A Texas Historical Marker honoring Garland’s Manuel and Maria Valle Family, the first Latinos to call Garland home, will be unveiled at 1 p.m. Saturday, May 20. The unveiling ceremony will be near the intersection of Avenue C and Santa Fe streets, south of downtown Garland.
The marker will be the first Texas Historical Marker in Garland to recognize a Latino subject. It was awarded to the sponsoring nonprofit, Friends of Garland’s Historic Magic 11th Street, by the Texas Historical Commission.
Manuel and Maria Valle, who hailed from Mexico and later became American citizens, moved to Garland almost a century ago. Their eight children are Garland High School graduates. All their sons served in the military, and two became college graduates. One of them, Pascual, who was a star on the 1949 Garland Owls football team, became Garland’s first All-State athlete.
The Valles are cited for their dedication to education, country and community, leaving a legacy for their family and future Latino residents of Garland, with Garland’s Latino population now having grown to 42%.
At the ceremony Pascual, the last surviving member of the original family, will be honored in conjunction with his 92nd birthday. He and his wife, Sylvia, have been community leaders here for decades. The marker was funded by donations from the community.
The May 20 ceremony will feature special music, presentations, remarks by officials and others, as well as the unveiling. The event, near the original Valle home place, is open to the public.
The Manuel and Maria Valle Student Services Center of the Garland Independent School District was named for the Valle parents. An award-winning original musical drama, “The Cactus Chronicles,” composed in honor of the Valle family, was performed at Garland’s Plaza Theatre in May 2021. Downtown Garland #mymgarland #latinoheritage