By:  Moreno                                            H.R. No. 731
       73R10902 PFG-D
                                  R E S O L U T I O N
    1-1        WHEREAS, The Texas House of Representatives is proud to honor
    1-2  El Paso businessman Heliodoro "Lio" Valadez on being one of 10
    1-3  finalists for the title of National Small Business Person of the
    1-4  Year awarded by the Small Business Administration; and
    1-5        WHEREAS, Mr. Valadez is the owner of the prosperous Best Buy
    1-6  Tortilla Factory in El Paso and has been named Small Business
    1-7  Person of the Year for the five-state region consisting of Texas,
    1-8  New Mexico, Oklahoma, Louisiana, and Arkansas by the Small Business
    1-9  Administration, which is the nation's largest financial supporter
   1-10  of small businesses; and
   1-11        WHEREAS, This enterprising businessman, who received only an
   1-12  elementary school education, got his start in 1972 after the
   1-13  restaurant where he was working as a short-order cook closed,
   1-14  leaving him without steady employment and with a wife and nine
   1-15  children to support; and
   1-16        WHEREAS, Unable to find work, he began selling his family's
   1-17  delicious homemade flour tortillas door-to-door, quickly gaining
   1-18  legions of satisfied customers; and
   1-19        WHEREAS, With the help of an $18,000 loan from the Small
   1-20  Business Administration and a tortilla press that he invented with
   1-21  fellow tortilla manufacturer Tony Perez, he began producing the
   1-22  popular and versatile food item and within three months was making
   1-23  600 dozen tortillas a day; and
   1-24        WHEREAS, Mr. Valadez realized an important milestone in 1976
    2-1  with the construction of a 12,000-square-foot tortilla factory on
    2-2  El Paso Drive that was joined in 1978 by a restaurant that remains
    2-3  a popular gathering place 15 years later; and
    2-4        WHEREAS, A keen businessman, Mr. Valadez reinvested profits
    2-5  in the company as Best Buy tortillas became increasingly popular,
    2-6  and he expanded the factory and modified equipment to ensure that
    2-7  the enterprise would continue to flourish and meet the rising
    2-8  demand for this tasty staple of Southwestern cuisine; and
    2-9        WHEREAS, Today this talented entrepreneur presides over a
   2-10  tortilla empire that has grown from producing several hundred
   2-11  tortillas a day to more than one million a day that bear on their
   2-12  package the familiar logo of a man in a yellow sombrero; in
   2-13  addition, the company produces more than eight tons of tostada
   2-14  chips daily; and
   2-15        WHEREAS, Currently, Mr. Valadez distributes his product in
   2-16  cities through the Southwest, producing the tortillas in a
   2-17  32,000-square-foot factory on Pendale Road that employs 70 people,
   2-18  including five of the Valadez children; the entrepreneur attributes
   2-19  much of his good fortune to the dedication of his employees and
   2-20  adheres to his personal philosophy that their happiness is integral
   2-21  to the company's success; and
   2-22        WHEREAS, Throughout his remarkable career, Mr. Valadez has
   2-23  received the loving support of his wife, Anita, and their nine
   2-24  children, who have contributed to and shared in the family
   2-25  enterprise; much as Best Buy has prospered, so has the Valadez
   2-26  family, which has grown to include 25 grandchildren; and
   2-27        WHEREAS, Characterized by his many friends, coworkers, and
    3-1  family members as an energetic man of great vision and initiative,
    3-2  Heliodoro "Lio" Valadez has significantly contributed to the
    3-3  economy of his community and our state by bringing tortillas to
    3-4  homes throughout the Southwest, and in the process he has realized
    3-5  the American dream; an inspiration to the members of his community
    3-6  and to small businessmen and women everywhere, he is indeed
    3-7  deserving of special legislative recognition on the occasion of his
    3-8  latest accomplishment; now, therefore, be it
    3-9        RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 73rd Texas
   3-10  Legislature hereby congratulate Heliodoro "Lio" Valadez on being
   3-11  nominated for the title of National Small Business Person of the
   3-12  Year; and, be it further
   3-13        RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
   3-14  prepared for Mr. Valadez as an expression of high regard by the
   3-15  Texas House of Representatives.