Judy Cathey Trevino

From living at Possum Kingdom Lake to traveling through her job at Southwest Airlines, Judy Cathey Trevino’s life has been full of interesting experiences. A recent retiree, Trevino is now looking forward to traveling the country and spending time with her family.

Trevino, the youngest of five children, attended Dublin schools until her junior year, when her parents retired to Stonewall, Texas. Although Trevino graduated from Fredericksburg High School, she remains connected to her Dublin friends. ”I still stay in touch with all my Dublin classmates and even attend class reunions,” she said.

After she graduated high school, Trevino got married and she and her then-husband moved to Possum Kingdom Lake for his job with the Brazos River Authority.

“We lived there for about four years and then it was time to move on,” she said. “It was fun. I was young, and it was a great time to be there. We had no cares. But then I sort of grew up and had to go get a real job.”

She attended Weatherford College to earn her basics, and in 1980 she found a job through a friend working for Southwest Airlines in the reservations department.

In 1981 the reservations department moved to San Antonio, and Trevino moved with it. The job she did back then doesn’t exist the same way now, thanks to the internet.

“Most people make their reservations online now,” she said. “In the days when I started, although we did have computers, our computer screen was like four inches square. You called and said where you wanted to go and we gave you the schedule and made your reservation.”

Trevino also spent time working in the services department, where she helped with group bookings and conventions.

Throughout more than 20 years at Southwest, Trevino’s favorite part of the job was spending time with her coworkers.

“I made some of the best friends I’ve ever had there,” she said. “It was a fun atmosphere because it was a travel thing. Some days would get really tedious because you’re sitting there on the phone all day just getting up for whatever breaks you have. But the people and the camaraderie there was great. We had things after work where we got together and we learned the town.”

Trevino also got to travel for free with the job, which was exciting. “I learned to ski,” she said. “I went to Hawaii.”

In 1984, Trevino and her husband separated. She stayed single for a few years, then in 1993 she remarried to Geronimo Trevino III, who she’d met through a mutual friend. Geronimo was a country singer and a chocolate seller, and the couple married in Las Vegas (he dressed as Elvis for the wedding).

After working at Southwest for 24 years, Trevino decided to retire from the company in 2004 to help Geronimo with his business selling chocolate wholesale.

Then, in 2013, she decided to start looking for another job, and found one at Operation Homefront, a nonprofit military service organization that helps military families. She worked as national program manager, helping engage communities around the country and raise awareness for the organizations.

Trevino retired from Operation Homefront in June, and is taking some time to relax and plan her future travels. “The first place I’m going to go is Big Bend here in Texas,” she said. “We’re going with a couple of friends — actually, the person who introduced me to my husband.”

They plan on going to a bluegrass festival in Alpine and then exploring Terlingua and other places in the Big Bend area. “We’ve been before,” she said. “My husband’s a musician and he has played the big chili cook off. We love it down there. It’s just beautiful scenery.”

Next year she’s planning a cross-country trip to see Yellowstone. She’s also enjoying spending more time with her family.

Trevino helped raise her husband’s two children, Catherine and Laura, and the Trevinos now have three young grandchildren. “They’re very fun,” she said. “We’re actually going this weekend to watch them. It keeps us busy and they’re hilarious children. We love them.”

Throughout her life, Trevino has drawn inspiration from hermother,MaurineWeathers Cathey. “My mom had to drop out of high school because her mother was ill, and she took care of her,” Trevino said. “Through all that, my mom married and helped my dad on a farm and then my parents sold antiques. She always had a calm demeanor. She taught us many things and we could always talk to her.”

Trevino’s mother passed away several years ago. “Later in life I’m just inspired by people that I see up in the world that are kind,” she said. “I see it happen out in the world all the time, and that really makes me want to be a better person.”

Trevino’s advice to Dublin graduates is to not take life too seriously all the time. “Do what you need to do and be kind to people, but don’t sweat the small stuff,” she said.

Editor’s Note: This column chronicles what Dublin graduates have done since high school. If you have any suggestions for other grads, email publisher@dublincitizen. com.