Hall of Fame Chavez

At Bill's with Greg

Tonight (11/18/2014) I have the honor, and pleasure of attending a special dinner here in South Bend. At the Century Center, in Downtown South Bend, a special man is getting inducted into the South Bend Hall of Fame. Mr. Gregorio Chavez, Jr., a tireless community supporter, proud Air Force Veteran, committed LULAC Member and a great mentor, is getting his day and some overdue recognition.

I wrote about Greg a little over a year ago when I had just accepted my position with La Casa (9-10-2013 "I Sat Between Two Giants"). He has continued to impress me with his dedication and hard work well into his 80s. I sneak over to Bill's Place to have breakfast with him every other week or so, its fun to have coffee and listen to all his stories. I enjoyed reading my old blog again and remember the import role, and foot steps that I follow in this community.

I will share my favorite story about his dedication and commitment:

In late September 2013 I had just started working full time and Greg came to La Casa to see me. He asked me who edged our lawn... I remembered seeing it that morning and it was a bit of a butcher job. I told him our maintenance guy and that we didn't have an edger so he used a weed whacker on it. He said he would get it fixed for me.

Well later that week, Greg shows up, with an extension cord and a trimmer, he plugs in, and goes outside and starts edging our lawn. Wait What? My first thought was to go outside and try to make him stop, but he wasn't having that...

So I went inside and the staff were all not sure what to do... I thought about liability, I mean I have an 80+ year old man outside edging my lawn. No one else would volunteer to try and make him stop after I tried... so we let him finish. Of course I snuck a picture of him out there to prove that yeah, he really did that. Like anyone would ever doubt his hardwork... and now I always make sure the grounds at La Casa look good... out of fear that if we don't, Greg will come back again and do it.

He has done so much for La Casa, for the Latino community, for Veterans, for anyone who needed help and I am glad he is being honored, and proud to have been invited to celebrate the evening. From donating copy paper, to taking students to the state house and raising money for scholarships and pushing to get Western Ave named Cesar Chavez Parkway. All the work of Mr. Chavez...

Congrats Greg, glad to have been able to walk along side you on immigration rallies, sit next to you in meetings with the mayor, and watch your selfless acts that have made this city a better place. Congrats, well deserved.