CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Raised on the city's Westside, Mathis and his twin brother turned heads everywhere they went, but "Pointy Boots" made a name all his own. Now, the community is coming together to honor his life and legacy.
"It ain't stop nothing. I'm gonna show people how to leave this place," Mathis said.
Just two months ago, I told the story of how Judge Joe Benavides stepped in to help marry Mathis to the love of his life. Benavides said it was an honor to stand beside a man whose presence was bigger than life.
"He looks at me and goes, oh, that's the famous justice of the peace, the people's judge, and I said, no, you're the famous one. You're the icon of Corpus Christi," Benavides said.
"I have nobody but her. And I'm trying not to kill her," Mathis said.
For his best friend, Pete Trevino, Mathis was family.
"His character. His charisma," Trevino said.
"Everybody saw it. The whole city knew we were like bread and butter," Trevino said.
As Mathis's health declined, Trevino stood by his side, helping organize fundraisers and staying with him during his final moments. Trevino said Mathis was still full of life, recalling a time they threw him a birthday party.
"Ronnie calls me, he says, Pete, you know what? I said, what's that? He said, I never had a birthday. I said, you never had a birthday. He says, never had one," Trevino said.
"We had so much cake donated, it was unreal. Just for him to see that and experience that was magical," Trevino said.
"Maybe he knew what was to come in the months, and it was something that he wanted to experience, and it was only right," Trevino said.
Mathis's legacy lives on across the city. He even gifted his signature look to Benavides.
"He gave me that yellow suit, that yellow, those yellow boots, and the yellow hat, so I have that at home, um, and it's really a unique, a unique feeling knowing that. He presented that as a gift to me," Benavides said.
"No it ain't sad. I did all I could. We all have our day. And the Lord don't make no mistakes," Mathis said.
Trevino said the family is taking the loss hard but is grateful for the community support.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
For the latest local news updates, click here, or download the KRIS 6 News App.
Catch all the KRIS 6 News stories and more on our YouTube page. Subscribe today!
