STORIES FROM THE PAST
50 years ago
The first Anglo-American child born in Holtville, Mrs. Mariella Webb Busenberg, will visit her parents Saturday for a joint anniversary-Father’s Day celebration.
Mr. and Mrs. Sam Webb Sr., residents of Holtville since 1904, observed their 65th wedding anniversary this week.
The celebration will await the arrival of their daughter from San Diego and their son, Sam Jr., Saturday.
It will be a very quiet celebration. Present, besides their son and daughter and their families, will be Mrs. Mary Pattterson, sister of Mr. Webb, and Mrs. E.M. Carpenter, sister of Mrs. Webb. Mrs. Patterson was a bridesmaid at the Phoenix wedding in 1902.
When Mr. and Mrs. Webb were married, he was a bookkeeper for the old Arizona Gazette newspaper.
He was 19, she 16. His father owned the paper; one of the reporters was the now Arizona Sen. Carl Hayden.
40 years ago
El Centro today became a shipping point for mature green and pink tomatoes for the first time in more than 25 years, with the opening of a new tomato packing shed on Commercial Avenue.
Nearly 130 workers were on hand for the start of operations at the M and M packing shed, which began packing at 10 a.m.
According to Al Droubie, part owner, the operation is in a extensively rebuilt facility formerly owned by Eckel Produce of Salinas, which withdrew from the Valley last season.
Droubie said $260,000 was spent to bring the shed up to its present 12,000 square-foot size, with the addition of concrete loading docks a new roof, Penwall Decco automatic grading and sizing equipment, and other improvements.
The shed will pack as much as 15,000 30-pound cartons of the tomatoes each eight-hour shift, said Droubie, and “could easily pack 30,000 cartons” in a double shift.
30 years ago
Police said an El Centro man was shot in the back Wednesday night when a gunman opened fire on a group of interested onlookers and a work party who were adding final touches to the interior of a soon-toopen beer and sandwich parlor in downtown El Centro.
A former Heber resident was booked at county jail on suspicion of attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon in connection with the shooting incident.
Det. Pete Serna said the gunman fired five rounds from a .38 caliber pistol from the doorway of “Primo’s Deli & Wine” about 9 p.m.
20 years ago
CALEXICO — In some respects, said Dan Floyd, the new port director at the Calexico Port of Entry, being a U.S. Customs agent hasn’t changed much in his 22 years with the service.
“You stand in a primary inspection booth and let people cross,” he said.
“It’s not much different being one in Calexico in 1997 than in 1975.
The only difference is guns were optional (for inspectors) in 1975.”
Floyd, 48, took over as port director earlier this month, replacing Hilda Treviño.
He came here from El Paso, Texas, where he was supervisor of the operation analysis staff, and previously has been the port director in both Jackman, Maine, and Derby Line, Vt.
There are, however, differences between being director of a small port on the tranquil northern border with Quebec and being director of an area that has three ports (Calexico, Calexico East and Andrade) and state-of-theart X-ray equipment to help detect drugs.
Plus it snows a lot less here, and, since by treaty Canadians have a legal right to be in this country, there aren’t a flood of Canadians rushing to illegally enter Vermont.
The exact opposite is true in the Calexico area, which has been particularly plagued by an influx of illegal crossers from Mexico in recent months.