Category Archives: Industry

UTRGV Launches Addiction Studies Online

Education Healthcare News Comments
Bruce Reed, UTRGV professor of rehabilitation services and counseling and director of the School of Rehabilitation Services and Counseling

With the start of classes on Aug. 27, the UTRGV School of Rehabilitation Services and Counseling will offer a new bachelor of science degree in Addiction Studies completely online. The degree program meets all education requirements for positions as a licensed chemical dependency counselor in Texas. “For professionals already working in the substance abuse field, this provides a flexible way to earn a degree and advance in careers,” said Bruce Reed. Reed serves as both…

Read More

TSTC Receives Toyota Donation

Education Featured Manufacturing/Industrial News Comments
TSTC Toyota donation

Texas State Technical College’s Mechatronics Technology students will soon have labs equipped with two robotic arms to program and maintain as part of their hands-on training, thanks to Toyota. “Toyota’s donation is really important for our college, our program and our students,” said Lead Mechatronics instructor Eldwin Leija. “This allows us to expand our training and create more marketable graduates.” The donated robotic arms have built more than two million…

Read More

McAllen Airport to Improve Safety

Featured News Transportation & Travel Comments
McAllen International Airport

The McAllen International Airport was recently awarded $2.06 million in Federal Aviation Administration Airport Improvement Grant funds. The money will improve safety as well as replace aging infrastructure at the airport. “The McAllen International Airport is the gateway to the world for all traveling to and from our city,” said McAllen Mayor Jim Darling.  “With these funds, the City of McAllen will be able to invest in the necessary improvements…

Read More

Port of Brownsville Releases New Directory

Featured Manufacturing/Industrial News Comments
Port of Brownsville directory 2018

The 2018 comprehensive director of the Port of Brownsville has been released and is available online and by hard copy. The marketing and communications tool is an annual guide featuring in-depth articles, facts and details about the port and related industries. The full color, 88-page publication serves as a guide for prospective clients looking to establish business opportunities in the region. The community may also peruse it to learn more…

Read More

Habitat for Humanity Opens New ReStore in Harlingen

e-Brief Features Featured News Non-Profit Retail Comments
ReStore Harlingen interior

The Habitat for Humanity ReStore in Harlingen opened the doors of its new location this week in a renovated building made possible by a groundswell of community support. The building on First Street formerly housed Loaves and Fishes. It was acquired by Habitat for Humanity early this year along with the former Zarsky’s Lumber property across the street. The eight-month inside-and-out renovation project was made possible by tens of thousands…

Read More

Turning Vision into Success

News Real Estate Comments
Frank and Haydee Del Angel have built a successful business constructing high-end homes. (VBR)

Frank Del Angel started out with the aspiration to be an accountant. Working his way through college at then-Pan American University, the Harlingen native discovered via a job at a downtown McAllen men’s clothing store that he a talent for another skill – sales. He would parlay that ability to join a major homebuilder. It would lay the foundation for future success. Del Angel got a job with U.S. Homes…

Read More

Bagging it by the Billions

Manufacturing/Industrial News Comments
Duro Bag operations manager Carlos Vela shows some of the many paper bags the company produces for restaurants and other businesses. (VBR)

That familiar orange and white paper bag filled with your favorite Whataburger sandwich and sides has Texas roots as deep as the hamburger chain itself; it was manufactured in Brownsville. The same goes for bags bearing the logos of Dairy Queen, Chick-Fil-A, Wendy’s, Popeye’s and Laredo Taco Company at neighborhood Stripes stores, to name just a few. Duro Bag, the only non-marine manufacturer at the Port of Brownsville, is also…

Read More

Entrepreneurial Enthusiasm

Finance/Banking News Professional Services Comments
WycoTax owner Christopher Wycoco, second from right, with his team at the company’s Harlingen office. (VBR)

Christopher Wycoco was the first man to graduate from the Entrepreneur Boot Camp at the Women’s Business Center of Cameron County. This year, the Women’s Business Center nominated him for, and he received, the 2018 Minority Business of the Year Award from the Small Business Administration. A native of the Philippines, Wycoco came to the Rio Grande Valley to pursue a career as a registered nurse, taking a position at…

Read More

Changing Lives with Music

Healthcare News Comments
Board certified Music Therapist Marisa de Leon, who plays a wide range of instruments, helps patients regain their ability to walk, move, remember and talk. (VBR)

Talk about a huge learning curve. Before board certified music therapist Marisa de Leon opened her business RGV Music Therapy and Wellness Center in May 2017, she had never held a full-time job other than a professional internship. One year later, de Leon is so busy seeing clients across the Valley that she recently contracted the services of another music therapist and transitioned to an LLC from a sole proprietorship.…

Read More

Downhome Goodness Served Here

Food & Entertainment News Comments
Longhorn owners Lisa and Bill Turner have found success with a downhome atmosphere and good food. (VBR)

It’s hard to believe now in seeing the robust business and overflowing lunch crowds at the Longhorn Cattle Company Barbeque & Steak Company, but at one point the San Benito restaurant was starving for business. “We put up a sign by the expressway that said, ‘Come and eat with us before we both starve,’” said Lisa Turner, who with her husband Bill, own and operate one of the more popular…

Read More