The Mercedes Enterprise (Mercedes, Tex.), Vol. 86, No. 47, Ed. 1 Wednesday, November 25, 1998 Page: 3 of 40
This newspaper is part of the collection entitled: Mercedes Area Newspapers and was provided to The Portal to Texas History by the Dr. Hector P. Garcia Memorial Library.
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Mercedes, Texas 78570 Wednesday, November 25, 1998
The Mercedes Enterprise -- Page 3
TA
MEMBER
1998
TEXAS PRESS
ASSOCIATION
= The Mercedes Enterprise
(USPS 177-100)
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MERCEDES, TX. 78570
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Dear Mercedes...
Letters from F.S. Lentz, Jr.
Second class postage paid at
Mercedes, Texas 78570. Pub-
lished each Wednesday at
Mercedes, Hidalgo County,
Texas, Office of publication,
230 S. Texas Ave. Subscrip-
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GOD’S FIVE MINUTES
THERE IS A TIME FOR EVERYTHING' Ecclesiastes 3:1. The Living Bible, Tyndale House
Gratitude Knows No Season
7 1 MEY " ora
U Hank Unit Ant
" I THANK THEE,
AND PRAISE THEE ^
__24/. 2:23
Dear Mercedes, rickety, but functional. Each hooch rectangular metal box, which it turned
— Going — had two or three five gallon cans of out to be, with ventilating fans running
Rice walked to the hooch a half good water. Ours had those and a single twenty four hours a day. It smelled
mile downhill. It had a canvas tent top long, round minor for shaving. differently fromthehead, but not much,
and sides that were half nylon mesh The head was a little shack that I took all this in waiting for the rest
and half ply wood. Like everything else looked like a chicken coop and fea- of the guys to get back. Around five
there, it sat eighteen inches off the tured a stench that was overpowering, thirty, people started drifting in to the
ground. Inside the screen door was It was an outhouse with holes for six, area, then into the hooch. One by one
open space with a table and chairs in screened at the top to let the foulness I met them. Bush Hog, (Phil Single-
the center. At the back were two steel, escape. That design feature didn’t ton). Weasel, (Dale Anderson) Mag-
mattressed beds, one with mosquito work. It was little different than Boy got (another Lt. Rice, Joe [and not
netting around it, the other without. At Scout camp facilities, except that scout related]) and last, Pat Rice, the one 1
the front were two cots, plain old army camps used considerable lime to knock knew. Pat was “Fat Maggot” and Joe
cots, no different than the ones I had down the smell. The house was not was just “Maggot”.
slept on at the beach as a kid camping situated over pits, rather six twenty From a previous friendship I now
out. The cots had coffin-shaped, tubu- two and a half gallon drums. With had three hooch mates. I was edgy be-
lar, black air mattresses on them: the handles. It had a thriving colony of cause these guys were veterans and I was
well-known “rubber lady.” flies living in it whose whereabouts the new guy. New to the squadron, new
There was one light bulb hanging were known and because of that, to the country, new to everything. And
dead center in the hooch, over the avoided. I would be told later that to damn near beaten dumb by fatigue. I had
table. Rice pointed to the empty cot utilize the head at night without check- worried, like I figured almost every new
and uncovered lady. “She’s all yours, ing it out with a flashlight was risky. guy ^d, about how I would do in com-
Welcome to the Maggots. Use a pon- Large aggressive rats haunted the bat. I had no idea when it would start, and
cho liner for a sheet until you can get honey buckets and, as the story went, barely knew I was into the magnifying
to Udorn and buy some.” at least one occupant had been at- effect of fatigue on normal worry.
