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Hector Vincent Carrillo Barreto Sr. was a
Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more ...
entrepreneur. He was an advocate for the political and economic growth of Mexican-Americans and Latinos. Barreto Sr. was a founder of the
United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce The United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (USHCC) is the largest Hispanic business organization in the United States. It was founded in 1979 and is headquartered in Washington, DC. The chamber promotes the economic growth and development ...
(USHCC) and served as part of President Ronald Reagan's transition team.


Early life

Barreto Sr. was born in
Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico Guadalajara ( , ) is a metropolis in western Mexico and the capital of the state of Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population of 1,385,629 people, making it the 7th largest city by population in Mexico, while the Guadalajar ...
, on August 23, 1935. Although he could have attended college, Barreto dropped out high school his junior year. By age 16, he worked alongside his father as a livestock dealer, where he was earning about $200 a day. He eventually began his own business, but by the age of 17, he lost it all. In 1958, Barreto immigrated to the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...
where he worked in agriculture picking potatoes in a farm near
Corning, Missouri Corning is a village in Holt County, Missouri, United States. The population was 3 at the 2020 census. The village is named for Erastus Corning who owned sizeable shares of the Chicago, Burlington, and Quincy Railroad and who is the namesake of ...
. In 1960, Barreto married Mary Louise Tejeda, and settled in
Independence, Missouri Independence is the fifth-largest city in Missouri and the county seat of Jackson County. Independence is a satellite city of Kansas City, Missouri, and is the largest suburb on the Missouri side of the Kansas City metropolitan area. In 2020 ...
. In order to support his growing family, Barreto worked two jobs: one working in a meatpacking house in
Kansas City, Kansas Kansas City, abbreviated as "KCK", is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas, and the county seat of Wyandotte County. It is an inner suburb of the older and more populous Kansas City, Missouri, after which it is named. As of ...
, and the second laying tracks for the
Missouri Pacific Railroad The Missouri Pacific Railroad , commonly abbreviated as MoPac, was one of the first railroads in the United States west of the Mississippi River. MoPac was a Class I railroad growing from dozens of predecessors and mergers. In 1967, the railroad ...
. Barreto immigrated to the US in his early twenties, and started working as a potato digger on a farm in Missouri. He then moved to Kansas City, where he worked as a school custodian and in a packinghouse to save money to open a restaurant. Despite working as a manual laborer, he never lost his entrepreneur spirit. Barreto visited numerous banks in hopes of obtaining a loan to open a restaurant, yet banks rejected his applications citing he had "no track record" of being a businessman. After 10 rejections, Barreto decided to borrow a $5,000 high interest home improvement loan to open his restaurant. With his wife, Mary Louise Tejeda Barreto, he opened Mexico Lindo Restaurant in 1966 in Independence, MO. eventually, he owned three more restaurants, a title company, and a construction firm in Kansas City. He noticed that other Hispanic business owners had disadvantages in the Kansas City area, so in 1978 he formed the Kansas City Hispanic Chamber of Commerce in 1978 with other Hispanic business owners. The United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (USHCC) was inspired by this effort; it was incorporated in New Mexico in 1979. Barreto was the first president of the USHCC, which was originally based in Kansas City. He was named Chairman Emeritus of the organization, and is a member of the League of United Latin American Citizen's Hall of Fame. The USHCC has a scholarship fund named in his honor. Barreto worked as an adviser on Latino perspectives for Carter, Reagan, and the first Bush administration. He became a part of Reagan's "kitchen cabinet". His son,
Hector Barreto Jr. Hector Vincent Barreto Jr. (born May 13, 1961) is an American public servant who served as the 21st Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration, confirmed on July 25, 2001. George W. Bush nominated him to the post. He resigned on July ...
, was the administrator of the
Small Business Administration The United States Small Business Administration (SBA) is an independent agency of the United States government that provides support to entrepreneurs and small businesses. The mission of the Small Business Administration is "to maintain and str ...
under
George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...
.


Death

Hector Barreto Sr. died on May 14, 2004, in his hometown of Guadalajara, after a battle with pancreatic cancer. After his death, the
USHCC The United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (USHCC) is the largest Hispanic business organization in the United States. It was founded in 1979 and is headquartered in Washington, DC. The chamber promotes the economic growth and development of ...
Foundation established a scholarship fund in his honor.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barreto, Hector, Sr. 1935 births 2004 deaths People from Guadalajara, Jalisco Philanthropists from the Kansas City metropolitan area 20th-century Mexican businesspeople American restaurateurs 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century American philanthropists