Former U.S. Rep. and chair of House Agriculture Committee Eligio 'Kika' de la Garza dead at 89
The meaning of a life lives in boxes, in his home district, where he chose to live after more than three decades of public service, even if he didn’t have to. These boxes hold thousands of photographs of Eligio “Kika” de la Garza, who died Monday at 89, around the world learning about agriculture on different continents, aboard vessels in different oceans and meeting with world leaders such as Soviet Union leader Mikhail Gorbachev, all to help the Rio Grande Valley.
There were 900 boxes sent from Washington, D.C. to McAllen after he returned home in 1997. His wife, Lucille, organized them by category over the years. All photos are marked, some with “ no fecha ,” but most are dated and numbered, each with significance that only Lucille can fully explain.
De la Garza, who suffered from failing kidneys, spent his last moments here with family at the Legend’s Healthcare Center in McAllen. His funeral is scheduled for Friday at 2 p.m. at Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church in Mission.
The former Democratic U.S. Representative from Mission served from 1965 to 1997 in Congress. He left high school at 17 to serve in the Navy for two years, continued his education at Edinburg Junior College and the Army Artillery College in Oklahoma. After the service, he attended law school at St. Mary’s in San Antonio and soon after was elected to the Texas House of Representatives.
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