An example of change; tornado leader
By Terry Greenberg
Avalanche-Journal Editor
98
David Gutierrez
1953 - present
Lubbock County’s sheriff is as well known for his singing as he is for a decade leading the sheriff’s department, where he’s worked since 1977, after graduating from Texas Tech.
But his place in history as the county’s first Hispanic sheriff is an example of how the community has changed ... where the perception was a Hispanic could never win a countywide race.
The first Hispanic candidate to run for countywide office received 13 percent of the vote, said Judge Sam Medina, the first Hispanic to win a countywide election. By the time Gutierrez won election in 1998, he received 84 percent of the vote.
“It shows how our community has grown,” said Medina, a longtime friend of the sheriff. “The community elected the best person for the job and they didn’t care what color they were.”
97
James Granbury
1932 - present
The orthodontist served one term as mayor, only nine years after moving to Lubbock, but what a term it was.
Granberry will always be known as the mayor who led Lubbock after the deadly May 11, 1970 tornado.
His actions immediately after the tornado and during the recovery moved him into the state and national spotlight.
At a 1972 dinner held in his honor, Jasy Eagan, said, “Over the past two years he has done yeoman duty, taking time away from his family, his business and other personal interests to work for the citizens.”
When elected, he was Lubbock’s youngest mayor, following time as a member of the city council.
He did not run for re-election, but was the Republican nominee for governor in 1974. He lost to Dolph Briscoe.
He later became chair of the state Parole Board, resigning in 1991 to work as a parole consultant.
He later pled guilty to a federal perjury charge connected to his parole business. He now lives in the Metroplex.
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