Rio Grande Herald (Rio Grande City, Tex.), Vol. 35, No. 25, Ed. 1 Thursday, April 6, 1978 Page: 1 of 6
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Spring Has Sprung!
It v Tissa
Spring has sprung in Starr County. Despite the
long, dry spell we've experienced in the county,
the look of Spring has come once again. The
bluebonnets are profuse along the roadside and
around the monument in front of the Starr County
Courthouse. Other wildflowers, from buttercups to
Indian pinks, also decorate the landscape. The
orchid trees and bougainvillea have been
blooming wildly for the past several weeks, some
carefully tended, others just naturally beautiful,
despite a lack of care and moisture. The trees in
the area are wearing a new coat of spring green,
and most are abloom. The faithful citrus, which
have borne fruit throughout the winter, are
donning tiny flowers and sending out a delicious
perfume all their own.
Everything seems to be greeting the new
season, some of the prettiest flowers turned out to
be masquerading a bull nettle bush. The grass is
turning green once again, the weeds are finding
their way up and out as though beckoned, and the
stately palms seems to nod approval of it all.
Choruses of sneezes may be heard singing the
anthem of Spring, as pollen fills the air. Marbles,
kites, tops, and baseball gloves have ali been
brought out and dusted off, along with boats and
bathing suits ready for the change of season.
March winds seem to have waited until April, if
the April showers don't wait until, May, our
county will become even more beautiful. It all
reminds us of the particular beauty of this Magic
Rio Grande Valley of which we are a part.
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TEXAS PRESS
ABSOCI ATI ON
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'The Lorgest Paid
Cfrcufatton Going
In Siorr County
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No. 25
April 6.1978
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Starr School Boards Election Results
Rio Grande (
All three Starr County
school districts held elec-
tions Saturday for trustees.
In the Rio Grand City
Consolidated Independent
School District race,
Francisco "Paco" Zarate
defeated Humberto "Beto"
Garcia in the only contested
seat.
Zarifte recned a coial
'IS 1,325 votes over Garcia's 784
votes for the Place Six
position.
Zarate received 39 votes
from the canvassing board;
220 at the Multi-purpose
Center; 346 at Roque Guerra
School; 147 at North
Grammer School; 234 at La
Union School; and 339 at La
Grulla School.
Garcia received 20 votes
from the canvassing board;
98 at the Multi-purpose
Center; 256 at Roque Guerra
School: 108 at North
Grammer -< ick/I; Ob at La
Union School; and 216 at La
Grulla School.
Francis'!' Howard, Place
Two, and Ovidio Pena, Place
Five, ran unopposed.
Howard received a total of
1,434 votes. Pena received a
total of 1,475 votes.
Howard received 37 votes
from the canvassing board;
231 at the Multi-purpose
Center; 404 at Roque Guerra
School; 169 at North
Grammer School; 232 at La
Union School; and 361 at La
Grulla School.
Pena received 43 votes
from the canvassing board;
225 at the Multi-purpose
Center; 423 at Roque Guerra
School; 198 at North
Grammar School; 225 at La
Union School; and 361 at La
Grulla School.
A total of 2,158 votes were
cast in the Rio elections.
Horn a
At the Roma Independent
School District three in-
dividuals ran unopposed for
the three at-large openings
Noe Perez received 399
votes; Cesar Salinas 344
votes; and Homero
Ramirez, 343 votes.
San isidro
Two positions were con-
tested at the San Isidro
Independent School District.
Hilario Alvarado received
355 votes defeating Raul
Villarreal, who received 330
votes, for the Place Two slot.
Silverio Saenz took the
Place Three seat with 357
votes over Matias Olivarez'
321 votes
Rolando Ramirez, in-
cumbent, ran unopposed for
Place one. receiving 505
votes.
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Rio Thinclads Surprise Of Season
GROUNDBREAKING FOR NEW VALLEY MART -
Groundbreaking ceremonies were held Friday af-
ternoon for the soon to be built Town and Country
Shopping Center to be located in the 5100 block of N.
10th Street in McAllen. The center will contain a 2900
square foot Valley Mart II store which will be included
in the phase one of the construction. Also in phase one
will be 6,100 square foot area which will include several
specialty shops, a boutique shoppe and a junior
department store type retailer Phase one is expected
to be completed by Aug. 31,1978 while phase two will be
completed by Jan. 31, 1979. The development is being
constructed by Tocon Development Corporation.
Shown above at the groundbreaking ceremonies are
Pete Diaz, Jr., members of the Diaz family, Tocon
executives, McAllen Chamber of Commerce
representatives and Valley Mart executives. Diaz is
the president of Diaz Enterprises and the principal
figure who organized the development.
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Villegas Dies In Collision
Rolando Villegas, 25, of
Roma, died Sunday in a fiery
head-on collision that
claimed seven lives.
A lone survivor was li.^ted
in critical condition Monday
in the burn unit at Brooke
Army Medical Center in San
Antonio.
