Annise Parker to join the administration as a Deputy Director of the Housing & Community Development Department to assist in an organizational turnaround
and deploy almost half a billion dollars of federal investment throughout Houston.
A respected community development professional in Houston for almost a decade, Veronica is a senior fellow with the American Leadership Forum, a former Board Member of the Latin Women’s Initiative, a member of Leadership Houston Class 30, and a former Commissioner of the Houston Housing Authority. She is currently a board member of Transportation Advisory Group – Houston Region, a board member of the UH Friends of Women’s, Gender & Sexuality Studies, and a Board Member of Memorial Park Conservancy. In 2019, Veronica was honored by Houston Woman Magazine as one of Houston’s Top 50 influential women. In January of 2020, she was invited to join as a Board Member of the prestigious Texas Lyceum. In 2021, she was elected Chair of the Houston Galveston Area Council, Transportation Improvement Plan Subcommittee to oversee the development of a process to distribute approximately a billion dollars in transportation funds throughout the region.
She pursued her undergraduate education at Saint Mary’s University and University of Texas at San Antonio and obtained both a Master of Science in Community and Regional Planning and a Master of Liberal Arts in Latin American Studies from the University of Texas at Austin. A breast cancer survivor, Veronica is passionate about politics, good wine, and Texas barbeque. When not working, she enjoys volunteering on projects aimed at improving community engagement and spending time with her husband John and young son, Diego.
Our Impact
Changing Lives, One Trade at a Time
Our work is a testament to the transformative power of trade. We have seen firsthand how trades can provide a stable income and a fulfilling career, changing the lives of our community members for the better. We are committed to continuing this work and creating more success stories in the state of Texas.
Join Us
Be a Part of the Change
Are you ready to change your life through trades? Join us at Texas Trades. We are here to provide you with the opportunities and support you need to succeed. Together, we can make a difference.