82R14021 MGR-D
By: Howard of Fort Bend H.R. No. 928
R E S O L U T I O N
WHEREAS, Family and friends were deeply saddened by the loss
of Houston businessman and community leader Gilbert Manly Turner,
who passed away on February 14, 2011, at the age of 88; and
WHEREAS, Born on March 18, 1922, in the Travis Peak community
of Travis County to George Manly and Anna Marie Gerstman Turner,
Gilbert Turner grew up in Milam County and then enrolled at Texas
A&M University in 1941, holding three part-time jobs while
maintaining a perfect grade point average; he left in 1943 for
officer's training school, and served in the United States Army
from 1944 to 1946, returning afterwards to graduate at the top of
his class; he was a member of the national championship pistol team,
the rifle team, and the Distinguished Students Council, and he was
president of the Accounting Society; and
WHEREAS, While working as a CPA in 1948, Mr. Turner helped to
begin a company that eventually became BorTunCo, the largest boring
and tunneling company in the country, and his patented inventions
and innovations in machinery and methods revolutionized the
industry; he also contributed to the invention of a drilling
machine approved by the Alaska Pipeline authorities and used all
over the world; and
WHEREAS, Mr. Turner was additionally one of the founders, and
later the chair of the board and CEO, of the American Steel Building
Company, which specialized in pre-engineered buildings such as
airplane hangars, sports arenas, and industrial and commercial
structures; and
WHEREAS, During the Reagan administration, Mr. Turner was
appointed by the secretary of defense to serve as chair of the
National Committee of Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve; he
was a member of the board of trustees of Houston Baptist University,
and chaired that body for 19 years, additionally serving as chair of
the president's council and the development council; the recipient
of an honorary doctorate from the university, he established and
funded a number of endowed scholarships for students; and
WHEREAS, Mr. Turner also created scholarships in perpetuity
at his alma mater, Texas A&M, and served on the Chancellor's Century
Council; he was a member of the Houston Aggie Club and the Diamond
Century Club, sponsored Texas A&M basketball and football
programming, and was named a distinguished alumnus in 1984; and
WHEREAS, This industrious Texan shared his time and talents
with the Houston Chamber of Commerce and Rotary International, and
he was appointed by Governor Bill Clements to the San Jacinto Water
Authority board; a man of strong faith, he was an active member of
the Second Baptist Church, and he further distinguished himself as
the chair of the Billy Graham Crusade for Houston and the Gulf Coast
in 1981; moreover, he served with Youth for Christ for 30 years; and
WHEREAS, Known for his honesty and trustworthiness, he
delighted in travelling, ranching, and taking on challenges, and
above all, his family; he shared 64 years of marriage with his wife,
Claydene, before her passing, and he welcomed three children, five
grandchildren, and seven great-grandchildren into his family; and
WHEREAS, While the death of Gilbert Turner has brought much
sorrow to his loved ones, he has left behind a legacy that will long
serve as a testament to his admirable and accomplished life; now,
therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 82nd Texas
Legislature hereby pay tribute to the memory of Gilbert Manly
Turner and extend sincere sympathy to the members of his family: to
his children, Lillian Porter and her husband, Jim, and Gregg Manly
Turner; to his grandchildren, Cathy Jones and her husband, Tim,
Alan Mac Neil and his wife, Julie, Andrew Mac Neil, and Cameron
Turner; to his brother, Eugene Turner; to his sisters, Lucinda
Elliott and Annabelle Jantzen; and to his other relatives and
friends; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
prepared for his family and that when the Texas House of
Representatives adjourns this day, it do so in memory of Gilbert
Manly Turner.