Amanda Puryear El is the first poet laureate of the city of Pharr, according to MyRGV. She has published 11 books, delivered a TEDx presentation and helped found the RGV Women Poet Society, the report said.

Her work "Pharr Poet Laureate" is being considered for a Grammy award in the Best Spoken Word Poetry Album category, the story said. The report includes a photo gallery of Puryear El at her Pharr home and at El Jardin de Alfredo, a garden named after her father, who died in January 2021.