The Mercedes Enterprise (Mercedes, Tex.), Vol. 86, No. 32, Ed. 1 Wednesday, August 12, 1998 Page: 1 of 14
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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he Merco
terprise
Mercedes, Texas 78570 Wednesday, August 12 1998
Volume 86
Number 32 Price 509
H&H MEETS HIRING ‘CHAL-
LENGE’ — Local, state and
national dignitarties were in
Mercedes Monday for a ceremony ।
to recognize H&H Foods for its
participation in a "Welfare-to- 1
Work” hiring program. In photo at I
right, H&H President and CEO i
Liborio Hinojosa, center, and H&H
Vice President Jaime Hinojosa, ■
right, accept a “Texas Works
Partner” Award from Eric M. Bost, I
left, Commissioner of the Texas
Department of Human Services.
Photo below shows Congressman
Ruben E. Hinojosa, 15th District-
Texas, as he speaks at the event.
Seen behind him from left are
Prepared Foods Plant Manager I
Liborio Hinojosa, Jr., the CEO, |
Commodity Sales Manager Ruben 1
Hinojosa, Jr., Commissioner Bost,
and Sylvia Zamponi, district
director of the Small Business I
Administration. (Enterprise I
Photos.)
XH Food
H&H firm to move 70
from welfare to work
I&H Foods
H&H Foods was recognized Monday said CEO Hinojosa. “H&H Foods is a
for its participation in a Welfare-to-Work family-owned business that has a long
I program that will eventually see some 70 history of helping the community. We
citizens taken off public assistance and put want to give people an opportunity to work
to work at the local plant so they can enjoy the pride that comes with
The firm, a backbone of Mercedes earning a paycheck to support their family,
industry for over 50 years, has already put Also, we want to do what we can to reduce
20 of the new employees to work, with the the double digit unemployment rates in the
additional hirings to follow in coming Valley.”
i months. H&H Foods will be hiring the 70 new
At the event Monday, Texas Depart- employees by the end of the year. The
■ ment of Human Services Commissioner company has already filled 20 of the 70
Eric M. Bost awarded Liborio Hinojosa, jobs and the new employees are now in
■ Chief Executive Officer of H&H Foods, training They will be employed in variety
with a Texas Works Partner award for the of production and service jobs.
I company’s hiring efforts. Theawardwas .. .
I 6 Small Business Administration Dis-
1 firm’s pledge to hire 70 welfare recipients trict Director Sylvia Zamponi spoke at the
A - pressconference, urging other Valleybusi-
■ by the end of the year. -. « .
■ nesses to follow suit Welfare recipients
“H&H Foods is a role model company are a good labor source. They are
for any Texas business that wants to make hardworking and loyal employees,”
apositive difference in their community,” Zamponi said. Zamponi added that com-
said Bostin presenting the award. “Thanks panies may qualify for up to $8,500 in
to their efforts, welfare recipients have a federal tax credits for each welfare recipi-
chance to workand learn job skills that will ent they hire.
start them on the road to independence. DHS and Motivation Education &
We hope other business leaders across the Training Inc. (MET) helped H&H Foods
state will follow their example,” he added, in getting welfare recipients to apply for
H&H Foods is one of the largest His- the jobs. MET and the Hidalgo/Willacy
panic-owned business in the United States. Office of Employment and Training are
The company manufactures and sells pro- helping H&H Foods through the On-the-
cessed meat and prepared food products Job Training program which pays 50 per-
such as steaks, patties, tamales, carne cent of the employees wages during the
guisada, chorizo/sausage, and other prod- first six months of employment. Busi-
ucts to retail stores, schools, and the food nesses interested in hiring welfare recipi-
service industry. H&H Foods has annual ents can contact their local SBA, DHS,
sales of $48 million. MET or JTPA office.
“I am honored to accept this award,” [Continued to Page 2.]
Football tix selling
Local United Way
Campaign seeks -
driveworkers "
If volunteering to help out for a
good cause sounds like something.
, We need of volunteers,
to help out this W local
Project Chairman Debbie Garza.
“They’re needed as soon as pos-
sible, though the general campaign
doesn’t start until October 1."
Anyone with some time and
energy to give to the UW effort
can call the chairman at514-2605.
Over 120 athletes
preparing to play
So you think you’ve been hot?
Shoot.
There are 85 varsity and junior
varsity football players, and another
• 48 freshmen, who think you don’t
know much about sweating at all.
The young athletes are four days in
to summer workouts and they’re work-
ing hard, says Head Tiger Coach
Leonel Casas.
“We’ve got high hopes,” the head
man says. “There’s a good crop of kids
out here and we’re optimistic they can
learn what we teach them.
“And I can tell you that they’re
4 working hard and sweating buckets.”
First look at the payoff of that work
comes on August 21, at the season’s
first scrimmage, on the road against
Pharr-San Juan-Alamo North. JV ac-
tion starts at 5:30 p.m., with varsity
following at 7 p.m.
Coach Casas is building around a
core of just over a dozen returning
lettermen, including five offensive and
two defensive starters.
Monday was the first day of work-
outs in pads, and last week, the ath-
letes had three days of work in shorts.
Two-a-day practices continue through
the end of this week, before the start of
school next week.
