Frances Garcia (born June 4, 1938) is a former American politician. She served as mayor of
Hutchinson, Kansas
Hutchinson is the largest city in and the county seat of Reno County, Kansas, Reno County, Kansas, United States. The city is located on the Arkansas River. It has been home to salt mines since 1887 (thus its nickname of "Salt City") but locals ...
, from 1985 to 1986 and again from 1989 to 1990, becoming the first Hispanic woman mayor in the
Midwestern United States
The Midwestern United States (also referred to as the Midwest, the Heartland or the American Midwest) is one of the four census regions defined by the United States Census Bureau. It occupies the northern central part of the United States. It ...
.
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Background
The daughter of Joe G. Calvilo and Micaela Chavez, both Mexican immigrants, she was born Frances Calvillo in Hutchinson and was educated at Hutchinson High School. She received a business certificate from Salt City Business College and an associate bachelor's degree in liberal arts from Hutchinson Community College
Hutchinson Community College (HutchCC or HCC) is a Public college, public community college in Hutchinson, Kansas. It serves nearly 5,000 credit students every semester.
History
The college was established in the spring of 1928 as Hutchinson Ju ...
. In 1960, she married John T. Garcia; the couple had two sons. In 1966, she began work as a credit officer for the Wells Department Store. By 1968, she was working as clerk typist at the Reno County
Reno County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. Its county seat and largest city is Hutchinson. As of the 2020 census, the population was 61,898. The county is named for Jesse Reno, a general during the Civil War.
History
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Clerk's office. In 1972, Garcia became a savings consultant and loan secretary. She left this job after encountering back problems. From 1983 to 1990, she was a volunteer outreach worker and interpreter for the Hutchinson Methodist Ministry.[
Garcia ran for a seat on Hutchinson city council and won the position of mayor, taking office in April 1985 and serving until April 1986. She served as city commissioner for three more years. She ran unsuccessfully for a seat in the ]Kansas Senate
The Kansas Senate is the upper house of the Kansas Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. State of Kansas. It is composed of 40 senators elected from single-member districts, each with a population of about 73,000 inhabitants. Members o ...
in 1988. She served another term as Hutchinson mayor from April 1989 to April 1990.[
She was recognized by the ]League of United Latin American Citizens
The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) is the largest and oldest Hispanic and Latin-American civil rights organization in the United States. It was established on February 17, 1929, in Corpus Christi, Texas, largely by Hispanic and ...
(LULAC) in 1985 and again at LULAC's women's symposium the following year.[ In 2010, she received the Hank Lacayo Lifetime Achievement Award from the United States Hispanic Leadership Institute.]
See also
* List of mayors of Hutchinson, Kansas
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Garcia, Frances
1938 births
Living people
20th-century American women politicians
20th-century mayors of places in Kansas
American politicians of Mexican descent
People from Hutchinson, Kansas
Hutchinson Community College alumni
Women mayors of places in Kansas
21st-century American women