Aminta C. Zarate

Aminta “Amy” Cavazos Zarate, 97, was called to be with the Lord on Thursday, December 3, 2015 at Doctors Hospital at Renaissance in Edinburg.  She was born in Laredo, TX on Friday, September 27, 1918 to Amado Cavazos, Jr. and Sofia Anzaldua Cavazos.  She joins in celebration her husband; Julian Zarate, daughter; Sophia (Dr. Armando) Arechiga, parents, 3 - brothers and 3 - sisters.  Aminta was a loving daughter, sister, wife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother who will be dearly missed by all whose lives she touched.
Aminta is a 5th generation direct descendant of Jose Narciso Cavazos who was the original owner of San Juan De Carrizitos, the largest Spanish Land Grant ever bestowed by the King of Spain on February 22, 1792.  It comprised 604,000 acres that covered present day Willacy, Kenney, Cameron, and Hidalgo Counties.  This land had been selected for the King by Spanish Conquistadors for the fertile and luscious valley of the Rio Grande River with its mouth on the Gulf of Mexico.  The site of San Juan De Carrizitos Land Grant made an excellent port of entry via this great ocean and the Royal Crown of Spain granted that land to Jose Narciso Cavazos, one of his most trusted Spanish settlers.
In 1978, Aminta and her husband, Julian, with the essence of excellence and enduring stamina, captured the vibrant history of the Spanish and Mexican Land Grants in Texas.  It was through unwavering efforts that Aminta transcended the test of time to link thousands of today’s descendants of the Spanish and Mexican Land Grants in Texas with their ancestral roots.  Many private and legal groups of today are actually trying to replicate her efforts relating the baffling and perplexing true story of the Spanish and Mexican Land Grants in Texas through the efforts of Aminta.  You can Google: Aminta Cavazos Zarate to learn more about the Spanish and Mexican Land Grants in Texas.
Aminta is the daughter of Amado Cavazos, Jr who in 1927 was one of the founding members of Edinburg College which is the present day University of Texas RGV.
Her family will mourn her loss, but cherish her memories.  She is survived by her daughters; Yolanda Imelda Zarate and Carlota “Charlie” (Polo) Zarate Flores, two granddaughters; Sandra Aminta Flores and Sofia (PR) Flores Avila, two great-granddaughters; Samantha Julian Flores and Isabella Sofia Avila, sister; Sofia Antonieta “Toni” Ortega, sisters-in-law; Eloisa Garza De Cavazos and Mindy Cavazos, numerous nieces and nephews.
Aminta’s family will receive family and friends today, Sunday, December 6, 2015 from 4:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. with a Holy Rosary to be prayed at 6:00pm in the Chapel of Peace at Ceballos-Diaz Funeral Home, 322 East Kuhn Street in Edinburg.  Christian Mass will be held on Monday, December 7, 2015 at 10:00 a.m. at Holy Family Catholic Church, 1302 East Champion Street in Edinburg, TX.  Christian burial will follow to the family cemetery; El Nino Jesus De Praga Cemetery at La Noria Cardenena Ranch in north Edinburg. Ceballos-Diaz Funeral Home in Edinburg is in charge of funeral services.

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