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| 3 | 4 | | |
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| 4 | 5 | | R E S O L U T I O N |
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| 5 | 6 | | WHEREAS, The city of Corpus Christi lost an admired citizen |
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| 6 | 7 | | with the passing of oilman and philanthropist C. C. Winn on February |
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| 7 | 8 | | 20, 2015, at the age of 86; and |
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| 8 | 9 | | WHEREAS, Charles Coleman Winn was born on June 18, 1928, in |
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| 9 | 10 | | Long Beach, California, to a family of Texans who soon followed the |
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| 10 | 11 | | oil boom back to their home state; while a student at William Adams |
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| 11 | 12 | | High School in Alice, "Charlie" Winn took his first job as an oil |
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| 12 | 13 | | field roughneck; the salary he earned allowed him to attend Texas |
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| 13 | 14 | | A&M University--Kingsville and The University of Texas at Austin |
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| 14 | 15 | | before he was forced to abandon his studies due to lack of funds; |
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| 15 | 16 | | and |
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| 16 | 17 | | WHEREAS, Mr. Winn later became an oil scout and enjoyed his |
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| 17 | 18 | | first professional success while drilling a well in Karnes County; |
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| 18 | 19 | | the discovery proved to be the start of a prosperous career in the |
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| 19 | 20 | | oil industry, and he went on to establish what would become a highly |
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| 20 | 21 | | lucrative international oil firm in Corpus Christi; under his |
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| 21 | 22 | | leadership, Winn Exploration Company, Inc., eventually operated |
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| 22 | 23 | | oil and gas wells across Texas and nine other states, as well as in |
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| 23 | 24 | | Canada and Australia; and |
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| 24 | 25 | | WHEREAS, Excelling at nearly every project he took on, |
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| 25 | 26 | | Mr. Winn pursued interests in banking, real estate, |
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| 26 | 27 | | nanotechnology, and medical research and development; he was named |
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| 27 | 28 | | an All-American Wildcatter in 1993, and in 1996, he accepted the |
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| 28 | 29 | | M. B. Rudman Outstanding Wildcatter Award; he served on the |
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| 29 | 30 | | National Petroleum Council until 1999, and in 2006, he received the |
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| 30 | 31 | | Texas Oil and Gas Association's highest honor, the Distinguished |
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| 31 | 32 | | Service Award; and |
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| 32 | 33 | | WHEREAS, Mr. Winn treated those who worked for him as family, |
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| 33 | 34 | | and he made it a point to share his good fortune with them; he was |
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| 34 | 35 | | known to buy his employees' lunches out of his own pocket almost |
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| 35 | 36 | | every single day, and remembering the difficulties he had faced as a |
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| 36 | 37 | | student of limited means, he helped put several of their children |
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| 37 | 38 | | through college; his extraordinary generosity extended beyond his |
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| 38 | 39 | | company, and each year he purchased Christmas presents for orphans |
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| 39 | 40 | | in Piedras Negras in Mexico; and |
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| 40 | 41 | | WHEREAS, A prominent civic leader, Mr. Winn served on |
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| 41 | 42 | | trustee, development, and advisory boards for a multitude of |
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| 42 | 43 | | businesses and organizations in South Texas, including American |
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| 43 | 44 | | Bank in Corpus Christi, Baptist Children and Family Services, and |
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| 44 | 45 | | CHRISTUS Santa Rosa Hospital in San Antonio; repeatedly honored for |
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| 45 | 46 | | his philanthropy, he was recognized by the International Good |
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| 46 | 47 | | Neighbor Council in 1984 and 1999 for his efforts to promote |
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| 47 | 48 | | friendly relations between the people of the United States and |
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| 48 | 49 | | Mexico; he also received praise for his commitment to conservation |
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| 49 | 50 | | and wildlife research, and he helped fund a program that would |
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| 50 | 51 | | enable area teachers to use the Texas State Aquarium as an |
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| 51 | 52 | | educational resource; and |
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| 52 | 53 | | WHEREAS, This kind and caring gentleman cherished his family |
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| 53 | 54 | | above all else; he shared a deep bond of love with his wife of nearly |
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| 54 | 55 | | 65 years, Patsy, and he derived great joy from the time he spent |
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| 55 | 56 | | with their five children, Stephanie, C. A., Tom, Southern, and |
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| 56 | 57 | | Sissy, as well as with their nine grandchildren and their |
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| 57 | 58 | | great-granddaughter; his faith was also a source of great comfort |
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| 58 | 59 | | and inspiration to him throughout his days; and |
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| 59 | 60 | | WHEREAS, Although Charlie Winn's hard work and ingenuity made |
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| 60 | 61 | | him a classic American success story, it is perhaps his honesty and |
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| 61 | 62 | | integrity and the close ties of affection he nurtured with his loved |
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| 62 | 63 | | ones that speak most eloquently to the immeasurable impact of his |
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| 63 | 64 | | life; now, therefore, be it |
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| 64 | 65 | | RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 84th Texas |
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| 65 | 66 | | Legislature hereby pay tribute to the memory of C. C. Winn and |
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| 66 | 67 | | extend sincere sympathy to the members of his family: to his wife, |
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| 67 | 68 | | Patsy Winn; to his children, Stephanie Winn, C. A. Winn and his |
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| 68 | 69 | | wife, Nancy, Tom Winn and his wife, Melissa, and Southern Winn and |
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| 69 | 70 | | his wife, Cathy; to his grandchildren, Megan Winn and her husband, |
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| 70 | 71 | | Chris Mei, and Cathleen, Dillon, Southern, Cody, Amy, Trey, Sissy, |
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| 71 | 72 | | and Nicole Winn; to his great-granddaughter, Vivian Marie Winn; to |
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| 72 | 73 | | his nieces, Caroline Szepessy, and her husband, Andy, and Charlcie |
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| 73 | 74 | | Goodman; to his nephew, Sedge Middleton; and to his other |
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| 74 | 75 | | relatives, employees, and many dear friends; and, be it further |
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| 75 | 76 | | RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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| 76 | 77 | | prepared for his family and that when the Texas House of |
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| 77 | 78 | | Representatives adjourns this day, it do so in memory of C. C. Winn. |
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