Blanca Vela
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Harlingen, Texas, U.S.
Brownsville, Texas, U.S.
Blanca Sanchez | |
|---|---|
| Mayor of Brownsville, Texas | |
| In office 1999 – June 10, 2003 | |
| Preceded by | Henry Gonzalez |
| Succeeded by | Eddie Treviño |
| Personal details | |
| Born | May 27, 1936 Harlingen, Texas, U.S. |
| Died | February 19, 2014 (aged 77) Brownsville, Texas, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Filemon Vela Sr. (1962-2004) |
Blanca Sanchez Vela (May 27, 1936 – February 19, 2014) was an American politician and matriarch of one of the most prominent families in Brownsville, Texas.[1] Vela, who served as the Mayor of Brownsville from 1999 until 2003, was the city's first female mayor.[1][2] She remains the only woman to hold the mayoral office to date.[1][3] Vela was married to the late United States federal judge Filemon Vela Sr., while her three children include U.S. Rep. Filemon Vela Jr. (D-Texas).[1]
Vela was born Blanca Sanchez in Harlingen, Texas, on May 27, 1936.[4] Her parents, Luis M. Sanchez and Maria R. "Cuca" Sanchez, were Mexican immigrants who moved to the United States from Linares, Nuevo León, and Zacatecas, respectively, when both were teenagers.[4] They first met each other in Harlingen.[4] Her father worked for the Missouri Pacific Railroad while her mother worked as a homemaker.[4] Blanca Sanchez, who was the eldest of her parents' nine children, was raised in Harlingen.[4]
She married her husband, Filemon Vela, Sr., in 1962.[4] He was later appointed a U.S. federal judge on the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas. The couple had three children: Filemon Vela, Jr., Rafael (Ralph), and Sylvia.[4]
Vela began her college career by taking the bus from Harlingen to Brownsville to attend Texas Southmost College, a community college. She later earned both her bachelor's degree and a master's degree.[4][5]