[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 131 (Tuesday, September 23, 2003)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1859]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      TRIBUTE TO MR. BAUDILIO VILA

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                      Tuesday, September 23, 2003

  Mr. LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART of Florida. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to 
celebrate the accomplishments of a remarkable man, my friend, Mr. 
Baudilio Vila.
  Born on May 20, 1932 in Camaguey, Cuba as the youngest of eight 
siblings, Baudilio quickly found his calling in the company of Mother 
Nature. As a very young man, Baudilio worked alongside his father and 
his siblings as they tilled the soil under the bright Cuban sun. The 
work was difficult and unending, but Baudilio proved to have a gift for 
cultivating the land.
  At the age of 25 Baudilio married his beloved partner Dulce Diaz. 
Invigorated by both his newfound marital bliss and a new farm--a 
wedding present from his father-in-law--Baudilio redoubled his labors 
in order to provide for his new family. Unfortunately for the Vila 
family, beginning in 1959, Castro's communist tyranny stifled all 
attempts to create a small private business that would support a 
family. Nonetheless, Baudilio devoted his life to developing the farm 
until he could no longer bear Castro's constant repression of the human 
spirit. Unable to achieve the dreams he nurtured as a small boy under 
Castro's totalitarian regime, Baudilio Vila and family made the 
decision to seek freedom in the United States of America.
  While it is never an easy decision to flee your homeland, it is often 
a simpler decision for those who make this daring journey in their 
youth. As yet unaffected by the responsibilities of family, young 
people are capable of making immense decisions with the confidence that 
often characterizes early adulthood. At the age of 48, well into middle 
age, Baudilio was fully cognizant of the risks he and his family were 
taking as they crossed the perilous Florida Straits. For Baudilio to 
start again with nothing at the age of 48, with a family to feed, takes 
a daring unknown to most of humankind.
  In 1980, temporary facilities were set up in Miami's ``Orange Bowl'' 
to accommodate the enormous number of Cuban refugees seeking asylum in 
the United States of America. As the Vila family settled into this 
temporary housing, Baudilio's first thoughts were how could he help, 
how could he begin to provide for his family? Baudilio suggested he 
could help pick up the trash in the refugee camp. The authorities 
running the tent city said yes, he could help pick up the waste 
accumulating in the Orange Bowl. For his efforts, Baudilio would 
receive the sum of $1 dollar for every large bag of trash he collected.
  After departing the Orange Bowl, and upon being assimilated into 
South Florida, Baudilio and Dulce both took jobs as they attempted to 
realize their American Dream. Initially, Baudilio tended to lawns with 
borrowed tools, while his wife cleaned houses every day of the week.
  Never forgetting the connection to the land he felt as a farmer in 
Cuba and attempting to realize his dream of starting his own business, 
in 1982 Baudilio and the Vila family rented 4 acres of land. While the 
family continued to work in different types of gardening jobs, they 
were also collecting the plant seeds they would need to open their own 
agriculture business.
  In the years that followed, the Vila family slowly began to expand 
their landscape contracting and growing business, Vila & Son, by buying 
equipment and obtaining small contracts with Miami-Dade and Broward 
Counties. After years of successfully striving to establish a growing 
business, Vila & Son was awarded the prestigious contract to service 
the grounds of Walt Disney World.
  Vila & Son, begun on four acres of rented property, now has 462 
employees in three district offices. Vila & Son annually surpasses $34 
million in sales in addition to planting 6000 plants every working day.
  In recognition of their hard work and success, the Vila family has 
received many honors including the keys to Miami-Dade County and having 
May 18, 2002 proclaimed ``Vila & Son Day.''
  Baudilio Vila, born in Cuba in 1932, a refugee who arrived in the 
United States at age 48 with nothing more than his dream of living in 
freedom, and later an extraordinarily successful entrepreneur, was 
invited by President George W. Bush to his inauguration in January, 
2001.
  Baudilio Vila is an extraordinary human being who has lived a 
remarkable life. I am proud to call Baudilio Vila and his family my 
friends and I am pleased to share Baudilio's remarkable story with the 
United States Congress.

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