The Monitor from McAllen, Texas • 12

If 4 12A Monday March 2 1992 TH! MiMTOR McAllen Texas Obituaries RENE ORTIZ EDINBURG Rene Ortiz 17 died riday night in a car accident He was a student at Edinburg North High School Survivors in clude his mother Teresa Ortiz of Edin burg his wife Liza Ortiz his daughter Samantha Renee Ortiz brothers Reymundo Rob erto Nicolas and Joe Ortiz all of Edinburg step brothers Carlos Reymundo and Gilberto Ortiz all of Edinburg sisters Rosalinda and Jeannette Ortiz of Edinburg and grandmother Isabel Borjas He is proceeded in death by his father Reymundo Ortiz A rosary will be recited at 7 pm today at Gonzalez uneral Chapel uneral mass will be said at 2 pm Tuesday at Holy amily Church Burial will follow at Hill crest Park WILLIE CUPP BURNET Willie Cupp owner of a mobile home services and transport company in Weslaco died eb 29 1992 at St Hospital in Austin He sir'll was 65 Survivors include his wife Cleo a daughter Billie Cupp Moss of La eria one stepdaughter Sue Schaddm of Bend one stepson Alan Reasoner of Wolfforth two sisten Ruby Carney of Marble alls and Wanda Brown of Ala bama two brothers Herman Doyle Cupp of Bluffton and Jimmy Dee PLUTARCO ANDRES GARZA EDINBURG Plutarco Andres (Andy) Garza night in a car accident He was a junior at Edinburg North High School He is sur vived by his parents Plu tarco Garza III and Maria 18 died fnday Garza of Edinburg brother Adam Garza of Edinburg and two sisten Lisa Ramirez of Hargil and Brenda Garza of Edinburg A rosary will be recited at 7 pm today at the home of the deceased in Alamo uneral mass will be said at 10 am today at St rances Catholic Church in Hargill Burial will follow at Hargill Ceme tery under the direction of Gonza lez uneral Home Cupp of Buchanan Dam and five grandchildren Services will be at 3 pm today at Edgar uneral Home in Burnet Burial will be in Bluffton Ceme tery Bluffton SILVIO MENDOZA McALLEN Silvio Mendoza 71 died late eb 29 1992 at his residence Survivors include his wife Gra ciela Mendoza of La Joya three sons Luis Lozano of McAllen Alfredo Lozano of Edinburg and Ernesto Lozano of Mexico daugh ters Olga and Bonita Lonzano of and sister Berta Portillo of Reynosa A rosary was held Sunday night at De Leon Rivera uneral Home of McAllen uneral mass is sched uled for 1 1 am today at Our Lady of Perctual Help Catholc Schurch with father Meme Villareal officiat ing Burial will follow at La Piedad Cemetery JOSE VALDEZ REYNA MISSION Jose Valdez Reyna 78 died March 1 1992 at Edinburg Hospital Survivors include his former wife Gabriela Reyna of McAllen sons Jose Reyna Jr of Mission Gabriel Reyna of San Juan and Omar Reyna of Madero daughters Antonia Trevino of Mission Benita Vela of McAllen brother rolan Reyna of Heart Texas 1 1 grand children and one great granchild Prayer services were held at 5 pm Sunday at Virgil Wilson Sons Chapel uneral mass will be at 3 pm today at Virgil Wilson Sons Chapel in Mission Burial will follow at Granjeno City Ceme tery? CRESENCIA GOMEZ McALLEN Cresencia Gomez 86 died March 1 1992 after a lengthy illness Services are pending under the direction of Ceballos uneral Home of McAllen LOUISE WATERS HUMBLE Louise Waters 87 died March 1 1992 Arrangements are pending under the direction of Sagmiller uneral Home of Mercedes MODESTA ALCON McALLEN Modesta alcon 74 died eb 29 1992 at Rio Grande Regional Hospital after a short illness Services are pending under the direction of Ceballos uneral Home of McAllen Dropouts Continued from page 11A Jobs Continued from page 11A dropout numbers for the next five years The longitudinal dropout rates are made assuming no intervention to reduce dropouts is made locally or by the state The 1989 dropout rate in La Joya was 15 percent of its total student population That same rate was factored into the fluctuating student population for five years resulting in the 62 percent figure But using same rate for six years and assuming no intervention is made to lower the number of dropouts skewers the figures said Steve Guillen director of second ary education Guadalupe Garza student serv ices coordinator counted the acutal number of La Joya students who have withdrawn over me past mree years In 1989 90 536 students from grades seventh through 12th with drew totaling 149 percent of the student body Garza said In 1990 91 414 students with drew making a 103 percent drop out rate and contradicting steady 15 percent assumption for five years Garza said As of ebruary 1992 there have been 99 dropouts for this school year Diaz said and with these figures the dropout rate is actually between 35 and 40 percent not 62 percent The state dropout average is 27 percent according to the TEA The 62 percent dropout rate compiled by the Public Education Information Management System (PE1MS) gives La Joya the Rio Grande Valley's highest dropout rate According to the TEA statistics compiled from the 1989 90 school year the Mercedes school district has the lowest Valley dropout rate of 11 percent Diaz said he hopes PEIMS will become more accurate when