June 22, 2019 Pharr Events Center Pharr, Texas Congratulations 2019 Hall of Fame Inductees
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June 22, 2019 Pharr Events Center Pharr, Texas Congratulations 2019 Hall of Fame Inductees 2 x RIO GRANDE VALLEY SPORTS HALL OF FAME 32ND ANNUAL INDUCTION CEREMONY 5:30 P.M. PRESENTATION OF SCHOLASTIC ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS (See Pages 32-33) Bianca Cardenas · Isis Delgado · Ariel Garcia · Christian Jared Garza Landry Gilpin · Cruz Gomez Jr. · Emily Nicole Guerrero · Alejandro Lopez Jacob Posas · Carlos Jacob Rosas · Manuel Sandoval Jr. · Jazmine Sustaita Douglas Tolman · Allison Marie Torres · Leanza Gabrielle Treviño · Stephanie Treviño 6 P.M. WELCOME Master of Ceremonies, Ronnie Zamora Past President, RGVSHOF Board of Directors INVOCATION Lloyd Hesterly Member, RGVSHOF Board of Directors WELCOME AND SPECIAL PRESENTATION Tony Guerrero Jr. President, RGVSHOF Board of Directors YOUR SPORTS HALL OF FAME Ronnie Zamora SHORT BREAK INDUCTION CEREMONY Doyle Slayton† · Jim Morton† · Frank Parker Desi Najera · Sissy Skinner · Mike Buck Leticia Canales · Lisa Silva Malesich · Cesar Perez INCOMING PRESIDENT’S PRESENTATION Iris Iglesias President-Elect, RGVSHOF Board of Directors CLOSING Ronnie Zamora 2019 INDUCTION CEREMONY y 3 We Salute TONY GUERRERO Former Pan American University Golf Coaching Legend And All Past RGVSHOF Inductees 4 x RIO GRANDE VALLEY SPORTS HALL OF FAME PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE Welcome to the 32nd Annual Rio Grande Valley Sports Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony. The RGV Sports Hall of Fame is a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing recognition to people who have brought positive exposure to the Rio Grande Valley throughout Texas and the nation through their participation in sports as an athlete, coach, official, trainer, journalist or other sports-related position. Our RGV Sports Hall of Fame collects, preserves and exhibits memorabilia, collectibles, and statistical data of Rio Grande Valley sports for historical preservation, database collection, and enjoyment. We are privileged to honor nine individuals who have brought recognition to themselves, their family, and the entire Rio Grande Valley in the field of sports. It is always special when we can cherish the memories that these individuals have brought us. The Class of 2019 offers a group of men and women who have excelled in different sports and sports-related professions. More than half of this year’s inductees are veterans 70 years of age or more. Many hours have been spent by our volunteer board members to bring you an event that will be a memorable one. Our nine inductees have done great things in sports, we honor them tonight for their achievements. This year’s group now join a very elite group of 256 past inductees. On behalf of the Rio Grande Valley Sports Hall of Fame Board of Directors, we thank you for your support. We hope that you enjoy the evening. Tony Guerrero President, Rio Grande Valley Sports Hall of Fame Board of Directors Special Thanks Graphic Design: Kimberly Selber, Ph.D. Inductee & Banquet Videos: Ricardo Camargo Inductee Banners: Manuel Hinojosa, Technical Services: Robert Salazar ROFA Architects, Inc. Studio Photography: Hector Leal, Valley Photo Catering by: Aaron Balli Catering Services, Mission Event Photography: Marty Infante Flowers and Decorations: Inductee Posters and Program Printing: Liz Molina & Martha Torres UT Rio Grande Valley Print Shop 2019 INDUCTION CEREMONY y 5 CONGRATULATIONS Doyle Slayton† and the Class of 2019 You scored big. Pete Vela 956-650-4393 Scoreboards • Displays • Video • Sound 6 x RIO GRANDE VALLEY SPORTS HALL OF FAME est 1985 Our Mission What does the Rio Grande Valley Sports Hall of Fame do? People who have done great things in sports many years ago is what we are all about. There’s a common thread among our board mem- bers – we love sports, and we love history. The great- est achievements go down in our history books. NEW INDUCTEES We are the custodians of your Valley sports history. We want to recognize the very best with the fanfare SELECTION PROCESS they deserve. How can I nominate somebody for the RGV Sports Hall of Fame? We also want to be part of the success of high That is the most common question that we receive. school student-athletes. We award academic achieve- The task to select a group of deserving people for induction into the ment awards to deserving student-athletes from RGV Sports Hall of Fame is a very difficult one. There are more than all over the Valley. The financial awards assist the 100 deserving men and women in our pool of candidates who have student-athletes with expenses for higher education. been nominated, and new nominations continue to be submitted each Since 2013, the RGVSHOF has co-sponsored the year. Our nomination form is under the Forms section of our website All-Valley Sports Awards banquet with RGVSports. www.rgvshof.net. com to honor high school student-athletes, coaches and sports programs for their achievements during ● The nomination pool consists of former student-athletes, amateur the school year. athletes, coaches, game athletic administrators, athletic trainers, game officials, and sports media. The athletic merits of each ap- Honoring new inductees each year at our banquet is plicant are compared equally. the highlight of the year with the Board of Direc- ● The pool is divided into two categories — primary pool for nomi- tors. We on the board – as well as past inductees – nees between the ages of 45 and 64, and a veteran pool for those remember what you have accomplished. 