Irene Garza, young, humble and beautiful. Irene’s beauty went as far as crowning her Miss All South Texas Sweetheart during her adolescent years. She was greatly envied by most girls in her neighborhood. Her beauty enchanted boys of all ages but angered most girls, leading her to a life of loneliness and very few friends as an adolescent. One might believe that beauty is all there is to a happy life but that wasn’t the case for Garza. Beauty was anything but happiness for Garza. It was what ultimately shattered and destroyed her life.
Garza lived from 1934 to 1960, through World War II and the baby boom years. During her young adult years, McAllen was under construction and growing by the day. It was also the blooming of Hispanic culture in lower Southern Texas. Irene Garza benefited from this, as she came from a Hispanic family and was Hispanic herself. She was merely five years old when she first moved to McAllen, Texas.
Garza was known to be deeply religious and passionate for Catholicism. She would occasionally hold bible study meetings in loved ones houses, with different families that often held different beliefs than that of Catholics.
As Garza grew older she found her calling as an elementary school teacher, and was profoundly loved by all her students. She loved spending time with the children and teaching them new things everyday. Overall, Garza was cherished and loved by her surroundings. She was easygoing and comfortable to be around with, but sometimes her easygoing nature could be dangerous, and lead to a dangerous vulnerability.
It was a chilly Saturday night when Garza decided to borrow her father’s car to meet with the priest for confession. Never had her loved ones and family imagined that a chilly Saturday night would turn into a tortuous horrific night, and the last night they would ever see their daughter’s tender smile nestle upon her nourishing face. To many her beauty was a blessing, but to Garza her beauty was the start of a horrifying event that eventually led to a dreadful death.
That same week, Garza was found in a McAllen canal and was officially declared dead. She lived a young life but was treasured by many. Her death was tragic but she lived according to her beliefs. The world is rid of her but she lives within the hearts of her loved ones.
“The tragedy of life is not death but what we let die inside of us while we live.”
Norman Cousins
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