YOUNGSTERS GET EARLY START IN
GOLFING—This year’s Junior Golf Program
of the' Mid-Valley Golf Association has been
pronounced a big success by organizers,
reports Association President Leo Serna. The
MHS Tiger season football tickets
have gone on sale to last year’s ticket
holders.
Those folks can buy the tickets for
their seats through Friday, August 21,
at the ticket office at the MHS
Fieldhouse. Office hours are 8:30 a.m.
to 11:30 a.m. and from 12:30 p.m. to 5
I p.m., weekdays.
Those unable to make purchases in
person can send in their request with a
check or moneyorderpayabletoMHS
Athletic Department, 1200 South
Florida, Mercedes.
Remaining reserved seat tickets
will go on sale to the general public on
Monday, August 24.
Price is $20 per ticket, providing
seats at the five home games this sea-
son.
Those games are: September 4
against La Feria; September 11 against
Weslaco (for Parents’ Night); October
2 against Edcouch-Elsa; October 16
against Sharyland; and October 30
against Roma (for Homecoming).
Boosters
get ready
for season
Members of the Mercedes Athletic
Booster Club met Monday, August 10
to discuss routine pre-football sea-
son business, reports President Tony
Echavarria.
The 11 members present were
shown a proof of the new poster to
feature MHS football players, and a
Spirit List for the football program
was started, with Millie Trevino to be
in charge of that project.
It Was announced that T-shirts can
be ordered now from any Booster Club
member.
Advertisements sold for the pro-
gram were turned in to the printer,
Mercedes Printing. Members were told
that student pictures for the program
will be taken Saturday, August 22.
Individu al advertisements must be paid
in advance, before program is printed.
Next meeting of the group will
take place at the Mercedes High School
Cafeteria, August 17 at 6:30 p.m. Pic-
tures for officers and members will be
taken at this time.
All interested in MHS athletics are
invited to join the club by attending
the meetings and contributing to the
effort to show spirit for the school and
community.
Jumpy’s 'Dear Mercedes'
marks fourth anniversary
This month marks an anniversary for this newspaper and one of its closest
' friends ' '
It was four years ago that Fleets. “Jumpy” Lentz, Jr. undertook the writing
of a column for The Enterprise. “Dear Mercedes...Letters Home from F.S.
Lentz Jr." has run week in and week out for over 2001
couple of issues. Jumpy has cranked out copy at a pace and of a quality that
bur the
Imagine if you had to write a book report or three-page essay once a week for
just four weeks in a row. Imagine that and you can see the immensity of the
task, and the depth of Jumpy’s dedication to the job.
When he set out on this project, we said he would be sharing “essays on
larger happenings in the world from the perspective of one who shares our
South Texas roots, and a look back at Mercedes from the perspective of one
now somewhat detached.”
. He’s done that well these four years. Our greatest fear is that someday he’ll
decide he’s got more important things to do and he’U stop writing his letters
home.
Keep’em coming, Col. Lentz. .
Sign-up now for flag 'ball
This is the week for players to
begin signing up in the Mercedes Youth
Flag Football League, reminds League
Director Jesse Trevino.
Sign up will take place this Satur-
day, August 15 and next Saturday,
August 22, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the
Mercedes Knights of Columbus Hall.
The league is open to boys who
will be in the first through the sixth
grades this fall. A $15 fee must be paid
during registration and a parent must
accompany the youngster. A late reg-
istration fee will be charged to those
registering after these dates.
There will be a cut-off once a limit
of 48 boys is reached in each of the
three divisions: first and second, third
and fourth, and fifth and sixth grades.
Registration will be done on a first
come, first served basis.
Texas Flag Football is a game for
boys in the first through sixth grades.
Players wear belts with attached flags.
A player is “down” when his flag has
been taken by an opponent. It is the
safest of all youth team games. The
structure of the league allows for ev-
ery player on the team to handle the
ball. Flag football is regarded by pro-
fessional football coaches as the best
“first step” into the game of football
Players have the opportunity to learn
the rules and gain experience in learn-
ing how to become a “team player.”?
Teams are formed using the Zone
or Neighborhood method. Players liv-
ing near each other are put on the same
team. This reduces the amount of travel
and allows for practice to be conducted
[Continued to Page 7.]
lessons at Mid-Valley Golf Course and Green
Acres Golf facilities in Weslaco attracted 59
young golfers to the three weeks of
instruction. In photo at left, Bob Closner and
J.R. Closner, left, instruct one of the young
students, while others practice their swings
on the driving range. In right photo, Crishele
Gonzalez is seen practicing her putting. All
participants received, in addition to basic
golf lessons, camp T-shirts and a free round
of golf at Green Acres, as well as a pizza
party. Sponsors of the program were
Mercedes National Bank, Mid-Valley Golf
Course, Green Acres, Hon. Judge Horner
Salinas and Alamo State Bank of Weslaco.
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The Mercedes Enterprise (Mercedes, Tex.), Vol. 86, No. 32, Ed. 1 Wednesday, August 12, 1998, newspaper, August 12, 1998; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1632223/m1/1/?q=%22%22~1: accessed July 3, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Dr. Hector P. Garcia Memorial Library.