65 years of age or older. ● The Board’s task is to narrow that list to about 30 – 15 for each Counting the 2019 induction, there have been 265 group – to create a ballot. Nominees from the previous year who men and women have been enshrined in 32 ceremo- received a significant number of votes but fell short of induction nies, with an average of eight joining the group each are automatically placed on the ballot. summer We also remember our 110 inductees who have passed away. ● The ballots are then sent by mail and email to past inductees, who vote for the nominees they feel are the most deserving of induc- Preserving the history of the area’s games is our pas- tion. sion. We take it seriously, responsibly and with pride. ● The results of the votes from past inductees are then tabulated. The Board uses the results of the votes of the past inductees as a blueprint for determining the next class. We are continually focused on uncovering stories of notable sports stars of the next generation. New nominations are welcome. Visit us on Facebook at /RGVSportsHallofFame 2019 INDUCTION CEREMONY y 7 Congratulations Mike Buck and the Class of 2019 We’ve got you covered. 521 S. 77 Sunshine Strip Harlingen, Texas • 956-423-0490 www.txisc.com 8 x RIO GRANDE VALLEY SPORTS HALL OF FAME MIKE BUCK Hometown: Deposit, New York High School: Deposit High School College: State University of New York, University of Texas at Arlington, North Texas State University Sport Best Known For: Officiating Longevity and consistency have marked Mike Buck’s career as a football referee. He became one of the most trusted officials in the Rio Grande Valley. It’s a high school football officiating career that started in 1979, ran through 2017, and included 706 varsity and games. Buck served in various capacities at Texas State Technical College in Harlingen from 1976 to 2008, including Vice President of Administrative Services and later Associate Vice Chancellor of Administrative Services for the TSTC System. His duties included overseeing $50 million-plus in construction at the school. It was in 1979 at TSTC that a co-worker asked Buck if he would like to start officiating football games. Buck was interested in the opportunity and said yes. The rest is history. The longtime Harlingen resident has been a member of the Valley football officials organization, TASO, since 1979. He officiated an average of 20 varsity games per season for approximately 20 years. He has officiated several high-level Texas high school football playoff games. Throughout his career as a football referee, Buck enjoyed officiating the sub-varsity games on Saturdays as much as the varsity contests on Friday nights. He did that with a desire to help train younger officials who were just starting out and gaining experience on the sub-varsity level, just like he did. Buck is scheduled to receive the Curly Hays Award at this year’s THSCA Convention in July in Houston as the top high school official in the state. It is an award given to only one person annually. 2019 INDUCTION CEREMONY y 9 CONGRATULATIONS Leticia Canales And the Class of 2019 10 x RIO GRANDE VALLEY SPORTS HALL OF FAME LETICIA CANALES Hometown: McAllen, Texas High School: McAllen High School College: Sul Ross University Best Known For: Coaching Basketball The highly successful basketball career of Leticia “Leti” Canales as a player and coach began in the Rio Grande Valley and eventually led her to the Coastal Bend. She was a starting guard for legendary coach Teresa Casso at McAllen High, earning numerous all-district and All-Valley honors before graduating in 1980. Canales then played at Sul Ross State University, where she was named all-conference twice and helped her team reach the Texas Intercollegiate Athletics Association championship in 1985, the same year she earned her college degree. Canales began her varsity head coaching career in 1990 at McAllen Memorial High School. She guided the Lady Mustangs for five years, taking her teams to the playoffs. She then accepted a job to guide the Corpus Christi Carroll High School in 1995. She continues to coach and direct the Carroll girls’ basketball program and recently recorded her 800th career coaching victory. Her achievements at Carroll have been many, and her career coaching win total now stands at 805.