Memories at 1104 35th Street
By Larry J. Rodarte © The Diaz Observer, November 2005
Way, Way back at the turn of the 20th Century, Galveston Island on September 8, 1900, experienced the deadliest natural disaster in American History— a hurricane that killed over 6,000 people. There have been many since, notably Carla and Cindy in the early 1960's that were devastating to the island. It's a wonder that Uncle Robert and Aunt Rosie Ruiz decided to call this place home. Their eldest Ricky Ruiz remembers arriving on the Island in 1963 for the very first time, right after Hurricane Carla with the island in turmoil. Still, Galveston is a beautiful place in America, and special for any Diaz family member because this is where Tia Rosie raised her family. This place so familiar to me, after several visits in the past 35 years, where I have come to know Tia Rosie Ruiz and her eight children and their families.
I remember a memorable visit in April of 1978, when my family first reacquainted ourselves with the Ruiz family. Tia Rosie seemed so happy to see us — family from back home — and my mom and she embraced with such affection. I remember seeing a girl with long black hair and a big smile leaning on the back of a Lazy Boy chair. Later I found this to be Cousin Yolanda, one of Tia Rosie’s daughters, and she and I bonded in a special way— the way teenagers do through American pop culture. We loved this group called “BRICK” and their self-titled album spawned several hits that we all enjoyed, particularly a song called “Hello.”
We came to know Ricky and Mario quite well because they took my sisters Joann and Nancy and I, all over the Island, first riding up and down the boardwalk overlooking the gulf ocean. I’ll never forget how Mario took us, and his younger sisters to the drive-in theater to see the movie “Saturday Night Fever” with John Travolta. It was the height of the Disco era, and later Ricky and Mario took Joann to a disco on the Island. You should have seen how they dressed; Ricky and Mario in their silk shirts, polyester pants and leather jackets. I think they both thought they were Tony Manero from the movie.
One night the guys talked me into singing into a tape recorder the song “Always and Forever” along with the record by the group “Heatwave.” I did it only after the guys coaxed me by saying “Sing it for mama.” I hope the tape has long been destroyed or somewhere in Galveston there’s an innocent Larry embarrassingly singing his young heart out for his Tia.
What a welcoming we received. We met Ana and her new boyfriend Robert Garza, who she had to keep on the down-low, because if her brothers found out, especially Ricky, the relationship could have been over. Ana was so nice, and it was easy to like her endearing nature.
Bobby was newly married with his bride Margie and he sure had a funny way of addressing us when he spoke saying, “So how do YA’LL like Texas.” I thought “Wow,” what a southern drawl. In fact they all used that term, every one of them, along with “soda water” when referring to “pop.”
Arturo was quiet and not around much because he had met a young lady named Liz. I think it was Liz, well, anyway something was preoccupying his time. (A few years later he took her for his bride.) And then there was Rosalie and Delores, the two youngest members of the family. “Ro” was quiet too, but was always so helpful and “Lolis” as Tia Rosie called her was a T-R-I-P! Being three years younger than Rosalie and I, it was funny how she made us go in a dark closet that had a long chest-of-drawers with a mirror, she would reach up and pull the chord turning out the light. There the three of us stood calling “Bloody Mary come forth” until Delores couldn’t take it anymore crashing through the door screaming her fool head off. Man was that fun!
And last but not least was Ricky’s children; 5 year-old Diana and 3 year-old “Lil” Ricky, who loved to jump and hang on me for some reason. They were the first of Tia Rosie and Tio Robert’s many grandchildren.
It’s always a pleasure to spend time with the Galveston cousins, and I guess they were happy to see me too in April, as I got a whip-cream pie in the face and was forced to don a sombrero as a waiter took a picture during our supper at a restaurant. Thank you Ricky and Arturo. Watching Tia Rosie laugh at me made it all worth while.
The 1978 trip wasn’t the first time I had been to Galveston Island. The first time was ten years earlier in 1968, with my mom, brother and sisters and my Grandpa Joe Diaz.
I remember only fragments of that trip since I was so little. Still, I can tell you about a funny memory from that visit. Grandpa Joe and some of the Ruiz boys were with us and we headed for the boardwalk on the Island. Now I can’t say which cousins these were, but most likely Ricky, Bobby and Mario. If I was 4, then Ricky was 15 and the twins 14. I guess Tia Rosie told them to be our tour guides. I remember there were a lot of souvenir shops there above the seawall with blown-up mermaids that welcomed you at the entrance.
