Community Mural

Ofelia Vasquez-Philo

Tomás Cuevas, Jr.

Tomás Cuevas, Jr. has a compelling personal story. He was born into a poor family in San Marcos, Texas on May 29, 1942. His parents struggled to make ends meet. His father was an automobile mechanic where he owned his own garage. In 19401 his father, Tomás Cuevas, Sr. at age thirty-eight lived at 220 S. Guadalupe Street with his wife Tomasa Castro along with five children. Tomás Cuevas, Jr. was born into this family two years later. Tomás Cuevas, Jr. registered his marriage to Miss Zulema Garza Guerrero on September 10, 19642 in San Marcos before two witnesses: Tito Marines and Oralia Cuevas Marines. Oralia was Tomás’s sister. At age twenty-five Tomás was offered an opportunity he could not refuse to start a business with only a few dollars in his pocket and with the help of a good friend who asked Tommy to buy his fruit stand. This was around 1967-1968.

Cuevas Produce would become a local family owned produce market officially established in 1972. Tomás was known by his customers as Tommy. Tommy and Zulema served the community through their produce business where he was known to work seven days a week, three hundred and sixty-five days a year, sometimes fourteen-hour days. Tommy remained devoted to helping those in the community who needed help. Because of this, he was known to some as Uncle Cuevas; everyone -- even homeless people knew they could count on him. Some customers frequented Cuevas Produce for forty years, and eventually their adult sons and daughters would return to shop at Cuevas Produce.

She always possessed a love of learning, which she imparted to all her children and all those she knew. Ofelia worked part-time in 1966 at the Office of Community Action. In 1970, she became executive director, a position she would hold until her retirement in 1993. During this period, she obtained her GED certificate, and her bachelor's degree from Antioch University, Austin campus in 1978. She was the first Latina to serve on the San Marcos Independent School Board from 1969-1971. She was a charter member of the San Marcos Heritage Foundation, and a member of the Hays County Historical Commission, the San Marcos League of Women Voters, the Hijas de Maria, the Archicofradia of St. John's Catholic Church, the St. Vincent de Paul Society, the Finance Council and the Bereavement Ministry of St John's Catholic Church. She also worked for the preservation of Hispanic cemeteries and served on numerous other city and county boards and commissions. She received numerous awards and recognitions from dozens of associations too many to name but some include the Trailblazer Award for Hays County, the Light of the World Award from Bishop Gregory Aymond in 2005. She was presented the Premio Letras de Aztlan Award from the National Association of Chicana & Chicano Studies in 2012 because of her significant contributions to the betterment of the Mexican American community in Texas. She is coauthor of Suenos y Recuerdos del Pasado, an historical account of the Hispanic settlers of San Marcos, Texas. She was loved and respected by her family and by numerous members of the community. She was particularly committed to educational endeavors and contributed a lifetime of devotion to community involvement including as advocate for the Hispanic community and its rich heritage. Never one to rest, she always seemed to be working on her next project, and encouraged others to do the same. She was a co-founder of Centro Cultural Hispano de San Marcos. The museum section of Centro is named after her. Centro actualized her vision to preserve, develop, promote and celebrate Hispanic arts, culture, heritage and values. The Centro's programs and educational curriculum include the areas of visual arts, dance, theatre, music, literature, multi-media and the culinary arts, available throughout the year. She was a highly social person, and enjoyed attending quinceaneras, weddings, and celebrations of any kind.

Pauline Espinosa is an unsung heroine. Not only did she provide produce and food items for the community in need, she also provided credit to many individuals so they could feed their families. She provided jobs for several people and purchased produce from local farms. She was a trailblazer at a time when few Mexican American women were business owners. Pauline Espinosa is deserving of recognition as a business and community leader of San Marcos, Texas.

Pauline Gonzales Espinosa

Pauline Gonzales Espinosa was born in Roma, Texas on September 6, 1902 to Washington Gonzales and Joaquina Cadena Gonzales. Pauline and Jose Espinosa opened their first business in the late 1930s. The business was a produce shop located at the corner of Guadalupe Street and Comal Street (now named Martin Luther King Blvd.) in San Marcos, Texas. Eventually, a larger store was built at the site and named Pauline’s Grocery. Pauline ran the daily operations of the store that served a large portion of the community, especially the Mexican American community. She was known to offer credit to families and donated generously to the community in need and for community events.

Pauline Espinosa was well known in the larger business community. One of her friends was Hays County Sheriff Jack Gary, who often requested guidance and assistance regarding arrested individuals from the Mexican American community. He relied on Pauline’s knowledge of this community and respected her assessments on bond requests. It was not unusual for Pauline to assist Mexican American community members with releases from jail by placing her property as collateral on the bond.

Tomás Rivera

(December 22, 1935 – May 16, 1984) was a Chicano author, poet, and educator. He was born in Texas to migrant farm workers, and worked in the fields as a young boy. However, he achieved social mobility through education—earning a degree at Southwest Texas State University (now known as Texas State University), and later a Doctor of Philosophy degree (PhD) at the University of Oklahoma—and came to believe strongly in the virtues of education for Mexican-Americans. As an author, Rivera is best remembered for his 1971 Faulknerian stream-of-consciousness novella ...y no se lo tragó la tierra, translated into English variously as This Migrant Earth and as ...and the Earth Did Not Devour Him. This book won the first Premio Quinto Sol award.[1]

Rivera taught in high schools throughout the Southwest US, and later at Sam Houston State University and the University of Texas at El Paso. From 1979 until his death in 1984, he was the chancellor of the University of California, Riverside, the first Mexican-American to hold such a position at the University of California.