H.R. No. 764
R E S O L U T I O N
WHEREAS, Trailblazing real estate magnate and irrepressible
entrepreneur Ebby Halliday of Dallas is commemorating a remarkable
milestone in her life with the observance of her 100th birthday on
March 9, 2011; and
WHEREAS, Born Vera Lucille Koch in 1911, she later adopted
the name Ebby Halliday to better reflect her distinctive
personality; she was raised on a farm in Kansas, receiving her
education in a one-room schoolhouse and dreaming of becoming a
horseback rider in a circus; after graduating from high school in
Abilene, Kansas, she took a job selling hats with the Consolidated
Millinery Company in Kansas City, Missouri, and was quickly
promoted; her abilities soon led her to take on greater
responsibilities at stores in Omaha and then in Dallas, where she
arrived in 1938; and
WHEREAS, A manager for retailer W. A. Green for seven years,
Ms. Halliday saved money all the while, and before long had enough
to invest and subsequently to open her own hat shop; after a patron
complained of his difficulty in finding buyers for his innovative
insulated cement houses in a new development, she soon discovered
that her sales instincts made her a natural in the real estate
business; by dressing up the houses with attractive curtains, rugs,
and furniture, she sold all 52 of them in nine months and founded
Ebby Halliday Realtors in 1945; and
WHEREAS, Today, Ms. Halliday's company is a renowned
operation with more than 1,600 agents who work out of 30 offices and
two luxury boutiques; the business is the largest independently
owned real estate brokerage company in Texas and one of the largest
in the country, and also handles leasing, property management, and
mortgage and personal insurance; consistently emphasizing service
to the client, the community, and the industry itself, the company
celebrated its 65th anniversary in 2010; and
WHEREAS, Ms. Halliday has shared her time and talents over
the years as president of the Women's Council of the National
Association of Realtors in 1956 and as the first woman president of
the North Dallas Chamber of Commerce in 1968; inducted into the
Texas Business Hall of Fame, the Texas Women's Hall of Fame, and the
Dallas Business Hall of Fame, she has received numerous awards and
recognitions, including the Ernst and Young Regional Entrepreneur
of the Year award and the Dallas Linz Award, and she was the first
recipient of the Ebby Halliday Executive Excellence Award given by
Executive Women International; and
WHEREAS, Her biography, Ebby Halliday: The First Lady of Real
Estate, was published in 2009, and a yellow rose was cultivated and
named in her honor to commemorate her company's 60th anniversary
and her 94th birthday; an unofficial ambassador of goodwill for
Dallas during a period of extensive growth, she continues to be
committed to her goal of building a thriving sales force and
offering career opportunities to bright and motivated women; and
WHEREAS, Still active in her business, Ms. Halliday also
dedicates a great deal of her time to philanthropy and her
community; she is a strong supporter of the Foundation Fighting
Blindness, which she serves as a national trustee, and the Horatio
Alger Association, which awards scholarships to deserving young
people and is the beneficiary of the proceeds from her 100th
birthday gala; and
WHEREAS, Ms. Halliday married Maurice Acers in 1965, and the
couple enjoyed 28 years of fulfilling partnership until his passing
in 1993; she credits her extraordinary longevity to her mantra,
"Don't drink, don't smoke, don't retire," and she remains devoted to
her faith, to the Dallas Mavericks and Cowboys, and to her mission
to help countless Americans achieve their dream of homeownership;
and
WHEREAS, The epitome of Dallas style, savvy, and can-do
spirit, Ebby Halliday has combined hard work, optimism, and
generosity to build a business and a life of outsize proportions,
and she has earned the lasting admiration of all who know her; now,
therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 82nd Texas
Legislature hereby honor the grande dame of Dallas real estate,
Ebby Halliday, on the occasion of her 100th birthday and extend to
her sincere best wishes for continued happiness; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
prepared for Ms. Halliday as an expression of high regard by the
Texas House of Representatives.
Sheets
______________________________
Speaker of the House
I certify that H.R. No. 764 was adopted by the House on March
10, 2011, by a non-record vote.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House