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| 4 | 4 | | R E S O L U T I O N |
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| 5 | 5 | | WHEREAS, After 66 years of serving the residents of Longview, |
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| 6 | 6 | | Johnny Cace's Seafood and Steak House closed its doors on March 28, |
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| 7 | 7 | | 2015, but this local institution has left generations of customers |
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| 8 | 8 | | with many happy memories; and |
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| 9 | 9 | | WHEREAS, The restaurant was founded in 1949 by John S. Cace |
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| 10 | 10 | | Jr., a Louisiana native; while growing up, Mr. Cace worked with his |
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| 11 | 11 | | father, who fished and cultivated oysters, and helped his parents |
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| 12 | 12 | | in their seafood market and restaurant; he also learned to cook a |
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| 13 | 13 | | wide variety of seafood himself; and |
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| 14 | 14 | | WHEREAS, After serving for four years in the U.S. Army Air |
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| 15 | 15 | | Forces during World War II, Mr. Cace moved with his wife, the former |
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| 16 | 16 | | Valerie Savony, to Longview and opened a fine-dining seafood |
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| 17 | 17 | | restaurant that showcased his New Orleans-influenced cuisine; the |
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| 18 | 18 | | eatery quickly found success and was soon renovated to increase |
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| 19 | 19 | | capacity; in 1964, it was relocated to Marshall Avenue, where it was |
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| 20 | 20 | | eventually expanded to accommodate 450 diners; Mr. Cace was elected |
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| 21 | 21 | | president of both the Texas Restaurant Association and the Longview |
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| 22 | 22 | | Chamber of Commerce in 1966, and in 1992 he was named Man of the Year |
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| 23 | 23 | | by the Longview Federated Clubs; and |
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| 24 | 24 | | WHEREAS, In the early 1980s, Mr. Cace handed over the |
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| 25 | 25 | | operation of the family business to his son Gerard Cace and his |
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| 26 | 26 | | wife, Cathy, and she continued running the restaurant with their |
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| 27 | 27 | | daughters, Chelsea and Jenni, after her husband's passing in 2012; |
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| 28 | 28 | | the founder's other two sons, John Cace III and Danny Cace, also |
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| 29 | 29 | | played active roles in the restaurant by serving on its board of |
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| 30 | 30 | | directors; and |
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| 31 | 31 | | WHEREAS, Over the years, Longview residents shared some of |
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| 32 | 32 | | the most joyful moments of their lives at the award-winning |
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| 33 | 33 | | restaurant, which routinely hosted anniversary, engagement, and |
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| 34 | 34 | | graduation celebrations and other special occasions; in tribute to |
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| 35 | 35 | | Johnny Cace and his contributions to the community, an official |
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| 36 | 36 | | Texas Historical Marker was dedicated at the site of the restaurant |
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| 37 | 37 | | in March 2015; and |
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| 38 | 38 | | WHEREAS, Although the closing of Johnny Cace's Seafood and |
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| 39 | 39 | | Steak House marks the end of an era in Longview, the Cace family may |
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| 40 | 40 | | indeed take great pride in the landmark status their restaurant |
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| 41 | 41 | | achieved during its long and illustrious history; now, therefore, |
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| 42 | 42 | | be it |
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| 43 | 43 | | RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 84th Texas |
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| 44 | 44 | | Legislature hereby recognize Johnny Cace's Seafood and Steak House |
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| 45 | 45 | | for its many decades of service to its customers and extend to all |
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| 46 | 46 | | those associated with the restaurant sincere best wishes for the |
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| 47 | 47 | | future; and, be it further |
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| 48 | 48 | | RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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| 49 | 49 | | prepared for the Cace family as an expression of high regard by the |
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| 50 | 50 | | Texas House of Representatives. |
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