Vela, Blanca Sanchez, 1936-2014

<p>Blanca Sanchez Vela (May 27, 1936 – February 19, 2014) was an American politician and matriarch of one of the most prominent families in Brownsville, Texas. Vela, who served as the Mayor of Brownsville from 1999 until 2003, was the city's first female mayor. She remains the only woman to hold the mayoral office to date. Vela was married to the late United States federal judge Filemon Vela Sr., while her three children include U.S. Rep. Filemon Vela Jr. (D-Texas).</p>

<p>Vela was born Blanca Sanchez in Harlingen, Texas, on May 27, 1936. Her parents, Luis M. Sanchez and Maria R. "Cuca" Sanchez, were Mexican immigrants who moved to the United States from Linares, Nuevo León, and Zacatecas, respectively, when both were teenagers. They first met each other in Harlingen. Her father worked for the Missouri Pacific Railroad while her mother worked as a homemaker. Blanca Sanchez, who was the eldest of her parents' nine children, was raised in Harlingen.</p>

<p>She married her husband, Filemon Vela, Sr., in 1962. He was later appointed a U.S. federal judge on the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas. The couple had three children: Filemon Vela, Jr., Rafael (Ralph), and Sylvia.</p>

<b>Blanca Sanchez Vela</b><br>
<b>BIRTH</b> 27 May 1936<br>
Harlingen, Cameron County, Texas, USA<br>
<b>DEATH</b> 19 Feb 2014 (aged 77)<br>
Brownsville, Cameron County, Texas, USA<br>
<b>BURIAL</b><br>
Buena Vista Burial Park<br>
Brownsville, Cameron County, Texas, USA