Billie Pickard Willacy County lost another good citizen last week with the death of Billie Pickard.

Billie was honest as they come -- the kind of person you could ask to hold your cash and watch your kids while you were out of town, knowing that everything would be fine when you returned.

She could be tough as nails when the occasion demanded but at the same time she was friendly and helpful to those who needed her help.

If there was one thing Billie despised, it was the waste of, or theft of, the taxpayers money. She would have made an excellent county judge.

She once ran for county treasurer with a vow to eliminate the position if elected. Billie considered the treasurer's office to be a waste of tax dollars because it duplicates activities done by the county auditor.

Billie did not win that election, but since then many Texas counties, including Tarrant (Fort Worth) and Travis (Austin) have done as she suggested and eliminated the county treasurer's office and have the savings to show for it. Billie served several terms on the Raymondville ISD board of trustees including a term as president. During her tenure the budget was balanced and the schools had discipline. She later served on the board of trustees of Pan American University in Edinburg, where she uncovered thousands of wasted tax dollars.

Billie Pickard was highly respected by state officials and together with Anne Armstrong (her friend for many years) was instrumental in building the modern Republican Party of Texas.

When I think of Billie, I think of the term "Steel Magnolia" and I also believe that she could be described as the "Margaret Thatcher" of Willacy County.

The Editor