Former Dallas Mayor Pro Tem John Loza, right, with former City Councilman Ed Oakley and former Mayor Laura Miller at the 2003 Pride rally in Lee Park.

Dallas Mayor Pro Tem Dwaine Caraway has ordered flags at Dallas City Hall flown at half staff to honor former City Councilman and Mayor Pro Tem John Loza, 54, who died yesterday at his home.

Loza was elected as an openly gay man to the Dallas City Council in 1997 when he was 33 years old. He served four consecutive terms on the council, a total of eight years, until he had to step down due to term limits in 2005. Although he started his political career as a Republican, Loza announced in 2000 he was changing parties because of the GOP’s stance on LGBT, ethnic minority and immigration issues.

According to his biography on the website of his law firm, Escamilla & Poneck LLP, as a member of the Dallas City Council, Loza was named chair of “both the Public Safety and Housing committees, and was elected by his colleagues to serve as deputy mayor pro tem in 2001, and as mayor pro tem in 2003. He also served on the national board of directors of the Hispanic Elected Local Officials of the National League of Cities, and was a member of the National Association of Latino Elected Officials.”

After leaving the council, Loza served for two years on the Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport Board of Directors as a representative of the city of Dallas and as a member of the 2011 city of Dallas Redistricting Committee. He volunteered with numerous local organizations.

He is survived by his husband David Hill.

Dallas Voice will update this post as more information becomes available.

— Tammye Nash