Masonic Lodge honors Hortense Offerle
and outstanding students

By Dennis P. Kriewald

The Laredo Masonic Lodge recently honored this year's Community Builder Award winner, Hortense Offerle, and the Lamar Medal winners students from each of the six public high schools in Laredo and Freer High School. About 75 attended, including family members of the students as well as friends of Mrs. Offerle.
After Lodge Treasurer Charles Whitfield invoked God's blessing on the assembled company, guests helped themselves to a buffet dinner.
At the ceremony in the Lodge hall, Worshipful Master Charley Moke presided and introduced the Lodge officers present, including Treasurer Charles Whitfield, who presided over the student awards ceremony. He gave the history of the Lamar Medals, named after Mirabeau B. Lamar, a Mason who was also the second President of the Republic of Texas and is best known as the founder of Texas public education.
Lamar's most famous saying, "The cultivated mind is the guardian genius of democracy," provided the evening's keynote. Then, Whitfield introduced, in alphabetical order of schools, the seven winners. As each came forward, Whitfield read about the recipient and hung the Lamar Medal around his or her neck, and Moke presented a framed plaque. Each student present then said a few words of appreciation.
First was Miguel Garza of Alexander High School, a three-year letterman in basketball as well as a member of the track team, the Student Council, and Who's Who in American High Schools. A National Honor Society member, Miguel has more than 300 hours of community service.
Second was Sofia Garza of Cigarroa High School, who was not present due to her attendance at the World of Engineering Seminar at the University of Texas at Austin. She has been in the University Interscholastic League (UIL), is a member of both the Future Farmers of America and the Future Homemakers of America, and works 30-35 hours per week at Blockbuster.
Third to be introduced was Rolando (Rolee) Perez, Jr., of Freer High School, also not present because of a prior commitment. He participates in UIL as well as serves as Student Council president, National Honor Society president, FTA State President, Yearbook Editor-in-Chief, and member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, given his three years on the Freer High School baseball team.
From Martin High School, the honoree was Belinda García, senior class president, head cheerleader, and a member of Diana Rendon's Dance Academy. She was named Head of the Class for this past January and also was named to the Kodak Young Scholars. A student in the Health and Science Magnet program, she is concurrently enrolled at Laredo Community College.
Nixon High School's Lamar Award Winner, Diana Velasquez, is the president of the National Honor Society and is on the Ecology Club board. She too participates in UIL. The Border Patrol named her Youth of the Month for October 2002. Her community work includes the American Red Cross and CCD teacher, the Laredo Food Bank, and the Sacred Heart Children's Home. She has been accepted at the Red McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas at Austin. In thanking her parents, teachers, and the Lodge members, she quoted, "It takes a village to raise a child."
Karoly Galindo of United High School is in the top five percent of her class, and she is in the Gifted and Talented Program and Who's Who in American High Schools, the National Honor Society, the Interact Club, and UIL. She is also on the UHS Golf Team. She serves her community with the March of Dimes Walk Across America and HOSTS (Helping One Student to Succeed). She plans to attend Texas A&M University - College Station.
The final awardee, Priscilla Puente of United South High School's Business Magnet Program, is vice president of the senior class and is a member of Health Occupations Service Association, Interact Club, UIL, the National Honor Society, Who's Who in American High Schools, and the tennis, soccer, and basketball teams. Finally, she is the Laredo Morning Times "On Campus" reporter for United South High School. She has been accepted into the University of Texas at Austin's College of Communications. She thanked her principal, Karen Winch, who was present and who said, "Everybody loves Priscilla."

Community Builder Award
presentation
Presiding over the Community Builder Award presentation was Master of Ceremonies José Treviño, who spoke of the history behind the Award which is presented only to non-Masons and given to those whose "unselfish efforts . . . make the community and world a better place to live" and to those who exhibit the "same kindred spirit of devotion and service to their fellow man." He listed past recipients of this Award: Sue and Radcliffe Killam, Aldo Tatangelo, Sabas Zapata III, John Arndt, Carol Sherwood, Sister Mary Adele Fuchs, and Dr. Adolph Kahn.
To make the presentation to Mrs. Offerle, he introduced Lodge Secretary Drew Claes, who listed the many accomplishments of Viola Hortense Reuthinger Offerle, whose late father George Reuthinger was a pioneer businessman who owned a bakery in downtown Laredo and had widespread business interests. Her mother was Johnnie Reuthinger.
Hortense, known familiarly as "Horty," was a founder and president of the Laredo Philharmonic Orchestra, a member of the Holding Institute Board of Directors, a lifetime member of the First United Methodist Church where she has long served as Choir Director, a member and former president of the United Methodist Women, an ardent arts supporter, and a 1998 designee to the Laredo Women's Hall of Fame.
Married for a number of years to the late Max Offerle, she and he together did so much to support Laredo's charities, including the Salvation Army and the American Red Cross, as well as the outreach programs of the First United Methodist Church, especially working to raise money to help support two Nuevo Laredo children's homes. For many years, she has chaired the United Methodist Women's annual springtime fundraiser, the Flower and Art Show, of which this year's is the 53rd yearly event.
She also helped to revive the Laredo Little Theater in the 1950s, and for the LLT, she served as president, director, musical director, and even actress.
A 1950 graduate of the Juillard School of Music, New York City, with a Bachelor of Music degree, she also finished a master's degree at the University of Texas at Austin. She taught music for the Laredo Independent School District for 36 years before retiring in 1986.
Horty's hobbies include playing bridge, fishing, music, and belonging to clubs such as the Tuesday Music and Literature Club and Delta Kappa Gamma, professional women educators' club. She is, said Claes, "entirely without ulterior motive." As he introduced Mrs. Offerle and led her to the podium, the audience gave her a standing ovation.
Her first supporter to speak, E. H. Corrigan, praised "her gentle manner" and called her "a catalyst filled with affection and admiration."
Next to speak was Dr. Ray M. Keck III, President of Texas A&M International University, who directed his remarks to the students present, saying, "I hope that you see in this fine lady what you should emulate. She is not interested in personal recognition. Not only is she the founder and nurturer of the Laredo Philharmonic Orchestra," said Keck, but "she champions the right things."
Others who spoke included Marie Escobedo, LPO staff member, Teresa Nimchan, former LPO president who called Horty "an inspiration," and Carolyn Schmies, who praised Hortense's patience, love, and kindness and spoke of her own love and admiration for Horty.
When her time came to speak, Horty, a true music lover, began by quoting a song from the musical Oklahoma, "I'm just a gal who can't say no," and continued by telling of her great love for her home town, Laredo. Her parents always insisted that she and her three siblings "always do the best that you can." Her philosophy, she said, is that "life isn't really that complicated, and we should all of us try to leave the world a little better place than we found it."
Conscious of bringing her music education back to Laredo upon her graduation from Juillard, she taught music for 36 years. She added, "I hope that each of you gives back to your community."
For many years, she has sung at High Holy Day services for Laredo's Jewish community, and she ended her remarks with the Jewish prayer which she had often sung.
In conclusion, Worshipful Master Moke said, "People like you, ma'am, make me proud to be a Laredoan."
In addition to those already named above, friends of Mrs. Offerle's who attended were Patricia Keck, Minita Freeman, Gloria Guajardo, Toni Ruiz, Peggy Dietrick, Kay and Dennis Kriewald, Dolly Claes, Laura and Rachel Bohmfalk, Katy Chavez, Doris and George St. George, Hilda Treviño, and Delia Whitfield.