By Karen Gleason
The 830 Times
Three members of the Del Rio City Council joined members of the American G.I. Forum San Felipe-Del Rio Women’s Chapter for a brief Memorial Day ceremony along the San Felipe Creek Monday.
Councilwoman Ernestina “Tina” Martinez, the widow and mother of military veterans, led the event, which also included Councilman Jesus Lopez Jr., Councilman Randy Quiñones, Miss Val Verde Audrey Benavides and other members of the American G.I. Forum San Felipe-Del Rio Women’s Chapter.
The ceremony was held on the pedestrian bridge just downstream of
the Tardy Dam on the San Felipe Creek. The site on Monday afternoon bustled with families enjoying the cool waters of the creek as the afternoon temperature soared to a record-setting 108 degrees Fahrenheit.
The small group’s Memorial Day observance began promptly at 3 p.m., with attendees observing a moment of silence in remembrance of the nation’s fallen military members.
Martinez then read the Charles M. Province poem, “It Is The Soldier.”
After the reading of the poem, Gutierrez cast a cross, decorated with red, white and blue crepe paper flowers, into the waters of the creek.
After the ceremony, Martinez told The 830 Times, “The reason we’re here today is to remember all the military members we’ve lost in our different wars. This morning, a group of us were talking about it, and found out that there was no Memorial Day ceremony planned, so we decided to do this in honor of all those fallen heroes. Because of them we have the freedoms that we have, and that’s why we’re here today.”
Martinez said the observance was especially important to her because her late husband, Joe Martinez, served 24 years in the United States Air Force.
“I also have two sons who each served 21 years in the Air Force and one served four years, so we’re a military family. My father was a veteran of World War II as well,” Martinez said.
Lopez, too, said he joined the observance to honor fallen military members and has family members who served.
“A lot of my nephews are serving in the military and some of my sisters-in-laws’ husbands are in the military, and my son is retired military, so I consider us a military family,” he said.
Quiñones said, “On days like today, I think it’s important for us to remember what others do for us, to be able to enjoy our freedoms. These people paid the ultimate price for those freedoms, and I think sometimes we take that for granted, and we don’t realize or remember what they’ve done. This is a way to show appreciation, to get out here and say thank you for those sacrifices.”
The writer can be reached at delriomagnoliafan@gmail.com.
