Richard Castro bought his first McDonald’s restaurant in 1983. Located at Hawkins and Interstate 10, Mr. Castro can usually be found here sipping his early morning coffee to start his day.

Mr. Castro, a self-made entrepreneur worked his way through college flipping burgers as a short order cook. Upon graduating from Texas State University he vowed never to cook another hamburger again… we are all glad he didn’t keep that promise.

Mr. Castro’s professional journey began as a 3rd grade history teacher. He then ventured into politics as an Assistant City Manager of Del Rio, Tx, then as City Manager of Del Rio, Tx. Gaining incredible experience he then ventured into business starting a company in the real estate and construction industry until coming across the McDonald’s opportunity.

Mr. Castro now owns 35 restaurants across El Paso and its surrounding cities as well as in Carlsbad and Artesia New Mexico and employs more than 2,000 people.

He has devoted much of his life and wealth to creating opportunities for students to succeed, particularly students facing barriers to education.

In 1985, Mr. Castro started the HACER Scholarship Fund in partnership with McDonald’s. To date, more than $33 Million has been awarded to high achieving hispanic students across the country.

Through his community efforts, Mr. Castro has won countless awards from McDonald’s (such as the Prestigious Fred Turner Award in 2022), locally in El Paso (such as El Pasoan of the Year in 2015) and on a National level (such as the National Hispanic Business Man of the Year by the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce in 2005).

Mr. Castro continues to serve as C.E.O. of Castro Enterprises INC. and remains active in the community through his numerous civic organizations, a strong pillar of education through his philanthropy and an inspiration to all of his organization.