About two hours south of San Antonio lies the community of San Diego, Tex., a speck of a town with just under 4,000 residents. Its biggest claim to fame is the infamous “Plan of San Diego,” hatched in 1915 during the Mexican Revolution, which sought to reconquer from the U.S. government the portion of the Southwest that had been taken from Mexico in the Mexican-American War.

While the Plan of San Diego was never acted upon, the rebellious spirit of this town’s inhabitants resulted in one of the most fascinating tales in South Texas history — one that involves buried treasure, an empty Folgers coffee can and a plate of enchiladas.

The tale begins around the time the notorious rebel plan was hatched. Its protagonist was a well-educated country doctor named Jose Garcia. Garcia, who got his medical education in Mexico, came from a prominent colonial family who obtained 18th-century Spanish land grants on what would become both sides of the Texas-Mexico border.

Beginning in the 1890s, Garcia began collecting gold coins, according to family archives that would become important evidence in a Texas courtroom more than a century later. He had accrued more than 500 gold coins and built a thriving medical practice when the Great Depression broke out following the 1929 stock market crash.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt suddenly saw gold hoarding as a national security. In response, in 1933, Roosevelt issued Executive Order 6102, “forbidding the hoarding of gold coin, gold bullion, and gold certificates within the continental United States.” Americans were ordered to give up their gold coins to the Federal Reserve at an exchange rate of roughly $20 per ounce.

That was unacceptable for Garcia, who would have been paid about $10,000 (more than $230,000 in today’s money) if he had given up his gold. Instead he quietly began burying the coins in a crawl space beneath his home on St. Joseph Street in San Diego.

His treasure was a well-kept secret; he shared its existence only with his daughter, Gloria, and her husband, Hector Lopez, both of whom earned degrees from the University of Texas at Austin in the 1940s — a rarity for Hispanics at the time. After serving in the military during World War II, Hector earned a law degree from Baylor Law School.

After Garcia died in 1964, his son-in-law made several forays into the crawl space but never found the gold coins. In 1976, Gloria and Hector Lopez sold the home to a distant cousin named Alejandro Lopez. For a while, at least, the gold stash was forgotten.

Twenty-six years later, the home developed plumbing issues, and Alejandro Lopez called on the town plumber, Serafin Trevino, to fix a leak. Trevino went to the house and brought his girlfriend, Connie Mosely. Trevino entered the crawl space beneath the kitchen to get to the source of the leak, while Mosely waited for him in the kitchen.

As he dug around wet earth to expose a leaking sewer line, Trevino found the gold coins. But instead of telling the home’s owner, Trevino called up to his girlfriend, who found an empty Folgers coffee can and handed it to the plumber.

Trevino filled the can with an estimated 422 gold coins, worth about $500,000 at the time. Trevino quietly left with the treasure and began a spending spree that, according to one witness, included paying for a plate of enchiladas with a $20 gold coin. What Trevino didn’t know was that the gold piece was worth about $1,100.

But nothing stays secret for long in a small town, and soon the homeowner, Alejandro Lopez, heard about Trevino’s discovery. Lopez confronted Trevino and demanded the return of the gold coins, saying they had been given to him by Lopez’s father. Trevino responded with the classic third-grade legal argument: finders keepers.

The dispute ended up in a Duval County court, and word quickly got to Gloria Garcia-Lopez, who was then living in nearby Alice, Tex. Gloria and her husband entered the legal fray as intervenors — a third party with a stake in the case.

During the ensuing trial, Dr. Garcia’s sister, Braulia de la Garza Garcia, shared a ledger that documented her brother’s accrual of the gold coins. It became a key piece of evidence and contributed to the judge’s decision to award the treasure to Gloria Garcia-Lopez and her husband.

In the end, Gloria and her husband didn’t need the money that the gold coins would have generated for them. That’s because the Garcia family had a habit of legally documenting not only its coin collection, but also extensive land holdings.

When Dr. Garcia’s daughter and her husband died, they owned tens of thousands of acres on as many as 14 different ranches in South Texas. They amassed this real estate fortune even though their family had lost the bulk of its real estate south of the border to the Mexican government following that country’s revolution and land reforms, and in an era in which unscrupulous developers routinely stole land from Mexican American landowners.

In that great Texas tradition, oil and gas were found on many of their ranches. Gloria and Hector had no children, and when they died, their wills created the Hector and Gloria Lopez Foundation, which awards scholarships to first-generation Hispanic college students in several Texas cities. That foundation is now worth more than $200 million and is one of the country’s largest scholarship funds for Hispanic students.

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And as for the gold? The family executor, a nephew of Gloria and Hector, was tasked with locating a Texas museum to donate the 400 remaining gold coins. After searching throughout the state, he chose the Museum of South Texas History in Edinburg, Tex., about an hour south of where the gold had been buried. He selected it because of the diversity of the museum’s board of trustees. Currently, the museum is showing an exhibit called Dr. Garcia’s Gold.

The gold coins are safely stored in a bank lockbox. In perfect condition, the value of the coins, some minted as early as 1836, could be as high as $12 million. But, alas, the coins are not in mint condition. Most of them have a mark believed to be a toothmark. Francisco Guajardo, the Museum of South Texas’s CEO, theorizes that during the brief time he was a rich man, the plumber Serafin Trevino bit into each of the coins to ensure they were real.

Carlos Sanchez, a longtime journalist, is director of public affairs for Hidalgo County, Tex.

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SAN JOSE (CBS SF) – A woman who provides immigration services in San Jose is charged with allegedly defrauding customers seeking help with their applications, according to the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s office.

