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 News Around the Republic of Mexico | April 2005 
Garza, Heiress to Tie the Knot this Weekend
 Wire services
| | María Asunción Aramburuzabala, head of Grupo Modelo, and U.S. Ambassador to Mexico, Tony Garza. |
When U.S. Ambassador Tony Garza arrived in Mexico in 2002, he brought with him high expectations for strengthening relations between the two nations. Few could have imagined he would turn this country's social scene on its head.
This weekend, the former Texas railroad commissioner marries Mexico's wealthiest woman in what is undoubtedly Mexico's wedding of the year. Garza's romance with María Asunción Aramburuzabala, who heads the mighty Grupo Modelo beer empire, has captured the imagination of this country ever since word of their surprise engagement leaked out in February.
The pair have sent out 400 highly coveted invitations to their three-day gala in picturesque Valle de Bravo, a mountainous weekend getaway spot outside of Mexico City.
The invitees include a wellheeled Texas contingent, led by Gov. Rick Perry and his wife Anita. The wedding's most powerful invitee is Garza's longtime pal, President Bush. While the president is officially scheduled to be at his Crawford ranch this weekend, first lady Laura Bush is expected to attend and the Mexican media has buzzed that the president may make a surprise appearance.
Members of Mexico's social and business elite are also on the guest list, rumored to include the heads of Mexico's largest television networks. It's unclear whether President Vicente Fox will be in attendance.
Those lucky enough to score an invite had better bring their dancing shoes and some endurance. The party and ceremony will stretch for three days, with the actual ceremony taking place Saturday evening.
And as befitting a cross-border wedding, there will be a little bit of Texas and a little bit of Mexico: a Texas style barbecue is planned for Sunday and a mariachi band will surely play after the Saturday night ceremony, a must at nearly every Mexican wedding.
"I'm thrilled for (Garza) in terms of finding his true love he has received a lot of ribbing over the years about being a bachelor ambassador," said Jennifer Harris, a former Garza aide and current spokeswoman for the Texas Health and Human Services Commission who is attending the ceremony. "It should be exciting."
This will be Garza's first marriage; it is Aramburuzabala's second. The two met at a party shortly after Bush appointed Garza to the Mexico post in 2002, but their romance didn't begin until last September. The courtship proceeded quickly until their fairy tale-like engagement on New Year's Eve. Garza reportedly popped the question on the peaks of Macchu Picchu, the ancient Inca city high in the Peruvian Andes.
When an enterprising reporter from EL UNIVERSAL discovered their wedding announcement tacked to the front of a Mexico City church, the news sparked waves of excitement. The pairing seemed sent from above: Mexico's wealthiest woman and the U.S. ambassador.
Aramburuzabala, who sometimes shortens her tonguetwisting last name to MA14 and whose friend's call her Mariasun, is the heiress to Grupo Modelo, founded by her grandfather, a Basque immigrant. Not content to assume a caretaking role, she is credited with building up the business and diversifying the family fortune. Her fortune is reported at US1.5 billion.
Garza's star is equally as bright: the son of a Brownsville gas station owner and grandson of Mexican immigrants, Garza is considered among the next wave of Texas Republican heavyweights and is rumored to be considering a run at the Texas governorship or U.S. Senate. Bush appointed him as secretary of state in 1994 after Bush was elected governor that year. Garza was elected to the Texas Railroad Commission in 1998 and Bush appointed him as the top U.S. diplomat in Mexico in 2002.
"When (Garza) came to Mexico, everyone knew he was single and handsome," said Gaby Vargas, an author and image consultant in Mexico City. "(The wedding is) almost duplicating the power of both of them. But what really matters here is that they make it as real, loving couple."
The U.S. embassy has characterized security for the wedding as "just normal for this type of event in Mexico." Given that Mexico has rarely seen an event with this type of star power, security is expected to be extremely tight and residents of Valle de Bravo say the street leading to the wedding site will be virtually impassable for non-guests. |
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