[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 71 (Thursday, May 1, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E789-E790]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               TRIBUTE TO MRS. MINERVA ``MINNIE'' RAMIREZ

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. HENRY CUELLAR

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 1, 2008

  Mr. CUELLAR. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Mrs. Minerva 
``Minnie'' Ramirez for her induction as a laureate in the 2008 Laredo 
Business Hall of Fame, and for her incredible dedication to her friends 
and colleagues in the business community of Laredo, Texas.
  Minerva Ramirez was born on September 20, 1931, to a hardworking 
ranch family. She started her first job at the age of 12 sweeping 
floors at the local schoolhouse, and she began

[[Page E790]]

her knack for floral arrangements by making flower arrangements with 
tin cans and tissue paper in the shape of carnations which were sold 
for the cemetery. Minerva graduated from high school in 1948 in 
Hebbronville, Texas, and attended Texas A&I Kingsville. She worked her 
way through 2 years of college by teaching students at La Alejandrena 
Elementary School in Zapata County. Minerva was transferred to San 
Ygnacio, where she met her husband, Robert, and married in 1955. They 
moved to Laredo, and had three children: Carmen, Minita, and Robert Jr. 
Minerva taught and served as assistant principal at Ochoa Elementary 
for 17 years and became principal of Zachry Elementary School in 1981.
  She started a flower shop, Carmin's, from the carport of her home in 
1965, and the business grew so successful that Minerva retired from her 
teaching profession in 1986. One of her career highlights was being 
picked as the florist for the visitation of Pope John Paul II in San 
Antonio, Texas, in 1988 at the San Fernando Cathedral. Minerva has 
admirably served the community of Laredo, Texas, through her work as an 
educator to the youth of Laredo, and her contributions to the business 
community. For her dedication and hard work as a business entrepreneur, 
Minerva will be honored by the Junior Achievement League through her 
induction into the 2008 Business Hall of Fame.
  Madam Speaker, I am honored to have had this time to recognize the 
dedication of Mrs. Minerva Ramirez, and I thank you for this time.

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