After five decades, an immigrant working for a city of Industry garbage and recycling company was celebrated for his many years of service.
The Valley Vista Services company celebrated Agustín Landinos in a big way after more than five decades. Landinos started with the company on May 28, 1968, when he was a young man and had to leave a sick father and his family in Guadalajara, Mexico.
“Every time I remember, I get sentimental. The reason is because my father taught me a lot, and one of the things he taught me is to be hardworking and honest. So I came, because there was a time when my dad got sick and we were 11 siblings, and he couldn't support us,” said Landinos.
Landinos was the oldest, and managed to help his family move forward.
Ladinos said that he has not accumulated wealth, but that he has something much more valuable.
"I have a wealth that many people who have a lot of money do not have, but I carry that wealth here, which is the family," said Landinos.
His children, grandchildren, and friends accompanied Landinos on his last day of work. "Augie," as he is called, the legend of the workshop, was a supervisor who earned the respect and friendship of the workers and the owners of the company.
“It's like family. Since I started, before I was born with my father and grandfather and five trucks. All these trucks and this shop, it's all his job for the last 52 years, and without him, this company would not be where it is now,” said David Pérez, president of Valley Vista Services.
When he turned 50 with the company, he received a car, and on Tuesday he received recognition from City of Industry Mayor Cory Moss, and certificates from two other cities.
Landinos said that he will miss the workshop, but that this will give him a little more time to spend with the family and also, in the not too distant future, see his favorite sports teams, Chivas and the Dodgers.
And if that weren't enough, his retirement after 52 years of service coincides with another important date, his 71st birthday.
