SAN ANTONIO – Monty Simmons, a vendor who had become a fixture on a Northwest Side street corner, has died, according to friends.
Simmons was known for peddling bottles of ice cold water just off the Interstate 10 access road near Callaghan Road. In fact, his work earned him the nickname “The Water Man” among his regular customers.
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KSAT 12 News first featured Simmons in a story last April. He had suffered a heart attack while working on that street corner and credited his customers for saving his life.
He said some of them later also came to his aid financially.
They are now coming to his aid one more time, to make sure he has a proper memorial.
At the time of the interview, the senior citizen said he was living on a fixed income and sold water to make ends meet. He said previous health problems had left him unable to work a full-time job.
Initially, he took to panhandling, he said, but later obtained a vendor’s license to avoid trouble with police.
Simmons also appeared in a second story on KSAT 12 News in June.
He said someone had stolen his water wagon one day while he was at a nearby sandwich shop eating lunch.
Again, Simmons praised his regular customers for helping him buy new equipment, allowing him to continue his work.
According to one of those customers, Simmons had been sick recently and died in a hospital Easter Sunday.
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