La Joya Superintendent Roberto Za mora takes the second highest position with TEA this summer "I think he will be able to correct the inaccuracies these fig ures reflect because he has seen the problem from the inside Diaz said "He knows a problem with the way these figures are Garza said efforts must also be made to change how TEA classi fies dropouts Under TEA policy a dropout is defined as a student who is absent for 30 or more consecutive days or someone who fails to re enroll during the first 30 consecutive days in the following semester Garza contends the second defi nition puts La Joya in a bind because nearly 50 percent of its students are migrants and a major ity enroll after the first 30 days of school "I might have a migrant that comes in on the 31st day and I have to turn him away and say you are a Garza said Garza said he hopes Zamora can help change the time period to at least 60 days to help migrants and the statistics Guillen said students who leave the district and ask for a transcript are counted as dropouts Such was the case with Guillen's son who changed schools from La Joya to McAllen and was classified as a dropout for not getting a transcript Even though La Joya officials contend their dropout numbers are less than what TEA projects they say their biggest chunk of dropouts are freshmen in high schools According to statistics compiled by Garza 48 percent of the dis trict's dropouts are in ninth grade followed by 34 percent in 10th grade Guillen said there are a number of factors that play into such a high freshmen dropout percentage in cluding the large number of stu dents classified as freshman because they lack credits to be sophomores Also Guillen said the policy states that a student at age 16 may withdraw from school with parental consent "Many times if a student is supposed to be a sophomore but is classified as a freshmen he might just decide quit at that age" he said Guillen said the district is partic ularly targeting programs to stu dents in eighth grade through the 10th grade to curtail the dropouts He said parental involvement and bonding retreats with students teachers and counselors are two ways in which the district is trying to keep these students in school Also the district conducted a survey of as many dropout students as could be found to figure out why these students are dropping out and what the district could do to get them back in school An 41 percent said alterative schooling such as GED programs and half day schooling would lure them back to school officials said This past year the district began a GED grogram orty students now attgiKk Diatwl tfiat he expects a coftpW school settingW bC'it ht the school very soW WH HARPER CONS I RUCTION VALLEY WIDE SERVICE 23 YEARS SERVING THE VALLEY DEAL DIRECTLY WITH THE OWNER ALCOA DISTRIBUTOR BANK RATE INANCING AVAILABLE WE MAKE HOUSE CALLS REE ESTIMATES CALL 24 HOURS CALL COLLECT NO HIGH PRESSURE Charge More Bui We Do A Better Job McALLEN 631 9585 Most jobs with siding Insulation and covering overhang under $330000 Mobile Homes Even Less percent of those surveyed said they planned to hire workers but none expected cutbacks A year ago 17 percent of Brownsville employers polled in the survey expressed their willing ness to hire more workers and 13 percent predicted cutbacks The best prospects for new employment this next quarter are in construction durable goods manu facturing wholesale retail trade education services and public ad ministration according to the sur vey "Hiring was not as strong last year at this remarked Kelly Stanton Manpower spokeswoman with the Brownsville office "Em ployment prospects are even brighter than those three months ago when 28 percent intended to recruit new workers and 6 percent planned Elsewhere in the Valley 37 percent of employers from the McAllen area reported their inten tions to add personnel However 17 percent said they still intend to reduce workforce levels orty six percent of those polled in the survey said they anticipate no changes in staffing needs In Harlingen the employment outlook appears to be brighter as 33 percent of those surveyed pre dict new hiring while only 7 percent expect to reduce work forces The remaining 60 percent antici pate no change in personnel levels At the national level the study shows an increase in job opportuni ties particularly in the field of construction manufacturing and services A total of 21 percent of those interviewed said they would in crease employment while 10 per cent said they had plans to decrease personnel Manpower bills itself at the world's largest temporary help agency It based its findings on telephone interviews with more than 15000 public and private firms in 466 cities including the three largest cities Election Continued from page 11A Massachusetts Sen Paul Tsongas and former California Gov Jerry Brown Many still hope against hope that a better known Democrat a Lloyd Bentsen or Mario Cuomo or Dick Gephardt will make a last ditch run at the nomination "It would be very difficult for