Hello, my Dear Cousins,

Spring is in the air, St. Patrick's Day has come and gone, and Easter is just about here. May each of you have a Blessed Easter and may God fill your hearts with joy, love, and lasting happiness.  We would like to sincerely thank Eustolio and Laura Longoria from Victoria, Texas for their warm hospitality in giving us a most delicious lunch and letting us use the school's facilities for our meeting. We all had a great time visiting and making final arrangements for our Angel of Goliad Alvarez family Reunion to be held in Goliad, Texas on Sunday, April 3rd,2005. Though it was a rainy afternoon in Victoria , we all managed to get much done. We have received 119 reservations for our luncheon and expect at least 200 Alvarez kin. Please make sure to   bring your checkbooks to purchase Angel of Goliad buttons ($6), Direct descendants Badges ($8), Angel of Goliad T-Shirts($12.50) , MEMBERSHIP  DUES FOR 2005-2006 ($25 per family), and K.R.Wood's new CD Los Tejanos Vol.11 featuring The Angel of Goliad Theme song for our organization Price: around $15 or so and Rebecca Valadez new CDs. Price: ? not known at this time.  Proceeds are going to pay for the Reunion expenses. WE are also having door prizes so be sure and keep your ticket stubs which will be given to you at the door. Ray Alvarez will give a presentation on  the Alvarez genealogy. Manuel Munoz and Gilbert Alvarez will have a slide presentation of our website. Entertainment will be provided by Rebecca Valadez and KR Wood Band Group from Austin.  We are expecting kinfolk from Virginia, Maryland, California, Nevada , and all over Texas. Please check our website for hotel reservations at Fairfield Inn in Victoria, Texas about a 30 minute drive to Goliad. We have reserved a block of rooms for our relatives. Be sure and say you belong to the Angel of Goliad Descendants Organization.  WE would like to extend our deepest sympathies to the family of Maria Luisa Quintanilla from Kingsville, Texas. She was the wife of Francisco (Pancho Pistolas) Alvarez Quintanilla. His mother was Rita Alvarez Quintanilla. Pancho Pistolas as he was called was the caretaker of Assault the Triple Crown Winner of the Kentucky Derby in 1947. Maria Luisa was 83 years old and was laid to rest on March 11,2005 in Kingsville, Texas.   

Other news: Congratulations and Best Wishes to Mr. and Mrs. Michael Ramirez of San Antonio, Texas son of Louis and Deanna Ramirez of San Antonio. The happy couple were wed on March 12th in San Antonio, Texas and will honeymoon in Hawaii.  We would also like to thank everyone for your prayers for Ernesto Alvarez, Jr. and Robert Ramirez who are fully recuperating from their surgeries. Prayers are asked for our beloved cousin Rosa Alvarez from New Braunfels, Texas who will be undergoing surgery this month. President Rudy Ramirez  is presently working on a new slate of officers for the upcoming year 2005-2006. A brief meeting of present AOGDHP officers will be held after the reunion on Sunday, April 3rd.  We are all looking forward to meeting cousins we have never met before. WE are truly blessed to have such a beautiful ancestor -The Angel of Goliad-  whose compassion and courage have led many of us to the point we are in our lives today. May our future generations continue our tradition. Be sure and visit her statue at the Presido La Bahia. God Bless our Families , our Military Troops, and THE USA.   

Respectfully submitted,  Herlin Pineda , Rudy Garcia, and Rebecca Shokrian