Paul C. Stahl

JWL CDC, President 

On June 13, 2004 our community lost a good friend.  I wish everyone could have had the good fortune and honor of working side-by-side with the class act that was Roy Huerta.  Those who did know all too much what a tragic loss his untimely passing is for the Jefferson Woodlawn Lake Community.  Those who did not should know that Roy's presence was a true blessing to our community.  He made a difference by leaving this world a better place than when he got here.

Roy was quite simply a man that loved his family, his neighbors and his neighborhood.  He treasured the small things that make the Jefferson Woodlawn Lake area so wonderful; a weekly lunch date at Tip Top Caf‚ with his father, a peaceful morning walk around Woodlawn Lake, the splendor of his alma mater Jefferson High School and, of course, a leisurely round of golf at his beloved Cool Crest.  But of all the characteristics that Roy knew made our area great, he intuitively understood and never lost sight of the fact that you were the true foundation of our community.  He respected the hardworking and fiercely loyal people that shared and loved his neighborhood as much as he did. 

His tireless volunteer work was always centered on doing what was right for the neighborhood.  He always felt we deserved the best.  As the past President of the JWL CDC, he was our steady, calming force who always seemed to know how to chart the best course through the roughest waters.  It is this legacy of dedication and selflessness that has set such an exceptional example of what it means to give back to our community.  In this respect, he has raised the bar for all of us.
 
Of the countless contributions Roy made to his community in his brief 53 years with us (and I don't dare proclaim to know them all), one of the events he loved organizing was the Annual Cool Crest Golf Tournament.  He relished the opportunity to gather with new and old friends to show off his favorite golf course, all the while bragging about what a great place the Jefferson area was to live and play.  It was in this spirit that the Jefferson Woodlawn Lake CDC asked the Huerta Family to consider letting us honor Roy by naming the event after him.  They recently agreed to allow Roy's name to become part of this event that was so special to him.  

Our thoughts and prayers continue to be with Roy's family.  May Roy rest in peace and may his spirit live long and strong, in all of us.

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Carmina Danini

Express-News Staff Writer

Roy Huerta, advertising operations manager at the San Antonio Express-News, died of complications from leukemia Saturday afternoon at Methodist Hospital. He was 53.

Optimistic even after learning in early January that he was ill, Huerta said he began reading about leukemia as he prepared to "give 150 percent."

"I have good doctors, great friends and a lot of faith," he told Express-News Editor Robert Rivard.

Huerta underwent chemotherapy and a successful bone marrow transplant.  He was doing so well that he attended a Spurs game in March and had recently stopped at the newspaper to pick up a pedometer.  But he suffered a relapse a week ago and went into the hospital.

With the Express-News 36 years, Huerta never referred to the people he worked with as co-workers.  "They're family to me," he said.  Huerta knew most everyone at the newspaper, and most everyone knew him because he'd been at the Express-News for so many years.

He was a junior at Jefferson High School in 1968 when he got his first job with the Express-News as a mail clerk.  He also was a part-time copy boy and office clerk, but it didn't take him long to move into management.  He became the night copy supervisor in the dispatch department in 1972, and the next year he was named supervisor in advertising services.

Huerta became assistant ad service manager in 1975, and he moved up to ad service manager four years later.

As manager of advertising operations, it was Huerta's job to oversee the amount of space allocated to editorial — the news hole — and advertising.  When there is a cataclysmic event such as 9-11 or the Columbia shuttle disaster, editors shelve their daily news budgets and prepare for larger editions.  Each time that happened, Huerta was one of the first people editors called.  "When the inevitable conflicts arise on deadline, it's Huerta's job to resolve them, fairly and amicably," Rivard noted in a column earlier this year. "Often enough, in the heat of battle, emotions run strong and one side or the other blames the ref. Somehow, Huerta displays the Wisdom of Solomon and the newspaper gets published."

In this job, few things go right and a lot of things go wrong, but Huerta worked through problems that arose without raising any animosity, said Publisher Larry Walker, who dubbed him "El Rey," or The King.  "I never met an individual more suited to the job than Roy," Walker said.  "That's why I called him 'El Rey,' because he performed that role in such a professional way."  "Roy," Walker added, "took the Express-News from a world of pencils with erasers to the most technology-advanced layout system of any newspaper in the country. Much of the credit has to be attributed to his skills, his intelligence and, above all, his leadership."

Huerta's geniality made him "one of the best-liked and most admired employees at the newspaper," said Tom Stephenson, general manager of the Express-News.  "In our business he had the difficult job of trying to satisfy a number of competing requests, and he always managed to find the solution that everyone could support," Stephenson said. "His contagious enthusiasm for work and life in general will be missed by all of us."

Sergio H. Salinas Sr., vice president of sales and marketing at the newspaper, called Huerta "an exceptional person and dear friend."  "He was an excellent leader who was held in high regard by all," Salinas said. "Roy had a unique bond with his co-workers, and he was willing to go the extra mile for anyone or any project."

If Huerta's job seemed like that of a referee's, it was because he was one in real life.  He was a high school football official for more than three decades.  A member of the San Antonio chapter of the Southwest Football Officials

Association, he sometimes worked six games — both high school and college — a week.  On the football team at Jefferson, he said it was a love for the sport that lured him into officiating.  "I enjoy going out there and giving the game my full attention," Huerta said.

Huerta was president of the American Newspaper Layout Managers Association and an officer on the Deco District board.  He also was a member of the Jefferson Neighborhood Association and the  Jefferson/Woodlawn Lake CDC Board.

He is survived by his wife, Evelyn; a son, Jeffrey of San Antonio; parents Roy A. and Lupe Huerta Sr. of San Antonio; a brother, Ronald Huerta of San Antonio; a sister, Grace Villarreal of San Antonio; three stepsons, Robert Benavides, Joshua Benavides and Buddy de la Rosa, all of San Antonio; and two grandchildren, Ana Benavides and Isaiah Benavides, both of San Antonio.

A Prayer vigil will be held at 7 pm on Tuesday, June 15th, 2004 at St. Paul's Catholic Church, 350 Sutton Drive.

A mass will be held at 10 am on Wednesday, June 16th, 2004 at St. Paul's Catholic Church.  Mission Park Funeral Chapel North.