Joe Martinez, Ed.D., is a Doctor of Curriculum & Technology, a U.S. Military Veteran, and a native of San Benito.
Congratulations, San Benito! I’ve definitely seen an increase in shopping sprees among local businesses in our community.
I’m beginning to see some of the fruits of your labor in keeping your wealth within our city. If you take a look around, you will also see that sidewalks are being built for the public, which is great!
I’ve also seen some streets repaired, but there is much more to do. Please continue shopping in San Benito, as those tax dollars are important to our local economy and can support much-needed social programs, better education for our students, and city improvements.
I want to emphasize how happy I felt on Friday while driving on the outskirts of Business 77 and seeing a car parked by the side of the road. I saw a woman with what appeared to be a cane, but as I drove closer, I realized she had a grabber stick and was picking up trash with it, placing it in a large black bag.
She already had one bag filled. So, if she is reading this, I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for loving our great little city.
It will become even greater if all citizens come together and love her as much as you do. Thank you again.
I also want to discuss some ideas I have in mind to help our great little city flourish and prosper.
Many cities and towns boast of their scenery and lakes; well, our city has that, too, with our beautiful resacas and running trails that span the city (please clean them).
Other cities also boast local citizens who have become national celebrities and heroes; we have them too, such as Freddy Fender, Bobby Morrow, and yes, a largely forgotten heroine, Dolly Vinsant. I would like to revisit their accomplishments.
One of our more notable citizens was Bobby Morrow, who went down in history as one of the greatest runners in Olympic history. Bobby lived on the outskirts of our city and attended San Benito High.
He played football and track, but was best known for his running, winning three state championships for our town. He later won three gold medals at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia.
Another notable, and largely forgotten, citizen was Dolly Vinsant, born and raised in San Benito. Dolly’s mother was a former nurse, and her father served in WWI.
Following that tradition, after graduating from San Benito High, and attended Brownsville Junior College, now known as Texas Southmost College.
She earned her nursing certification and enlisted as a Lieutenant in 1942, graduating from the first Flight School of the Air Evacuation Nursing Corps at Bowman Field, Kentucky.
She flew many air missions during WWII, transporting the wounded under combat fire for two years. When she completed her commitment to the Nursing Corps, she volunteered for one last mission and was killed in action while flying over Germany on April 14, 1945.
This brings us to one of our most notable citizens among the three for which our city is best known: Freddy Fender. San Benito has a dual identity: it is known not only as Resaca City but also as Freddy Fender Town.
Freddy, born Baldemar Huerta, lived in the El Jardin neighborhood of our city. He grew up in poverty and worked as a farm worker alongside his family. He was surrounded by music and began singing at the age of 10.
Later in life, as an adult, he won three Grammy Awards and numerous other accolades.
Musical hits include Before the Next Teardrop Falls, Wasted Days and Wasted Nights, Secret Love, You’ll Lose a Good Thing, and many others. He also has a star on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame.
I brought these notable citizens to the forefront for their hard work and sacrifice, which have put San Benito on the map.
They worked hard and made many sacrifices, and in future commentaries I would like to discuss how we can memorialize their achievements and increase recognition of their accomplishments.
It will help others understand what San Benito is all about by attracting more tourists and visitors to our city, boosting our local economy, and improving our community’s quality of life.
San Benito has much to brag about, and I am proud to stand with her! Will you also stand by her? I know you will.
So, continue shopping locally, love her, and she will return your love by becoming the best little city in the Valley, thanks to all of you.
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