MACE’s Man and Woman of the Year to be honored at banquet
Almost 40 years ago, a small dinner was held in Hollister to
recognize a few well-meaning people and raise some money for a
local scholarship.
Today, that small dinner brings in more than 100 guests,
regularly sells out and has allowed the Mexican-American Committee
on Education (MACE) to distribute an estimated $342,000 in
scholarships to 425 San Benito County students.
MACE’s Man and Woman of the Year to be honored at banquet
Almost 40 years ago, a small dinner was held in Hollister to recognize a few well-meaning people and raise some money for a local scholarship.
Today, that small dinner brings in more than 100 guests, regularly sells out and has allowed the Mexican-American Committee on Education (MACE) to distribute an estimated $342,000 in scholarships to 425 San Benito County students.
MACE will host its 38th annual Cinco de Mayo Scholarship Banquet Saturday, May 3 at the Veterans Memorial Building on San Benito Street. The evening’s events will include dinner, a Mariachi Sonora, live entertainment, dancing and a program honoring the group’s Man and Woman of the Year.
County clerk Joe Paul Gonzalez and longtime local volunteer Marcellina Muñoz will be recognized as MACE’s Man and Woman of the Year during the banquet. Gonzalez, 50, was selected for both his work as a public servant and his charitable work around the community. A former member of the Hollister City Council, Gonzalez also served as mayor, and has worked as an auditor, accounting manager and finance director for San Benito County. He has owned several small businesses, most notably Superior Bakery, which he operated for more than 21 years.
Gonzalez is the seventh of eight children born to Amelia and Jose Chavez Gonzalez, both of whom were farm workers. His parents stressed to their children the importance of education, and Gonzalez listened, earning a bachelor’s degree in accounting from California State University, East Bay and a master’s of business administration degree from San Jose State University. He married Irma Garza in 1977, and the couple has four children – Briana, Jennifer, Talia and Joseph Paul.
His community service record includes stints with the county’s Boy Scouts organization, San Benito Youth Services and is a current board member of the local chapter of the League of United Latin American Citizens. He has been a manager with Hollister Little League, served as a role model for the Latino Student Leadership Conference, worked with the Homeless Task Force and helped with the “Jazz under the Stars” fundraiser for the Janet Graham Memorial Fund. He has also served on the boards of Hazel Hawkins Hospital, the county’s Chamber of Commerce, the local chapter of the United Way and the St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital fundraiser.
Marcellina Muñoz, 85, was born in Oxnard to Apolinar and Felisa Solano. She came to San Benito County with her family and her grandparents and worked in the fields alongside them. Although Muñoz herself finished only the third grade, at the old Cienega Grammar School, she and her husband, Joe, always believed in the importance of education and instilled that belief in their six children.
Joe and Marcellina raised their children as they worked long hours in the fields of San Benito County; although she says she retired in 1997, her children say she only quit working because Tri-Valley Packing, the company where Muñoz was employed, closed its local cannery. She continued to work seasonally for Rakjovich Farms.
Muñoz was a participant with the Mothers Club of Sacred Heart Parish School, where her children were enrolled, and she was also a member with the Young Ladies Institute, the Sacred Heart Altar Society and the La Club de Damas of Hollister. She taught cooking with the Sunnyslope 4-H club and has been involved with MACE since the early 1970s, since her children were members; three of her children have served as past MACE presidents. Muñoz has been an official member of MACE for five years and at 85 is the oldest active member, helping with set up and decorations for the banquet each year.
In addition to the Man and Woman of the Year program, live entertainment will be provided by Johnny Hernandez and the Kool Katz, a Chicano/Latino band from San Jose. The banquet will be emceed by Richard Ybarra.
Tickets for the event are $50 per person and table reservations of 10 people or more are still available. No tickets will be sold at the door, and as the event has sold out the past several years, persons interested in attending should purchase tickets early. For ticket information, call 673-2009 or 245-6971.
