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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, In the 1950s, the golf team of San Felipe High School |
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in Del Rio battled adversity and defied expectations to become the |
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best in Texas, and their story is told in the new book Mustang |
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Miracle, by Humberto Garcia; and |
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WHEREAS, The team got its start after J. B. Pena became |
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superintendent of the San Felipe Independent School District in the |
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mid-1950s and, together with a friend, introduced golf as a school |
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sport at San Felipe High; the two men were surprised and pleased to |
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discover that there were some very talented golfers among the |
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students in the then-segregated school; and |
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WHEREAS, These students had learned much about the game while |
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working as caddies at the exclusive San Felipe Country Club, whose |
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course they were initially prohibited from playing; determined to |
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take part in the sport, several of these aspiring athletes decided |
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in 1954 to build their own course, which they dubbed the El Llanito |
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Country Club; it was, by necessity, a rather crude design: one hole |
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surrounded by multiple tees, with a "green" that was actually made |
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of caliche instead of grass; nonetheless, the boys used the |
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hardscrabble course to hone their skills through long hours of |
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practice, often playing until after dark; and |
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WHEREAS, After the harsh conditions of El Llanito, the team |
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members found that competing on regulation courses as part of |
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school matches was relatively easy, and they quickly established |
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themselves as winners, even as they had to ignore verbal abuse and |
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other forms of discrimination; the San Felipe Mustangs became |
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regional champs in 1956 and finished second to Ranger High in the |
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state championships; in 1957, the team qualified once more for the |
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finals and traveled to Austin for the tournament, where they were |
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the only minority players to compete; the Mustangs turned in an |
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outstanding performance, shooting a combined 643; this bested |
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runner-up Shamrock High by 35 strokes and earned San Felipe the |
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state title; and |
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WHEREAS, In Mustang Miracle, Mr. Garcia, a San Felipe High |
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School alumnus, attorney, and avid golfer, tells the tale of Felipe |
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Romero, Higinio "Gene" Vasquez, Joe Trevino, Lupe Felan, and Mario |
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Reyes Lomas, and the resulting saga of perseverance in the face of |
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adversity is one that is sure to resonate beyond Del Rio and the |
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Lone Star State; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 82nd Texas |
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Legislature hereby honor the members of the San Felipe High School |
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golf team of 1957 along with their biographer, Humberto Garcia, and |
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extend to them sincere best wishes for the future; and, be it |
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further |
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RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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prepared for the members of the team and Mr. Garcia as an expression |
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of high regard by the Texas House of Representatives. |