another Democrat to get in at this late date but it's not out of the said Democratic state Rep David Cain who represents Precinct 3399 used to live there and calls it "by far the most interesting in his legisla tive district "If no clear winner comes out of Super Tuesday the chance of a Bentsen or someone else jumping ir grows said Cain who has endorsed Clinton "We could see a brokered convention" Some Democrats said it's sad that their candidates have stirred so little enthusiasm "This is the first race in a long time where the candidates really seem to be talking about the said Cook "The Demo crats for the most part are taking a fiscally conservative line yet they're very positive on the social issues They're trying to reach out to the middle class in a way they haven't done in many years" Among Republicans even many who favor Bush say glad that Patrick Buchanan the pugna cious columnist and TV commenta tor finished a strong second in the New Hampshire primary eb 18 That setback they said may rouse what they call a listless Bush campaign "Before he got slapped by Bu chanan in New Hampshire it didn't seem like Mr Bush was willing to play said Ken Hurrington a lawyer and Bush supporter hoping that what happened up there will make him a stronger candidate in the XXX Republicans leaning toward Bu chanan meanwhile hold out little hope that he can capture Texas the GOP nomination or the presidency A vote for their man they say is good way to voice dissatisfaction with performance "I like Buchanan a no nonsense guy" said Katy Bussy long active in the Hollywood Santa Monica Neighborhood Association named for the gentrified blocks that form the upper crust of Precinct 3399 "George Bush has kind of screwed off And catching up with him" said Bussy who owns a property management com pany voted for him the last time and 1 may vote for him again but not unless he starts acting like in touch with people" Gail Chappell the Republican chairwoman is worried that a strong push for Buchanan could divide Texas Republicans don't sec how anyone could really think Buchanan will win What has he ever done except say ugly things on she said his only reason for being in the race is to force George Bush to the right If he succeeds it could alienate moderate mainstream Re The third Republican in the race one time Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke has made nary a ripple in the ethnically mixed precinct Chappell said As far as she knows no one in her neighbor hood is stumping for him The week leading up to Super Tuesday could boost for tunes in Texas or knock him off track primary the first Southern contest is Tuesday South is four days later "If he do well in these states he's really got a Cain said Opinion is divided on how deeply Clinton has been wounded in his native South by allegations of extramarital affairs and by dis closure of his efforts to avoid the Vietnam draft "I think we Texans are any more sensitive to these so called moral issues than anyone else" Cain said "1 think we're more tolerant than most people RAMIRO ALVAREZ McALLEN Ramiro Alvarez 66 died eb 28 1992 at his residence after a short illness Serivces are pending under the direction of Ceballos uneral Home of McAllen JUAN CARLOS ARREDONDO HIDALGO Juan Carlos Arre dondo 21 died unexpectedly at his residence eb 28 1992 He is survived by his parents Isidro and Paulita Arredondo of Hidalgo brothers Isidro Arren dondo Jr Alejandro Arredondo Antonio Arredondo Jose De Jesus Arredondo all of Hidalgo sister Maria Virginia of Hidalgo A rosary was held at 7 pm at the residence in Hidalgo uneral services will be held at 10 am today at Sacred Heart in Hidalgo Burial will follow at Hidalgo City Cemetery LYDIA DE LEON MERCEDES Lydia De Leon 62 died eb 29 1992 at McAllen Medical Center She is survived by sons Mario Alberto De Leon of San Antonio and Roy De Leon of Mercedes daughter Imelda Trevino of Mercedes sisters Catarina Bono of Mercedes Hortcncia Saenz of Houston Anabelia Trevino of Mercedes and Rosie Garces of Houston and five grandchildren A rosary was held at 7:30 pm Sunday uneral mass will be held at 2 pm today at Sacred Heart Catholic Church of Mercedes with burial to follow at Grove Cemetery of Mercedes JULIA LEAL MERCEDES Julia Leal 76 died at Baptist Medial Center in Harlingen March 1 1992 She is survived by brother Narciso Garcia of Colorado City Texas sisters Carmen Garcia and Tomasa Luna both of San Antonio and several nieces and nephews A funeral service will be held at 10 am today at Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Church of Mercedes with burial to follow at Campacuas Cemetery of Mercedes Obituaries are published in The Monitor free of charge as a public service Photographs will be run only as space permits and at the discretion of editors The number of publications is limited to the initial death notice and one complete obituary 1 NOTICE rL I PHARR Professional pho pher's Guild tographers Dennis Wells and The workshop will be held at Carlos Leal will deliver a work Photo Memories