In 1968 they had this little pink train that would pull tourists up and down the boardwalk. We all got on. Somewhere on the boardwalk the train stopped by a souvenir shop and I distinctly remember hearing “96 Tears” by Question Mark and the Mysterians blaring out of the speakers.
Now how can a 4 year-old boy be aware and remember this song and that it was played at the moment? Well, I did because of the way the Ruiz brothers reacted. You have to remember, this was 1968 and “96 Tears” hit No. 1 on the Billboard charts on October 28, 1966, so it was still a popular song.
Anyway, in my mind I can see the Ruiz brothers get off the pink train excitedly, saying, “They’re from back home, they’re from back home!” And my mom said “Yes” as if she had to confirm it. I’m pretty sure they started dancing a little, because I looked down at their brown penny loafers moving to the beat. My God, do any of you Ruiz brothers remember this?
There are some great photos of Tia Della and her family when they would go see Tia Rosie. You can see the young Chanataca girls mingling with the Ruiz kids, and Johny and Danny there too. When Ana did marry Robert a lot of family members descending to Galveston, for her big day. Uncle Willy and Tia Dora came and Yvonne, and while we all stayed around Tia's big house, Uncle Willy went around drawing mustaches on those of us who were knocked out from the day's festivities. It was hillarious to some of the unknowing victims.
Ana's wedding was such a joyous time for the Diaz family, even Tia Catalina, Grandma Cecilia's sister from Houston, came with some of her daughters. It was a unique gathering because all the tias, Della, Dora, Rosie, and even Uncle Ralph, got to take a picture with Tia Catalina and Ana.
Through the years, I guess it’s sort of a tradition to take pictures on the steps of Tia Rosie’s house on 35th Street. So when I visited this year, all those present gathered on the front porch and they posed laughing as I tried to get that one good shot with everyone’s eyes open. Somewhere in the midst of that great photo shoot, the idea of whether we were having a family reunion was asked? I said I really didn’t know, I really hadn’t given it much thought. More discussion and urging followed and in the end I said “If we do have it next year, promise me you will all try to come — especially those of you who haven’t made a reunion yet — Mario, Arturo, Yolanda, Delores etc. They all agreed and I remember hearing Bobby telling his brother and sister, “If Ya’ll do go, ya’ll sure be glad you did!”
That pink house at 1104 35th St. has changed color through the years, but it still has that grand porch with so many memories of family gatherings. From the Ruiz family of the late 60's to the Ruiz family with tons of grandchildren, Galveston is a special place because our beloved Tia Rosie—Grandpa Senobio's quiet daughter—lived out her American Dream here and welcomed us to her home. We Love you Tia Rosie!
I remember a memorable visit in April of 1978, when my family first reacquainted ourselves with the Ruiz family. Tia Rosie seemed so happy to see us — family from back home — and my mom and she embraced with such affection. I remember seeing a girl with long black hair and a big smile leaning on the back of a Lazy Boy chair. Later I found this to be Cousin Yolanda, one of Tia Rosie’s daughters, and she and I bonded in a special way— the way teenagers do through American pop culture. We loved this group called “BRICK” and their self-titled album spawned several hits that we all enjoyed, particularly a song called “Hello.”
We came to know Ricky and Mario quite well because they took my sisters Joann and Nancy and I, all over the Island, first riding up and down the boardwalk overlooking the gulf ocean. I’ll never forget how Mario took us, and his younger sisters to the drive-in theater to see the movie “Saturday Night Fever” with John Travolta. It was the height of the Disco era, and later Ricky and Mario took Joann to a disco on the Island. You should have seen how they dressed; Ricky and Mario in their silk shirts, polyester pants and leather jackets. I think they both thought they were Tony Manero from the movie.
One night the guys talked me into singing into a tape recorder the song “Always and Forever” along with the record by the group “Heatwave.” I did it only after the guys coaxed me by saying “Sing it for mama.” I hope the tape has long been destroyed or somewhere in Galveston there’s an innocent Larry embarrassingly singing his young heart out for his Tia.
What a welcoming we received. We met Ana and her new boyfriend Robert Garza, who she had to keep on the down-low, because if her brothers found out, especially Ricky, the relationship could have been over. Ana was so nice, and it was easy to like her endearing nature.
Bobby was newly married with his bride Margie and he sure had a funny way of addressing us when he spoke saying, “So how do YA’LL like Texas.” I thought “Wow,” what a southern drawl. In fact they all used that term, every one of them, along with “soda water” when referring to “pop.”