Villegas was traveling in a
van with other members of a
Pharr band, Los Traviesos.
A car driven by Esteban
DeLuna Jr., about 25, of
Pettus, collided head-on with
■the van at about 3 a.m.
Sunday on Highway 181.
Both vehicles burst into
flames after impact.
Five other persons riding
in the van died, including
VVally Munoz, the driver, of
Pharr; Becky Montez, 20, of
Beeville; George Villarreal,
26, Weslaco; Alonzo
Herrera, 19, Weslaco; and
Noe Morua, 21 Edinburg.
Another passenger in the
van, Patricio Serna of
Pharr, suffered burns over
more than 90 per cent of his
body and was taken to the
Brooks burn center
Villegas is survived by his
parents, Mr. and Mrs.
Alonzo Villegas of Roma; his
wife, Maricela Cornejo
Villegas; seven brothers,
Jose Alonzo, Luis Fernando,
Homero, Lorenzo, Jaime
Abelardo, Victor Hugo, and
Mario Alberto; and six
sisters, Pura, Silvia V.
Guerra, Anastacia V.
Garcia, Irma I^tina V.
Florez, Norma Maria, and
Linda Patricia.
Funeral services were
held Wednesday at 4 p.m. at
the Lady of Refuge Catholic
Church in Roma followed by
burial at the Roma
Cemetary, under the
direction of Ceballos
Funeral Home of Rio Grande
City.
In keeping with "what's
happening" at Rio High, the
1978 edition of the Rattler
Track Team has been very
impressive this season.
Boasting two of the
valley's top performers in
hurdler Romeo Ayala and
880 run specialist 'Skeeter'
Acevedo, and a host of solid
performers first year track
coach Walter Watson has
District contenders.
"It's been years since we
have competed team strong.
There have been some
outstanding individuals in
the past but not team
strength." stated Watson.
"Our strength lies in our
numbers and the dedication
of our youngsters. Track is a
demanding sport that often
Carrera Elected
Cal Koontz, store manager
of Dillard's Department
Store, Corpus Christi, will
address the Texas A&I
University Marketing Club
Wednesday (April 5).
John Brooks of McAllen,
newly elected president of
the club, said that visitors
would be welcome to the
meeting at 5:30 p.m. in the
Business Administration
Room 227.
Other new officers are
Larry I-adipo of Nigeria,
vice president; Leticia
Zavala of Crystal City,
secretary; Homer Carrera
of Rio Grande City,
treasurer; and Susan Baros
of Westhoff, public relations
officer
takes its toll by reducing the
number of participants. We
have a reverse reaction
here. We get out people
every week instead of losing
them. This is all due to the
dedication of people like
Balde Garza, Johnny
Acevedo, Skeeter, Romeo
David Sanchez. Medardo
Rodriguez, Adrian Gonzalez.
Marcos Guerrero, Juan
Silva, Willie Olivarez, and
Jaime Flores."
These valiant young men
have once again brought
respect to track and field in
Rio Grande City. Not since
the 440 relay team and Ar-
turo Trevino's trip to state in
1957 and 1958 under coaches
J.R. Sanchez and E.C.
I^erina has there been a
group work with the
dedication of these boys.
This week the Rattlers
take on the whole Rio
Grande Valley in the Meet of
Champions at McAllen April
13 finds them travelling to
Raymondville to the 16AAA
district meet.
The line-up and events
include Johnny Acevedo,
sophomore. High jump, 440
relay, long jump, 440 yard
dash, and mile relay;
"Skeeter" Acevedo, junior,
long jump, high jump, 880
run, and mile relay; Romeo
Abrego, sophomore. 880 run;
Romeo Ayala, senior, 120
high hurdles, 330 Int. hur-
dles, and mile relay; Jaime
Flores, junior, 440 yard
dash; Esteban Garcia,
junior, mile run and high
jump; Balde Garza, junior,
shot put, 440 yard relay,
discus, 440 yard dash, and
mile relay; Adrian Gon-
zalez, sophomore, mile run;
Jose Gomez, sophomore,
discus; Marco Guerra,
junior, 880 run; Willie
Olivarez, junior. 440 relay.
330 Int hurdles, and mile
relay; Jorge Rodriguez,
sophomore. 100 and 220;
Medardo Rogriguez. junior,
440 relay, long jump, 100 and
220; Willie Rodriguez,
junior, 100 and shot put;
David Sanchez, senior, shot
put and discus; Juan Silva,
junior, mile run; and Rene
Garza, sophomore, shot put.
Alternates are Ricardo
Guevara, shot and discus;
Pancho Barrera, discus;
Juan E. Saenz, shotput, and
Chris Guerra, 440 relay.
With only two seniors on
the team, Rio looks like a
strong contender in track for
years to come. The
theme of the team for 1978 is
"Keep on Tracking."
