[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 21 (Wednesday, February 25, 2004)]
[House]
[Pages H600-H601]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       HONORING JOE LAMANTIA, JR.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Hinojosa) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. HINOJOSA. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate my good 
friend and constituent Joe LaMantia, Jr., for being named the 2004 
Border Texan of the Year. This is an honor given only to those whose 
record of service in south Texas is a model for all Americans. The 
award is given in conjunction with Hidalgo County's annual Border Fest, 
a heritage and cultural festival that celebrates the uniqueness and 
diversity of south Texas.
  I can think of no one more deserving of this award than Joe LaMantia, 
Jr. Joe is a first-generation American with deep roots in South Texas. 
Following in his father's footsteps, Joe began his successful 
agricultural career in south Texas in Carrizo Springs. His agriculture 
operation consisted of pecan orchards, vegetables, and a cow-calf 
operation, plus a vegetable and fruit farm operation in Mexico and 
Chile. In 1965, he moved his family to the Rio Grande Valley to 
continue their agricultural business.
  Due to the unpredictability of agriculture, the LaMantias made a 
transition into the beer distribution business as wholesalers of 
Anheuser-Busch products. That was the beginning of the LaMantia family-
owned and operated business of L&F Distributors. The company began in 
1977 in McAllen, Texas, with 11 employees. I witnessed a fast learning 
curve by the LaMantias. Today, L&F Distributors has grown to employ 
over 600 individuals in 22 counties in the great State of Texas.
  Despite the demands of a growing and successful business, Joe has 
dedicated himself to improving the quality of life in his community. In 
1974, Joe was appointed by Governor Dolph Brisco to the board of the 
Texas Department of Corrections. He was reappointed in 1983 by Governor 
Mark White, and served as the vice chair for over 10 years.
  During his tenure, Joe saw firsthand the problems facing the Texas 
border region, specifically poverty, crime and high unemployment. He 
recognized that education was the key to improving these challenges 
faced by the community. A champion of educational opportunity, Joe 
established one of the first scholarships for women athletes at the 
University of Texas Pan American, the Ann LaMantia Anheuser-Busch 
Outstanding Woman Athlete Scholarship.

                              {time}  1630

  The scholarship was named in honor of his wife of 30 years, Ann 
LaMantia, who passed away in 1983. Ann LaMantia served on the board of 
regents at Pan American University and, like her husband, was committed 
to higher education for the students of south Texas.
  Since her passing, the LaMantias have continued to be dedicated to 
providing college scholarship opportunities for local students. Under 
Joe's leadership, L&F Distributors formed a partnership with the 
Hispanic Scholarship Fund in 1994 and in 8 years has raised over $5 
million and awarded over 2,600 scholarships to students in south Texas. 
In 2002, L&F Distributors was recognized by the national organization 
as the largest contributing Anheuser Busch distributor to the HSF.
  That same year, the LaMantias created a local educational nonprofit 
organization, the South Texas Academic Rising Scholars (STARS) 
Foundation, which provides scholarship awards to students in south 
Texas to attend the college of their choice. Joe serves as the founder 
and chairman of the board of directors, and in less than 17 months 
STARS has managed to raise over $2

[[Page H601]]

million for south Texas students and has become the premier scholarship 
foundation in south Texas.
  Mr. Speaker, this successful scholarship program has doubled the 
number of students who can have access to higher education. Joe, Jr. 
and his wife, Derrelene, have seven children and 26 grandchildren and 
consider their close-knit family their greatest asset. Joe is one of 
the hardest working entrepreneurs in south Texas. He is honest and a 
man of integrity, and I am proud to call him my friend. He truly 
deserves to be the Border Texan of the Year.
  I urge my colleagues to join me in commending Joe LaMantia, Jr. for 
his tireless efforts on behalf of children and in congratulating him on 
receiving this prestigious award.

                          ____________________