People from more than 20 nationalities call this tiny Texas town home. Here’s what brought them together.
CACTUS, Texas — When country artist Waylon Jennings wrote a song about Cactus, Texas, he described it as “nothing more than a wide place in the road.”
That may have been true of the Texas Panhandle city once.
Today, Cactus is one of the most culturally diverse communities in the region. The town of just over 3,000 people is home to residents representing more than 20 nationalities.
There’s a Halal restaurant across the street from an Asian food store, and around the corner is an Islamic center. A Christian church isn’t far away.
Refugees have made Cactus home, as have generations of workers drawn to the community by its massive beef processing plant, operated by JBS, one of the world’s largest meat companies.
The diversity of Cactus is visible inside one of its local businesses.
Above the counter at Cactus Cafe, currencies from around the world line a window – reminders of the many places its customers once called home.
“My grandpa, my family, they all built it together,” said Zinia Ortiz, whose family has operated the cafe for the past five years.
Ortiz’s grandparents came to Cactus from Mexico. They dreamed of owning their own business but spent decades working long shifts at the beef processing plant.
“My grandpa would work night shift, my grandma would work mornings,” Ortiz said.
Years later, the cafe they built stands as a testament to what those years of hard work produced.
“They’re hard workers,” Ortiz said of her family. “They’re trying to achieve everything they can. Coming from Mexico, I think they’re doing as much as they can.”
Their story is one of many in Cactus – a small Texas town shaped by people who arrived from around the world and built lives together.
You could still call that just a “wide place in the road”.
Or you could call it America.
This story is part of The Heart of America: Cactus, Texas. You can watch the full episode on this station’s streaming app.