H.R. No. 1582 R E S O L U T I O N WHEREAS, Members of the Lake Highlands Military Moms are deserving of special recognition for providing support to the military families living in the Lake Highlands area of Dallas and for honoring the men and women from the area who are serving in the U.S. armed forces; and WHEREAS, The group was founded in 2006 by Rhonda Russell as a way to cope with the stress of her son's deployment to Iraq; after her son was sent overseas in 2005, Ms. Russell began contacting other mothers in the Lake Highlands area who had children fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan and who could relate to the difficulties of having a loved one serving in a war zone; this led to the first meeting of Military Moms, which drew six women; since then, the organization's membership has grown to include approximately 50 women who meet monthly over dinner to share news, express their concerns, and celebrate happy occasions; and WHEREAS, The group's projects include sending regular care packages overseas, keeping a record of all the military personnel from the area, and working to ensure that the community is informed of the service being rendered by those men and women; to achieve the latter goal, the organization partners with the Exchange Club of Lake Highlands to produce the annual Lake Highlands Heroes Poster, which features pictures and information about local men and women who are serving in the military and which is displayed throughout the community; the group also hosts speakers on issues such as post-traumatic stress disorder, combat conditions, services for veterans, and other topics of particular concern to members of the military and their families; and WHEREAS, All Americans owe a profound debt of gratitude to the men and women of the United States armed forces and their families for the immeasurable sacrifices they make in this country's behalf, and the Lake Highlands Military Moms is helping to ensure that they receive the assistance that they so richly deserve; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 82nd Texas Legislature hereby commend the Lake Highlands Military Moms for its exceptional work in behalf of area men and women serving in the U.S. armed forces and for its staunch support of Lake Highlands military families; and, be it further RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be prepared for the Lake Highlands Military Moms as an expression of high regard by the Texas House of Representatives. Sheets ______________________________ Speaker of the House I certify that H.R. No. 1582 was adopted by the House on May 5, 2011, by a non-record vote. ______________________________ Chief Clerk of the House