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Age: 53
Family: husband, Javier; children, Javi Jr., Laura, Lisa
Education: bachelor's degree in journalism, University of Texas
Hometown: San Antonio
When Sonia Perez was an employee relations intern with Southwestern Bell in Beaumont, Texas, in 1977, little did she know she'd come full circle -- literally.
Having risen through the ranks with Southwestern Bell, she became vice president of AT&T Texas in 2005 and was based in Houston. Hurricane Rita had just come through when she started.
After landing at Houston Hobby Airport on the first day on the job, she drove straight to Beaumont to the building where she had started her career and helped run recovery operations.
"It was surreal for me because that's where it all started," said Perez, who...