Lamar Smith: “I support House Concurrent Resolution 222, which recognizes the leadership and the historical contributions of Dr.…”

“I support House Concurrent Resolution 222, which recognizes the leadership and the historical contributions of Dr. Hector Garcia. In 1914, Hector Garcia was born in Llera, which is a small town in Mexico. As a child, he was brought to Mercedes, Texas, after his parents fled the Mexican Revolution in 1917. He graduated from the University of Texas Medical School in 1940 and used that education to serve his country in the United States Army. In the Army, Dr. Garcia served during World War II as an infantryman, as a combat engineer, and as a medical doctor. He earned the Bronze Star medal with six battle stars for his distinguished service; but his public service did not end there. Dr. Garcia founded the American GI Forum in 1948, which fights for equal treatment of Mexican American veterans in medical care and educational benefits. President Lyndon Johnson made Dr. Garcia the first Mexican American to serve as an ambassador to the United Nations.”