When Anselmo Valdez at age 22 accepted the credit manager’s position at a Las Vegas, N.M., hardware and appliance store, he decided to make it a career.
Valdez has kept that commitment for 65 years.
“I live alone, and it’s hard to stay in one place and not have anything to do,” said the 87-year-old, who began working at Gamble’s in 1956 before purchasing the store in 1983. “I can still get around, but there are a lot of things I can’t do anymore. I think this is the next-best thing.”
“His work ethic has been like this ever since I was born,” added his daughter and the store’s assistant manager, Maxine Valdez-Ortiz, 58. “That’s all I knew when I was growing up. He was always at Gamble’s.”
Valdez has never sent an email or used the internet. He uses an adding machine to calculate the day’s receipts, does manual ordering and keeps track of customer accounts without a computer.
The father of six refused to stay home when the coronavirus pandemic hit.
“He made sure things were taken care of to keep his customers supplied with what they needed [including] cleaning supplies, masks and sanitizing products,” said Valdez-Ortiz.
Although the pandemic hurt the retail industry, Gamble’s survived.
“We did very well,” Valdez-Ortiz said. “Other stores were selling out of essential items, and we still had the items people were looking for. We had customers coming in from Colorado to purchase freezers when everyone was out.”
Valdez, who’s somewhat hard of hearing, continues to work in store’s credit department and on the sales floor, using a cane to get around.
“As far as I’m concerned, I’m just about ready to use the word ‘retirement,’ but it will be difficult after so many years,” Valdez said. “It’s like trying to cut the umbilical cord.”
Tony Apodaca, who has worked for Valdez for 50 years, has enjoyed their relationship.
“I just like the people I meet,” the 71-year-old said. “You do your work, and there’s no problem.”
One of 10 children, Valdez was born in Chacon, the son of a construction worker. The family moved to Las Vegas, where Valdez graduated from Las Vegas High School in 1952.
At age 17, he joined the Navy along with eight boys from his senior class. While home on leave in 1953, he married his high school sweetheart, Adelina Torres. She died five years ago after 64 years of marriage.
When Valdez joined Gambles, it belonged to a chain of 225 stores in the Midwest and Southwest. He worked his way up to assistant manager and then transferred to the Gamble’s in Trinidad, Colo., where he managed that store for three years. Valdez returned to the Las Vegas store as its manager and purchased it when the chain dissolved.
Over the years, he served as president of the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce and was on the chamber’s welcome committee when Prince Charles visited for the 1982 opening of the United World College-USA in nearby Montezuma. He also served on the board of directors for the Bank of Las Vegas, now Southwest Community Bank. Valdez received the Buen Vecino Award from the city for contributions to the community.
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