I looked around outside after Rice tacked in a most vulnerable area. But I also knew I had to get along
headed back uphill to the squadron To the left of the head were the well with everybody if at all possible,
area. On the left was a piece of expedi- showers that ran only for an hour a Especially the hooch mates. Pat and I
tionary runway matting that served as night, when and if the pump motor were Lieutenants and the other three
a dry place for water storage. All the would start. Between the head and the were Captains. I had heard war stories
drinkable water was humped from a showers was a very large rubber tank that told how “in country,” rank wasn’t
buffalo (a large, wheel driven olive about five feet high that resembled an abig deal. It wasn’t, as I was told when
green tank) that was permanently above ground swimming pool. This asked what to call people. Call sign
parked across the dirt road at the other was full of river water and one could was what you called someone by. And
end of the company street. take a “horse bath” from it. That night I told quietly that in the press of stuff in
The company street was the area took my firstone. I also discovered that the air, that was what you used. The
between the two rows of hooches that you had to get away from it ASAP to more familiar with them, the better,
faced each other in straight lines. It keep a passing truck from coating you I was put gently at ease and told
was about a fifty yard walk to the with red dust. that we didn’t salute either, only the
buffalo, with a spur that went to the At the other end of the company Skipper and the Group C.O. would
head. Pallets and pieces of matting had street was the volleyball court. It was expect that. I was not told about my
been laid down in a cockeyed and more than a ragged net hanging from coming baptism into hooch life, and
crooked manner that ran the length of two phone poles on either side and a certainly wasn’t expecting it. Although
thecompany street. The purpose of the quarter inch cable at the top. Up the I should have, brain dead or not...
walk was to keep the feet out of the hill halfway to the squadron areas was ^Que te vaya bien, eh?
mud during monsoons. It was ugly and the mess hall. It looked like a big Fleet
% AAAM
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KENNEDY'S STANDOUTS IN OCTOBER —
Students at Kennedy Elementary School shown
here were recognized as "Students of the Month”
for October. First graders, pictured above, include,
in front from left, Todd Jones, Angela Acevedo,
Eduardo Bravo, Osiel Reyes, Roman Eric Garza
and Adela Alvarado. In second row, in same order,
are Grecia Gomez, Kathy Garza, Robert Ruiz,
Selena Fuentes, Andres Rosales and Diandra
Maldonado. Third row shows Elizabeth N. Salazar,
Roland L. Ovalle, Daphny Espinoza, Jose Luis
Chagoya, Denise Ramon, Aaron Cancino and
Justin Galvan. In back are Angelica Trujillo, Angel
Escobar, Lydia de Leon, Charles Garza, Alma
Pedraza and Hermerejildo Hernandez. Not pictured
are Pedro Oyoque and Stephanie Servin. Second
graders, below, include, in front, Joshua Cruz,
Alejandra Hernandez, Sergio Maldonado, Gladys
Rodriguez, Aaron Garcia, Anthony Cantu and
Lizette Longoria. In second row are Jacinto
Trevino, Rebecca Villarreal, Pedro Macias, Elisa
Alvarado, Pedro Gonzalez, Enafael Tanguma
Hilary Pena and Justin Milburn. Third row shows
Morgan Jones, Evana Trevino, Olivia Peynado,
Vanessa Santiago, Priseia Gonzalez, Andrea
Ramirez, Hugo Limon, Daniel Izaguirre and
Catherine Zamora. In back are Leidi Villanueva,
Jason Cantu, Alberto Ramirez, Cynthia Lerma,
Jennifer Benavidez, Michael de los Santos, Tiannie
Gutierrez, Noe Barcenas and Selena Salinas.
(Enterprise Photos.)
RUDY GARZA
FUNERAL HOMES
1702 E. Harrison
Haringen 78550
(?10) 425-8200
217 S. Main St.
La Feria 78559
(210) 797-3122
236 S. Ohio Ave.
Mercedes 78570
(210) 565-1175
Blessed are those who. mourn, for they shall be
comforted" - St. Matthew 5:4
IMELDA'S
BEAUTY SALON .. .
242 S. Texas #5 -/
(Inside Super Drug Plaza) ‘
Mercedes, TX 7857042:
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Open 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Mon - Sat
See us for towing, auto repairs
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and Auto Service
2190 W. Business 83
565-3711
Law offices of
Contreras-Pacheco
524 W. 2nd Street
(210) 565-5915 Mercedes, Texas
Licensed by the Texas Supreme Court
Not certified by Texas Board of Legal Specialization
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The Mercedes Enterprise (Mercedes, Tex.), Vol. 86, No. 47, Ed. 1 Wednesday, November 25, 1998, newspaper, November 25, 1998; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1632236/m1/3/?q=mission+rosario: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Dr. Hector P. Garcia Memorial Library.