Onate Dedication

Jody Polk Schwartz is a professional photographer who has specialized in child and family photography in environmental settings for 25 years. She has won many awards and has produced postcards for many years entitled “Images of El Paso” depicting the colorful and authentic flavor of the border metropolis of El Paso and Ciudad Juarez. Jody has studied in Switzerland and France and graduated from the College of William and Mary. She has volunteered for many civic organizations and was involved with a small tour company that took women to France for 20 years. One of her proudest accomplishments was being a part of the small group of dedicated volunteers who saw to the successful completion of the don Juan de Oñate monument, located at the entrance of the El Paso International Airport, in April of 2007. It was sculpted by John Houser and his son Ethan Houser. It weighs 17 tons and is the largest equestrian bronze in the world. Jody was the fund raising co-chair of the XII Travelers Memorial of the Southwest Board, which raised over 1.25 million dollars over a 10-year period to make the monument a reality. She was an inductee in El Paso’s Women’s Hall of Fame in the arts category in 2000, principally for her participation as a board member of the XII Travelers Memorial of the Southwest non-profit board. The board was formed to support the vision of sculptor John Houser, which is to highlight the 400 year rich history of El Paso and the region through the creation of over-life size monuments in downtown El Paso. http://www.nmhcpl.org/Do_a_Eufemia_Award.html

Area: Eastside / El Paso Int'l Airport