Jesse Overshiner

Government

Jesse Jerome Overshiner was born Jan. 13, 1860 in Indiana and moved to the Manteca area in 1883.

His first work in the Manteca area was for Joshua Cowell as farm manager for 16 years although he did do some grain farming on his own.

In 1898 at the age of 38, Overshiner built the first general store in Manteca at 523 W. Yosemite Ave. He added a butcher shop in 1911 and later a blacksmith shop.

Overshiner bought large acreage from the Sperry family. His property was bounded by West Yosemite at the railroad crossing, west to North Walnut and north to the tracks. He sold three acres to Yosemite Grammar School after the East Union School burned in 1913.

The Overshiner's built their dream home in 1911 at 629 W. Yosemite. The stately home is still standing today at 629 W. Yosemite and was among the first homes built in Manteca.

Overshiner was a member of the first board of directors for the Bank of San Joaquin when Manteca incorporated in 1918. He played a key role in securing a proper railroad depot for Manteca in 1914. Overshiner was elected to the City Council in 1925. He was elected mayor in 1930 and served in that capacity until 1936.

Kim Komenich

Art

Kim Komenich won the Pulitzer Prize - the highest honor bestowed in the newspaper industry - in 1987 for photojournalism as a San Francisco Examiner photographer covering the fall of Ferdinand Marcos in the Philippines.

The 1974 Manteca High graduate also won the 1983 World Press Photo Award, two National Headliner Awards in 1983 and 1988 for news photographs, the 1987 Distinguished Service in News Photography Award presented by the Society of Professional Journalists, as well as many other local and regional awards.

After graduating with an emphasis in photojournalism in 1979 from San Jose State University, Kim went to work for the Manteca Bulletin as staff photographer. From 1978 to 1982 he worked for the Contra Costa Times before switching to his current job in 1982 as staff photographer for the San Francisco Examiner.

He has covered stories extensively in the Philippines, El Salvador, Guyana, and the Soviet Union.

Kim has served as a documentary photography instructor at the San Francisco Academy of Art from 1987 to the present.

Marion Elliott

Education

Marion Elliott was born in Bakersfield on July 14, 1934 and moved to Manteca at age 9.

The 1952 Manteca High graduate was hired as a sixth grade teacher for the then-new New Haven School after a two-year stint in the Army at White Sands in New Mexico.

The Fresno State graduate who obtained his masters in education from Stanislaus State in 1979, was employed for 37 years in the Manteca Unified School District. He taught at New Haven, Golden West, and Lathrop. His administrative career included stints as vice principal at Lathrop School and Manteca High and 17 years as Lincoln School principal when he retired in June of 1995.

He was a part-time recreation director for the City of Manteca and was responsible for starting the adult softball league. He was involved in the first Manteca babe Ruth Baseball League and has served as district, state, regional, and international commissioner for the baseball organization. Elliott is currently executive secretary of the National Babe Ruth Umpires Association and is still serving as a high school baseball umpire and has officiated basketball and football in previous years. Elliott is a big fan of Manteca history, writing the "Backward Glances" and "Sports Yesteryear" columns for the Manteca Bulletin. He is already a member of the Manteca High Hall of Fame.

Paul Wiggin

Athletics

Paul Wiggin was born in Lathrop on Nov. 11, 1934. He competed in four sports as a Buffalo and was named the Most Outstanding Athlete when he graduated from Manteca High in 1952.

He earned his bachelor's degree from Stanford in 1956 and his masters in education from Stanford in 1959. He was a three-year starter at tackle for Stanford and earned first time All-Pac-10 and All-America honors in 1955 and 1956. He also played rugby for the Cardinals.

The Cleveland Browns picked Wiggin in the sixth round of the 1956 draft. In 11 seasons with the Browns (1957-67), Wiggin never missed a game, playing in 146 straight regular-season games, which stood as a team record when he retired. His 18 career fumble recoveries still rank as the second highest in Browns history. During his tenure there, Cleveland played in three NFL title games. He started in the Pro Bowl in 1965 and 1967.

From 1980-83, Wiggin was the head Stanford University football coach after serving in 1978-79 as the defensive coordinator for the New Orleans Saints. His first head coaching opportunity in the NFL was from 1975-77 at the helm of the Kansas City Chiefs. Immediately after his playing career ended in 1968, Wiggin was hired as the San Francisco 49'ers line coach and was part of the staff that guided the 49'ers to three straight NFL division titles from 1970-72. He was promoted to defensive coordinator in 1974.

Wiggin worked with the Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee in 1984 before joining the Minnesota Vikings as defense coach in 1985, a position he held for seven seasons. He was named to his current job as Vikings Assistant General Manager for Pro Personnel in 1992.

Sadie Cabral

Business

Sadie Cabral holds the record for Manteca's "oldest originally owned business" as Sadie's Styling Salon marked its 60th anniversary on Oct. 17, 1996.

In 1936 at the age of 19, Cabral opened her one chair hair salon in the back of her home with a dream to become a successful independent businesswoman. After 12 expansions in three locations, her business now stands at 2,400 square feet and 27 employees. Under her tutelage, Cabral has nurtured and trained many stylists who have also become business owners. A large part of the salon's success was due to Sadie's technical knowledge and her desire to offer the most technological advances in the industry. She introduced many concepts that have become commonplace today: Extended evening hours; Expanded nail and skin care services; Quick-service as well as full-service.

Sadie was honored in 1989 as the Manteca Chamber of Commerce's "Small Business of the Year." She was inducted into the Manteca High Hall of Fame in 1991 for significant achievements in the business community. In 1997, Cabral received a Manteca Chamber of Commerce Distinguished Service Award for her "valuable contributions to the business community" as well as being the recipient of the Susan B. Anthony Women of Achievement Award given by the San Joaquin County Commission on the Status of Women.

Trena Kelley

Community Service

Trena Kelley moved to Manteca in 1966.

In 1976, she was the first woman ever elected to the Manteca City Council. She was appointed the first woman mayor of Manteca in 1979 by her council colleagues and went on in 1980 to win the honor of being the first publicly elected mayor.

Kelley served as commissioner on the San Joaquin County Juvenile Justice and Juvenile Delinquency Commission from 1974 to 1996, for over two decades has collected holiday gifts and clothing for abandoned and parent-less infants and minors housed at Mary Graham Hall. She has served many years as an ombudsman in a state and county program looking out for the rights of the elderly in board-and-care nursing homes in the Manteca area.

Kelley was the driving force behind establishing a board that helped establish low-cost housing for qualified seniors in Manteca. It resulted in 84 units being built in Manteca.

She was a member of the first board that attempted to establish a Boys & Girls Club in Manteca and was part of a trio of volunteers who started the Manteca Community Action programs for handicapped adults. She was involved in the church-operated Meals-on-wheels program and was instrumental in setting up the city's Taxi-Fare program for qualified, low-income citizens.