Studio on the shop Monday to the Rio Grande northcast comer of Exp 83 and Valley Professional Photogra Hwy 281' College Continued from page 11A college financial aid sources and application procedures the political and economic outlook of the Rio Grande Valley entrepeneurship skills and the proposed North American ree Trade Agreement Cardenas said the members of S1E who were also average students when they were in high school purposely avoided "student council presidents and football beauty queens" because they wanted to reach a group of students who might otherwise fall through the cracks without some type of prodding "The best students are the Cardenas said as the audience cheered are the ones that make it in SIE was created in Texas dur ing the 1970s to promote business and economics which following the turbulent 1960s were viewed by some college students as exploita tive and corrupt Sam Walton founder of Wal mart Department Stores and Wholesale Club was a co founder SIE members travel to local elementary junior high and senior high schools to talk about such issues as the burgeoning federal deficit At the elementary schools SIE members who number about 60 will convey their messages about economics staying in school and saying no to drugs by acting out skits dressed in Ninja Turtle cos tumes SIE members also enter a five state regional and national competi tion where eight of their members give a group presentation on the types of programs and functions they provide to the community on business entrepreneurship At the national competition in Kansas City last year SIE the only group of predominantly His panic students placed fourth out of 200 schools including such univer sities as Georgetown and Harvard Drugs Continued from page ILA across the border federal officials say Much of the narcotics seizures in the Valley are made at US Border Patrol traffic checkpoints just north of the border In 1991 agents of the Border McAllen sector alone seized 475 tons of marijuana and 2 tons of cocaine still experiencing very high levels of drug said Sylvestre Reyes agent in charge of the Border Mc Allen office figures for 1992 are well ahead of the previous year We think it indicates that volume is high enough (that) the traffickers are much more willing to lose loads at the Wars are costly ventures and the war on drugs is no different Most federal agencies involved in anti drug operations reported that funding levels have kept up with needs sufficiently to continue the fight The Border Patrol in McAllen has been able to upgrade some surveillance equipment and begin to replace its fleet of extremely high mileage vehicles As impor tant Border Patrol agents no longer have to ration gas as they did a few years ago The White House has asked Congress to spend $127 billion for the nation's anti drug battles in fiscal 1993 About $579 million is earmarked for the Southwestern border about $43 million more than last year Exactly how much will be earmarked for the Valley is not known "Our (DEA) funding level has stayed fairly consistent over the past three years" Ball said "There has been a slight dip from last year but nothing that affects our operations whether under cover operations or buying gas and ammo" But funding levels and high tech equipment are only a part of the formula Changes in Mexico law enforce ment wrought by President Carlos Salinas de anti corruption drive and a greater spirit of cooper ation by people living in the border communities on the US side have raised the biggest cause for hope among drug agents a very exciting time to be a narcotics said Armando Ra mirez head of the Browns ville office "There have been some major changes in the Mexi can federal police that have created a better relationship than ever Salinas has ordered major shake ups in the federal police and judiciary to weed out the corrupt or inefficient US narcotics agents find themselves with unparalleled levels of communication and intel ligence sharing with the Mexican counterparts Ramirez said It's a perception shared by Reyes and Ball has been tremen dous change The Mexicans are doing everything they can to stop the drugs before they hit the border" Reyes said "It has the same impact for border drug agents as the fall of the Berlin On the US side of the Rio Grande a new wave of community involvement is being seen Ramirez said "People who live in the Valley are getting sick and tired of the power and money that comes to the drug Ramirez said reso than ever before people are conung to us calling in tips or asking what they can do to break the hold drugs have on No one in the Valley expects any conclusive solutions to the drug problem from the San Anto nio summit And no one certainly in law enforcement is saying the war is over no magic bullet to kill the monster It's a long term prob lem and one frankly a handful of cops won't solve at the border" Ramirez said "It's going to take time Meanwhile' we're still going to be here trying to put the bad guys away our job" i A HARPER CONS I RUCTION.