[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 160 (2014), Part 9]
[House]
[Page 12625]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                             23 IN 1--HONDO

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Texas (Mr. Gallego) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. GALLEGO. Mr. Speaker, today, as we continue our journey through 
the 23rd District, I would like to travel to a small town some 40 miles 
west of San Antonio. That would be Hondo, Texas.
  It is about 9.6 square miles of iconic America, and as you pass the 
city boundary, you are kindly reminded by a sign: ``This is God's 
country. Please don't drive through it like hell.'' That sign, erected 
by the local Lions Club in 1930, deters speeders. It has been featured 
on postcards; it has been the subject of many photos sent home by 
tourists; and it even made the cover of National Geographic magazine.
  I remember that sign even as a little kid, long before I-10 was built 
and when Highway 90, through Hondo, was still the main thoroughfare--
the east-west highway--from L.A. to Florida.
  Actually, the original sign just read: ``This is God's country. Don't 
drive through it like hell,'' but as you might imagine, it was a 
somewhat controversial sign for the 1930s. So, finally, in the 1940s, 
the word ``please'' was added to soften the tone and to placate those 
in town who found the sign a bit too harsh. Today, some 84 years after 
its installation, that sign still serves as a not-so-subtle reminder to 
slow down and, perhaps, to take a breath from the everyday rush of life 
and enjoy the little things, like family and friends and God and 
country.
  Though settled in 1891, the Hondo area, which is now located in 
Medina County, was first explored by Cabeza de Vaca in 1519, only some 
27 years after Columbus arrived in the New World. It displaced 
Castroville as the county seat, and Hondo shares a place in history 
with the many early Americans who built this Nation through sheer sweat 
and determination.
  With the construction of the Galveston, Harrisburg, and San Antonio 
Railway, which was built through the county from the east in 1881, 
Hondo quickly transformed from a small, 25-resident settlement into a 
trade and shipping center for agriculture and ranching. Hondo was the 
scene of two bank robberies in the early 1920s. The crooks were the 
famed Newton Gang, the most successful outlaws in American history. 
Interestingly, both bank heists occurred on the same night.
  Hondo, itself, was incorporated as a city in 1942, and at that time, 
Hondo applied for a U.S. Army air training facility to be built there. 
When our Nation was in need, they stepped up. The Hondo Army Airfield 
was constructed with local funding in 89 days, and it opened on July 4, 
1942. The airfield would become the largest air navigation school in 
the world and would eventually train over 15,000 navigators to serve in 
World War II.
  That airfield still exists, and though it is no longer affiliated 
with the U.S. military, today, it is a regional facility and is one of 
the busiest small commercial airports in Texas. Mayor James Danner and 
city leadership have done a phenomenal job of developing the airfield 
into a center of transportation and commerce. If your business needs a 
small airport near San Antonio and not too far from Eagle Ford Shale 
country, check out the airport in Hondo.
  In addition, that airfield is home to one of the largest and most fun 
and entertaining air shows in Central Texas--and certainly the best air 
show in all of Congressional District 23. Each year, thousands of 
airplane enthusiasts descend on Hondo for the air show, which last year 
featured more than 20 or so World War II-era airplanes. Another feature 
of the air show was an exhibition called, ``Tora, Tora, Tora,'' a 
smaller but incredibly well-done reenactment of the Japanese attack on 
Pearl Harbor in 1941, a reenactment which was done using these vintage 
airplanes. It is a great event to take your kids and your grandkids to.
  Hondo is a town of living history as many of its residents are 
descendants of the original 25 settlers. It is a town not lost in the 
rush of everyday life, and like much of Texas' 23rd District, its 
connection and commitment to the U.S. military run deep through its 
veins.
  I invite everyone to take a trip to Hondo and experience iconic 
America. Remember, this is God's country. Please don't drive through it 
like hell.

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