American GI Forum Awards Students Laptops in Essay Contest
By Vicky Camarillo, Corpus Christi Caller Times

World War II veteran, doctor and activist Hector P. Garcia made history in 1967 when he gave a statement to the United Nations General Assembly in Spanish. It was the first time an American representative had addressed the assembly in a language other than English.

Those kinds of actions helped cement Garcia as an advocate for Hispanic civil rights, according to essays written by local students.

Garcia founded the American GI Forum, a Hispanic veterans and civil rights organization, in 1948. For the fourth year, the forum's Beatrice T. Perez Robstown Women's Chapter held an essay contest to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, which runs Sept. 15 to Oct. 15.

Students at George Evans, Rose Shaw and J.A. Garcia elementary schools wrote half-page essays about how the organization promotes higher education to support the American dream. Twenty winners on Thursday were awarded Chromebooks.

One goal of the annual contest is to bridge the education gap by providing digital devices to students from low-income families so they can “engage with the world,” event coordinator Patsy Vazquez-Contes said.

For the full story, video and photos:
 
https://www.caller.com/story/news/education/2019/10/10/american-gi-forum-awards-students-laptops-essay-contest/3906502002/