Frank B. Strickland, Chairman | Lillian R. Bevier, Vice Chair | David Hall | Michael D. McKay 
Thomas A. Fuentes | Herbert S. Garten | Robert J. Dieter | Thomas R. Meites | Florentino A. Subia

Subia Takes Road Less Traveled

Florentino “Lico” Subia remembers the first bike he ever rode: the Gray Ghost, a 1946 Harley. The former boxer from El Paso started riding at age 14 as a messenger for Western Union to support his 10 siblings and ailing father. That was 57 years ago.

Today, Subia is still a motorcycle enthusiast—“the oldest biker in El Paso,” he says proudly. But don’t let the leather jackets and bandanas fool you; Subia is hardly your stereotypical rebellious roughneck. 

In 1952, Subia volunteered to fight for his country. He was just 21 years old when he left for Korea. During his 17 months on the peninsula, Subia served near Panmunjon at the 38th parallel and was involved in a number of firefights before he was captured and sent to a POW camp in North Korea. “If I hadn’t escaped, I might not be alive right now,” he says of the harrowing experience.

In 1953, Subia returned to the United States, to his job at West­ern Union, and to his Harleys. Over a half-century of riding, Subia has sustained any number of injuries. He has broken more than 37 bones in 10 different crashes, but the most devastating accident occurred when he wasn’t even on his bike. In 1980, on Father’s Day, Subia’s 21-year-old son, Florentino “Nunie” Subia Jr., died in an accident. “That was the hardest day of my life,” he says. “I think I got all my gray hair in the two weeks after it happened.”

As a memorial to his son, Subia had a mural painted at his home, depicting two Harleys in the back of a pickup headed toward the beach. The mural became a local attraction and eventually caught the attention of then-Texas First Lady Laura Bush (left) and ultimately Gov. George Bush. “When I met George Bush he said, ‘Don’t call me mister or sir; call me George,’” Subia says. “He was very cool.”

Clearly, the feeling was mutual. Since their first meeting five years ago, Bush kept in touch with Subia, and this February, the President nominated him for one of two spots on the LSC Board of Directors traditionally held by client-eligible members. “He said, ‘One thing you got Lico is common sense, and that’s important,’” Subia recalls.

For Subia, the nomination to the LSC Board was an affirmation of a life spent serving his country and his community. Although he has never earned more than minimum wage, Subia has dedicated considerable time to serving his community through charitable works.

“Most of my life I’ve been doing good deeds, helping people who really need it,” Subia says. In 1978 he founded the Iron Horses, a motorcycle club dedicated to raising money for local charities. Last year the group donated $6,000 to the Reach for the Stars Foundation.