Services were recently held for Mario E. Gomez, a Houston corporate communications executive and former broadcast journalist. He was 68.
He was vice president of Operations Americas for GoCrisis Management, a global provider of crisis preparedness and response services.
He previously served as senior crisis communications counselor with de la Garza Public Relations, director of public relations with Kenyon International Emergency Services, and director of media relations with United Way of Greater Houston. He was honored by the Public Relations Society of America and the Texas Public Relations Association and received two Presidential Points of Light Awards.
Gomez grew up in Third Ward and attended HSPVA, Yates High School, Prairie View A&M University, and Texas Southern University. During college, he worked at KTSU, KYOK, and KCOH radio stations and completed an internship at KHOU-TV Channel 11. He accepted a job offer from the CBS affiliate in Beaumont and enjoyed a career as a news anchor and reporter.
He had a special interest in aviation that began as a child, and his father, Julio Gomez, worked for Braniff Airlines. In his spare time, he flew small, private planes alongside other pilots and introduced countless young people to aviation. He volunteered with the 1940 Air Terminal Museum.
Survivors include his wife, Stacie; children, Cecily Ellis and Julian-Mario Gomez; mother, Clarice Gomez; brothers, Rossi and Arnoldo Gomez; sister, Theresa Moore, and granddaughters, Arya and Mila. A scholarship fund is being established in his honor.
