Recipient of Adela Guerra Endowed Scholarship at A&M International Named

The first student recipient of the Adela Guerra Endowed Scholarship at Texas A&M International University has been named.

Vanessa Hinojosa, a 1999 United High School graduate, will receive the scholarship established to cherish the memory of the late Adela Guerra, who died in 1995 after a tragic automobile accident.

Hinojosa is an entering freshman who plans a major in Education with a focus on Early Childhood and Bilingual Education at A&M International.

At UHS, she was a member and treasurer of the National Honor Society, provided more than 100 hours of community service as part of her Interact club and graduated in the top 10% of her class. She is the daughter of Guadalupe and Lucinda Hinojosa.

The Adela Guerra Endowed Scholarship was established in 1997 by her husband, Manuel Guerra, former American Consul at Nuevo Laredo, and his daughters Lisa Stevens, Kathy Guerra and Christina Gutierrez.

Born in New York City, Adela Lleverino spent her childhood in Mexico City and demonstrated an early talent for dance, studying at the School of Ballet at Mexico's Bellas Artes.

She attended Laredo's Martin High School, garnering numerous awards and honors for her Mexican and Spanish dance performances. She later earned a degree in elementary education at San Antonio's Our Lady of Lake College and began a teaching career.

She married Guerra in 1963 and accompanied him over the next 25 years to foreign service posts in Spain, Liberia, Italy, Colombia and Ireland. She often taught at local elementary schools.

The Guerras returned to Laredo in the 1980s and Guerra taught at Trautmann Elementary School while her husband served as American Consul at Nuevo Laredo.

During his later assignment at the Inter-American Defense College (IADC) in Washington, D.C., Guerra accompanied her husband on many trips to US military establishments in Central and South America, frequently hosting programs for spouses of IADC officers.

The couple returned to Laredo upon Guerra's retirement in 1993 and Guerra dedicated her time to the family home on Lane Street and their historic ranch, Las Albercas.

Individuals interested in joining the family in cherishing the memory of Adela Guerra can do so by providing donations to the Adela Guerra Endowed Scholarship at Texas A&M International University.

Donations can be mailed to Texas A&M International University's Office of Institutional Advancement, 5201 University Boulevard, Laredo, Texas, 78041-1990.

For additional information, please call the office at 326.2175 or email to lmorales@tamiu.edu.

University office hours are from 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. Monday-Friday.

Journalists who need additional information or help with media requests and interviews should contact the Office of Public Affairs and Information Services at pais@tamiu.edu