Dr. Hector P. Garcia Memorial Foundation

A True Public Servant

Posted by · March 19, 2016 3:31 PM

Excerpt from The Inspiring Life of Héctor P. García, a memoir-biography

The first book signing for The Inspiring Life of Héctor P. García will be held on Wednesday, April 13, 2016, at Texas A&M University Corpus Christi, in the Bell Library at 1:30 pm. Dr. García donated his entire collection of papers and memorabilia to this university in 1990.

By Cecilia Garcia Akers

The Death of the Namesake

It was a bright and early Sunday morning in July, 1962. Young Hector was packed and ready to go on his trip to Morelia, Michoacán, Mexico. He was traveling with his older sister, Daisy Garcia, and another family to stay for an extended vacation and to learn Spanish.

That morning, young Hector was so excited. I was still in bed because it was still very early but could hear all the commotion in his room. He had one large suitcase ready to go. On his way out, he came to say goodbye to me and tossed me one of his favorite baseball pamphlets. He said “goodbye Squirt, I got this for you.” I was so surprised that he had given me the pamphlet that he used and cherished. I said “Bye Sonny, come back soon.” That was the last time I would see my beloved brother alive.

The next day, my mother received a telephone call from my father. Her face turned grim and her voice lowered. She told me that Sonny was in an accident and they were leaving immediately to Morelia, Mexico. She said that Sonny was climbing up some steps on a mountain and fell. Unfortunately, he fell on his only one functioning kidney and went into shock. My parents decided to drive to Mexico. The plan was to bring Sonny home in my father’s Cadillac. My father’s main confidant and friend Santiago Castro was going to drive them to Mexico. My mother’s plan was to bring her beloved son home in the Cadillac, resting his head in her lap for the trip.

Daughter of late doctor, activist to release book about father

Posted by · March 14, 2016 8:55 PM

By Julie Garcia of the Caller-Times

With hundreds of photographs snapped over decades and enough memories to fill a library, Cecilia Garcia Akers had the content for a novel.

Then, about a year ago, she was approached by the publishing company and a novel is about to be reality.

"I laughed and said I had never done one," Garcia Akers said. "This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. It's an opportunity for people to understand what Papa was really like as a human being; his struggles and his family's struggles. I thought that I had to do it and make whatever sacrifices we have to make."

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Book Signing

Posted by · March 07, 2016 11:40 PM

HPG_Invite_(1).jpg

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Dedication of the Jennie Sealy Hospital at UTMB

Posted by · March 02, 2016 8:22 PM

Cecilia Garcia Akers, President and James Akers, Treasurer of the Dr. Hector P. Garcia Memorial Foundation attended the dedication of the Jennie Sealy Hospital at UTMB, Galveston on February 26, 2016.The Garcia Foundation is proud to be a donor to this beautiful, state of the art facility that is primed to improve access to quality care.

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LULAC Community Awards Banquet

Posted by · February 22, 2016 9:39 AM

Pamela Robertson, CEO of Christus Spohn, and Jimmy Akers at the LULAC Community Awards Banquet. Pam accepted the Humanitarian Award on behalf of Christus Spohn on February 18, 2016.

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TAMUCC Mary and Jeff Bell Library

Posted by · February 22, 2016 9:20 AM

Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi is proud to honor the legacy of Dr. Hector P. Garcia (1914-1996), a Corpus Christi physician and champion of Mexican-American civil rights, through the collection of his papers and with a statue on campus.

The University’s Mary and Jeff Bell Library exhibits several of his letters and photos as part of its special collections. Garcia’s papers, donated in 1990, represent one of the most valuable resources in existence on the Mexican-American experience during the last half of the 20th Century. They contain voluminous archives dealing with the American GI Forum, which he founded in 1948 to organize veterans to fight for educational and medical benefits. It includes letters to and from Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson.

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