Edith Hailes was born in a house on the 600 block of Campbell street, her father was an employee of the Railroads. Edith married Jerry Healy and had 5 children. Edith lived in Odessa for 10 years and was named “Odessa Catholic Mother of the Year.” The Healys bought a house on 7881 Alameda and had an acre of fruit and a vegetable garden, located a few block down. In 1983, a car crashed into Edith’s bedroom, luckily she was having lunch at a neighbor’s house. Healy was a founder of the Lower Valley Women’s and was active in the Ysleta Woman’s Club. Edith also helped established the Ysleta Community Center.
Healy also helped in the conversion of the West Ysleta Country Club into The Lady of the Valley Catholic Church. She was a member of the Child Christ Society at Lady of the Valley. Edith was also active in the Cadwallader Elmentary PTA. She was elected to the Board of Trustees of the Ysleta Common School District in 1929 and helped organized the Ysleta Independent School District in 1937. Healy was one of the people responsible for hiring Ysleta’s Longtime Superintendent, J.M. Hanks. Healy served as board secretary and retired in 1948. Edith made aprons that were sold by the Tigua Beauty Shop. She lived a long and energetic life, she died in El Paso in 1991.
-Joseph Longo
