Persistence in Adversity Podcast with Dr. Adame: Lizzy De La Garza Putegnat, Community Leader

Lizzy de la Garza Putegnat is the Vice President of Marketing and Public Relations at Titan Fuel, a fuel export company, where she leads government affairs, marketing, and community outreach. Previously, she worked at Schneider Electric, a Fortune Global 500 company, where she provided energy management consulting for the public sector. Earlier, she was Director of Business Recruitment, Retention, and Expansion at the Brownsville Economic Development Council, where she played a key role in recruiting businesses and creating thousands of jobs, including the recruitment of SpaceX.
In this episode interview from May 2025, Lizzy shares about the various hats she wears, some adversities and what she's most proud of. A Brownsville, TX, native from humble beginnings, Lizzy was the first in her family to attend college in the US. She attended Duke University on scholarship and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Public Policy. After graduating, she moved back to the Rio Grande Valley to make a positive impact in her community. As a passionate community servant leader, she has served on 16 boards and numerous councils and committees. In 2021 Governor Abbott appointed Lizzy to the Texas State Technical College Board of Regents. She is currently serving on 10 state and local boards including: TSTC, Texas Lyceum, Business Development Fund of Texas, RGV Partnership, Chairwoman of Greater Chamber of Harlingen, Treasurer of Harlingen Economic Development Corporation, Vice President of United Way of Northern Cameron County, and many others.
Lizzy has received multiple awards and recognitions since 2020, including: “Moms & Industry Honoree” by RGV Linking Economic & Academic Development, “Woman of the Year for Community Service Award” by Zonta Club of Brownsville, “Rio Grande Valley Remarkable Women Finalists” by Nexstar Media Group, “Hispanic Women Making History Award” by Hispanic Women’s Network of Texas RGV Chapter, “Trailblazing Women Award” by State Representative Janie Lopez, “Distinguished Alumni Award” by Leadership Brownsville, “Women Empowerment Award” by Greater Chamber of Harlingen, “Women of Distinction Award” by RGV Hispanic Chamber, and others. Above all, Lizzy is the proud wife of Steven and the proud mother of their biggest blessings, Isabella and Elliana.