Arturo was quiet and not around much because he had met a young lady named Liz. I think it was Liz, well, anyway something was preoccupying his time. (A few years later he took her for his bride.) And then there was Rosalie and Delores, the two youngest members of the family. “Ro” was quiet too, but was always so helpful and “Lolis” as Tia Rosie called her was a T-R-I-P! Being three years younger than Rosalie and I, it was funny how she made us go in a dark closet that had a long chest-of-drawers with a mirror, she would reach up and pull the chord turning out the light. There the three of us stood calling “Bloody Mary come forth” until Delores couldn’t take it anymore crashing through the door screaming her fool head off. Man was that fun!
And last but not least was Ricky’s children; 5 year-old Diana and 3 year-old “Lil” Ricky, who loved to jump and hang on me for some reason. They were the first of Tia Rosie and Tio Robert’s many grandchildren.
It’s always a pleasure to spend time with the Galveston cousins, and I guess they were happy to see me too in April, as I got a whip-cream pie in the face and was forced to don a sombrero as a waiter took a picture during our supper at a restaurant. Thank you Ricky and Arturo. Watching Tia Rosie laugh at me made it all worth while.
The 1978 trip wasn’t the first time I had been to Galveston Island. The first time was ten years earlier in 1968, with my mom, brother and sisters and my Grandpa Joe Diaz.
I remember only fragments of that trip since I was so little. Still, I can tell you about a funny memory from that visit. Grandpa Joe and some of the Ruiz boys were with us and we headed for the boardwalk on the Island. Now I can’t say which cousins these were, but most likely Ricky, Bobby and Mario. If I was 4, then Ricky was 15 and the twins 14. I guess Tia Rosie told them to be our tour guides. I remember there were a lot of souvenir shops there above the seawall with blown-up mermaids that welcomed you at the entrance.
In 1968 they had this little pink train that would pull tourists up and down the boardwalk. We all got on. Somewhere on the boardwalk the train stopped by a souvenir shop and I distinctly remember hearing “96 Tears” by Question Mark and the Mysterians blaring out of the speakers.
Now how can a 4 year-old boy be aware and remember this song and that it was played at the moment? Well, I did because of the way the Ruiz brothers reacted. You have to remember, this was 1968 and “96 Tears” hit No. 1 on the Billboard charts on October 28, 1966, so it was still a popular song.
Anyway, in my mind I can see the Ruiz brothers get off the pink train excitedly, saying, “They’re from back home, they’re from back home!” And my mom said “Yes” as if she had to confirm it. I’m pretty sure they started dancing a little, because I looked down at their brown penny loafers moving to the beat. My God, do any of you Ruiz brothers remember this?
There are some great photos of Tia Della and her family when they would go see Tia Rosie. You can see the young Chanataca girls mingling with the Ruiz kids, and Johny and Danny there too. When Ana did marry Robert a lot of family members descending to Galveston, for her big day. Uncle Willy and Tia Dora came and Yvonne, and while we all stayed around Tia's big house, Uncle Willy went around drawing mustaches on those of us who were knocked out from the day's festivities. It was hillarious to some of the unknowing victims.
Ana's wedding was such a joyous time for the Diaz family, even Tia Catalina, Grandma Cecilia's sister from Houston, came with some of her daughters. It was a unique gathering because all the tias, Della, Dora, Rosie, and even Uncle Ralph, got to take a picture with Tia Catalina and Ana.
Through the years, I guess it’s sort of a tradition to take pictures on the steps of Tia Rosie’s house on 35th Street. So when I visited this year, all those present gathered on the front porch and they posed laughing as I tried to get that one good shot with everyone’s eyes open. Somewhere in the midst of that great photo shoot, the idea of whether we were having a family reunion was asked? I said I really didn’t know, I really hadn’t given it much thought. More discussion and urging followed and in the end I said “If we do have it next year, promise me you will all try to come — especially those of you who haven’t made a reunion yet — Mario, Arturo, Yolanda, Delores etc. They all agreed and I remember hearing Bobby telling his brother and sister, “If Ya’ll do go, ya’ll sure be glad you did!”
That pink house at 1104 35th St. has changed color through the years, but it still has that grand porch with so many memories of family gatherings. From the Ruiz family of the late 60's to the Ruiz family with tons of grandchildren, Galveston is a special place because our beloved Tia Rosie—Grandpa Senobio's quiet daughter—lived out her American Dream here and welcomed us to her home. We Love you Tia Rosie!