Detectives from the Notario Fraud Unit said a husband and wife came forward and said they paid the suspect about $ 5,000 to fill out a citizenship and visa application.

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Over a four-year period, the suspect announced to clients that she had filed her application with the US Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS). Detectives said the suspect made no claims to USCIS, kept the victims’ money and made no refunds.

As a result, the couple were unable to visit their homeland to visit their dying relatives, detectives said.

In another case, detectives said another client paid about $ 1,000 to apply for Deferred Action under the DACA program. No application was sent and no money was refunded.

The victim lost a scholarship and the opportunity to attend a local business school, the sheriff’s office said.

Detectives said they interviewed the suspect, identified as 36-year-old Jasmine E. Sanchez, at her office in the Tropicana Shopping Center on Story Road. The detectives found she hadn’t filed immigration papers or cleared her client’s transactions.

Jasmine Sanchez. (Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office)

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Sanchez also allegedly claimed to be a drafted immigration adviser with the California State Department office and showed an expired note deed in her office.

According to state records, Sanchez did not have approval from the Secretary of State or the State of California. Sanchez received a cease and desist letter from state officials in 2018.

On Saturday, Sanchez turned himself in to a bail officer. She is charged with aggravated theft, theft on false pretenses, and violations of the Immigration Consultant Act.

At first it was not known when Sanchez would appear in court.

MPs said the alleged victims of Sanchez are working with immigration lawyers to gain citizenship.

According to the sheriff’s office, an immigration officer must have a $ 100,000 bond, undergo a background check, and file a disclosure statement with the Secretary of State. Immigration advisors are not lawyers, cannot provide legal advice, and are required to notify clients.

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Anyone who may have been a victim is asked to contact detectives with the sheriff’s office at 408-808-4599 or email tips@sheriff.sccgov.org.

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SAN FRANCISCO, July 22, 2021 / PRNewswire-PRWeb / – Ship Smart Inc., a small US-based moving company specializing in furniture moving, art and quality merchandise, has announced the winners of its Fall 2021 scholarship program. The program, called “The Ship Smart Scholarship,” is designed to benefit college, university and school students and is now open for the spring of 2022. Application is free.

The Ship Smart Scholarship has four awards. The first award is for $ 1000, the second is for $ 500while the third and fourth awards are worth it $ 300 everyone.

“It is never easy to choose the winners for these scholarships.” Nick of Ship Smart said, “Overall, the essays submitted were very well written. It was a real pleasure to read these articles.”

Congratulations to the autumn 2021 winners.

• #1 – $ 1000 – A letter to myself from Mia Davis
• # 2 – $ 500 – Another box of Kiyana Dubai
• # 3 – $ 300 – Thoughts on shipping art from Kubra Toykun
• # 4 – $ 300 – Moving and shipping technology from Ryu Pich

The application window for spring 2022 is open from now until December 3, 2021. All students, regardless of their age, can apply. Students from truck driving schools and logistics courses can also apply. To join, click on this link: The Ship Smart Scholarship and fill out the scholarship form. The essays must be written about small moves, shipping furniture, antiques, electronics, artwork, packaging, or any other service that Ship Smart uses.

Ship Smart Inc. awards these scholarships semi-annually and the financial reward is paid directly to the school. Ship Smart hopes it can help students with study materials, books, and lessons. Hopefully this program will encourage others to embrace the spirit of giving and embark on other worthy causes. Please contact the company directly using the contact details provided on this page

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About the company:

Ship Smart Inc. is a moving company that specializes in shipping furniture, artwork, antiques, office furniture, and other housewares that are too small for the typical moving company to ship across borders. With over 20 years of experience, Ship Smart is a leader in small removals and has more than 300 locations in the US and beyond.

Media contact

Nick Rivera, Ship Smart Inc., 8316614841, eServices@shipsmart.com

SOURCE Schiff Smart Inc.

The post Small Transferring Firm Ship Sensible Inc. Proclaims Winners For Their Fall 2021 Scholarship | Information appeared first on DAILY SAN FRANCISCO BAY NEWS.

SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 2, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) – The San Francisco Federal Credit Union (SFFedCU) today announced its 2021 Youth Scholarship Program for high school graduates in San Francisco and San Mateo Counties. Three students will each receive $ 2,500 to apply for their college education.

“Part of our mission is to give back to the community. So it’s important for us to invest in our youth members who are tomorrow’s leaders, ”said Jonathan Oliver, President and CEO. SFFedCU promotes financial literacy at a young age. The non-profit organization with 49,000 members has a special youth account program that was launched in cooperation with the city and that helps young people save money for the future.

The youth scholarship program was established to support students who are members of the SFFedCU and are planning to pursue further education in college or vocational school programs. Since its inception in 2007, Credit Union has awarded nearly $ 140,000 in scholarships. Scholarship holders are selected based on academic data, demonstrated leadership skills, attendance at school, community activities, honors, work experience, goal setting, and aspirations. As part of the application process, students are asked to fill out an essay. Financial needs are not taken into account.

For more information and to apply, please visit SanFranciscoFCU.com/2021-youth-scholarship.
All applications and materials must be received by May 28, 2021.

Via the San Francisco Federal Credit Union
The San Francisco Federal Credit Union has served San Francisco since 1954 and is non-profit and member-owned. Anyone living, working, worshiping, or attending school in San Francisco or the San Mateo Counties is eligible. The Federal Credit Union of San Francisco is federally insured by the National Credit Union Administration and is an equal housing lender. We provide banking, credit, and securities services to nearly 49,000 members and have assets of $ 1.2 billion. More information is available at SanFranciscoFCU.com

For more informations:
Rob A. Silk
415-615-7012
Rob_Seide@SanFranciscoFCU.com

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