Charlie Rankin, a longtime voice of Rio Grande Valley (RGV) agriculture, passed away Jan. 8 at the age of 90 in Boerne.
Rankin was a Texas Farm Bureau (TFB) member and past contributor to the weekly Farm Bureau Roundup radio program.
He was well-known for reporting on farm news over radio and television. Rankin worked from 1954 to 1990, when he officially retired. He started his career with early morning reports on KRGV-TV and KRGV-AM. Then, in 1967, he moved to KURV-AM radio with a morning and noon farm program.
His son, Davis Rankin, said his father started doing a morning radio program when the RGV was mostly dominated by an agricultural economy. His radio and television shows kept farmers and ranchers up to date on agricultural issues and news.
“He had 30 minutes of the farm program,” Davis told the McAllen Monitor. “It was a big deal. I still run into people who say they heard my father’s program.”
Charlie was preceded in death by his first wife, Sue Evelyn Moore Rankin. He is survived by his wife, Billie Marie Rankin; son, Davis Rankin; daughter, Susan Rankin; and grandchildren Marshall, Duncan and Alexandra Amanda.