Murdered Man's
Truck Returned
A 1976 red and white
Dodge pickup truck
belonging to murder victim
Jose Ozuna of La Casita has
been returned and is in the
custody of the Starr County
Sheriff.
According to Artnur
Dutch" Piper, the truck,
found in Matamoros
Wednesday morning, March
29, was brought to the United
States the following day by
Texas Rangers, himself, and
Romeo Alvarez, chief Starr
County deputy sheriff.
The truck was left with the
McAllen Police Department
for fingerprinting. It was
returned to Rio Grande City
Monday, Piper said, adding
that the investigation is
continuing
Juan Antonio Ramirez, 26,
of La Santa Cruz was
arrested and charged with
the murder of Ozuna last
week He was indicted for
capitol murder by the Starr
County Grand Jury Monday
morning. His bond remained
at $100,000
faster Quarrels
■
Roma Youth liaise
Dystrophy 'Green'
Hoina Junior High Student Clouneil
On Saturday, March 11, a
group of eighty Roma
Junior High Student Council
members were busy
collecting money to benefit
the Muscular Dystrophy
Association. The drive is
known as "Shamrock
Against Dystrophy" and was
celebrated during the Saint
Patrick's Day season.
During the drive, volun-
teers handed out special
green "Shamrocks Against
Muscular Dystrophy" tags
while campaigning for
funds. "This year marks the
first time a drive for
Muscular Dystrophy has
been conducted by the Jr.
High Student Council in
Roma, and it was quite a
success," noted Mr. Ricardo
A. Perez, sponsor of the
council.
A grand total of $1,225 was
raised for the support of the
comprehensive patient
services program and the
worldwide research
program of the Muscular
Dystrophy Association
Rupaco Gonzalez,
president of the council,
would like to thank everyone
involved and the community
for turning shamrocks into
good "green" for Jerry
Lewis' kldr for
carm' Thank's for sharing".
Grulla Weed
Six men and one woman
were arrested last Thursday
evening and Friday morning
at La Grulla
They were all charged
with possession of marijuana
with intent to distribute,
importation of marijuana,
conspiracy to possess with
intent to distribute, and
conspiracy to import the
illegal weed, according to a
Drug Enforcement Agency
spokesman
They had all been indicted
by a Federal grand jury and
a Federal District Court
judge set the bonds Tuesday.
March 28
The individuals are
Ventura Gonzalez Garcia,
27, of Diaz Ordaz,
Tamaulipas, Mexico, $1
million bond. All the other
individuals are from La
Grulla, according to the
D.E.A. spokesman. They
are:
Felix Contreras, 26,
$250,000 bond; Rosendo
Contreras. 34, $100,000 bond:
Alma Contreras, 26, $100,000
bond; Jose Cantu Jr., 19,
$100,000 bond; Federico
Flores Jr . 39, $100,000 bond,
and Eleazar Gil. 40, $100,000
bond
"Other arrests are likely
the D.E.A spokesman said
The Easter holiday
weekend did not end too
happily for some Starr
County reisdents. Eighteen
husband and wife difficulties
were reported to Justice of
the Peace Arturo Clareke
The Justice of the Peace,
after investigation,said nine
arrests were made and the
individuals were charged
with disorderly conduct, He
said they all paid fines.
Clarke said that among
other arrests during the
weekend Donald Eugene
Barrett, 23. and Carol Jean
Yonkers, 25, of Mesilla Park,
New Mexico, were charged
with possession of peyote
Bond was set at $500 each
for the offense and are
pending County Court ruling.
Residence Burglarized
The residence of Efrain
Puran at 311 lee Street of
the Shuford Subdivision was
burglarized last Saturday
According to Duran, the
incident happened between
6:30and9p.m. He said "they
took considerable-dollar
wise."
The Starr County Sheriff's
department in investigating
the incident
according to Clarke.
Also during the weekend,
nine DWI, one littering, one
resisting arrest, six public
intoxication, two assaults, 19
traffic violations two
criminal non support cases
Jarke. ie theft were handled
by his office, Clarke said.
All the charges were filed
by Department of Public
Safety troopers, and
Sheriff's Deputies, ac-
cording to Clarke.
Summarizing the activity-
handled by his office for
March Clarke said he had 67
traffic violations filed, 23 non
traffic violations i disorderly
conduct, public intoxication,
assault by contact, and
others), 30 County Court
cases i DWI. possession of
marijuana less than two
ounzes, possession of pey ote,
and others), five district
court cases i possession of
marijuana over four ounzes,
murder, etc.), and 58
statutory warnings were
administered. A total of
$1,273 in fines were collected
in March, by the Justice of
the Peace of Precinct Four
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Silva, Marcelo. Rio Grande Herald (Rio Grande City, Tex.), Vol. 35, No. 25, Ed. 1 Thursday, April 6, 1978, newspaper, April 6, 1978; Rio Grande City, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth194657/m1/1/: accessed April 25, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Rio Grande City Public Library.