H.R. No. 2265
R E S O L U T I O N
WHEREAS, The citizens of Austin have lost a respected
activist and civic leader with the death of former city council
member John Treviño Jr. on April 4, 2017, at the age of 78; and
WHEREAS, John Treviño was born in Austin on October 18, 1938,
to Salome and Juan Treviño; he took on a number of odd jobs in his
youth, working in a laundry, moving furniture, and delivering
blueprints, and when he was seven, he became an altar boy, a role
that encouraged in him a lifelong commitment to the service of
others; and
WHEREAS, At the age of 17, Mr. Treviño secured his father's
permission and enlisted in the U.S. Army, where he was a
paratrooper in the 82nd Airborne Division; after his discharge,
Mr. Treviño returned to Austin and worked at several jobs before a
priest took note of his leadership qualities and urged him to "do
more"; in 1965, be became the first paid antipoverty worker at the
East First Neighborhood Center in East Austin; and
WHEREAS, Mr. Treviño's early efforts included bringing IRS
volunteers into East Austin to help residents prepare their taxes,
starting a neighborhood cleanup that evolved into the city's
official bulk trash collection program, and leading the effort to
establish health clinics and low-cost medical services in the
neighborhood; he also inspired social work students from The
University of Texas at Austin to work in the community, and under
his direction, members of the Volunteers in Service to America
(VISTA) program established the Austin Tenants' Council and the
Meals on Wheels program; and
WHEREAS, One of a group of young Mexican American activists
in the city who were dubbed by journalists as the "Young Turks" and
the "Brown Machine," Mr. Treviño became, in 1975, the first Mexican
American to be elected to the Austin City Council; his fellow
council members chose him as mayor pro tem, and he also served for
three months as interim mayor; and
WHEREAS, During Mr. Treviño's 13-year tenure on the council,
his efforts to promote the awarding of city contracts to businesses
owned by women and minorities led to the creation of the Small and
Minority Business Resources Department; he also worked to improve
infrastructure in minority communities and to ensure that women and
minorities were represented among the city's staff and on its
boards and committees; and
WHEREAS, Mr. Treviño left the city council in 1988 and went
to work at UT Austin, where he played a vital part in the
Historically Underutilized Business program; from 1997 to 2009, he
also served on the board of Capital Metro; in 2006, the city named
John Treviño Jr. Metropolitan Park at Morrison Ranch, along the
Colorado River, in his honor; and
WHEREAS, For more than half a century, John Treviño dedicated
himself to making the city of Austin a better place to live for all
of its citizens, and his commitment to social justice, inclusivity,
and equal rights will continue to inspire all those who follow in
his footsteps; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 85th Texas
Legislature hereby pay tribute to the memory of John Treviño Jr. and
extend heartfelt sympathy to the members of his family: to his
children, John, Mary Theresa, Peter, Michael, Mark, Patricia, and
Jesse; to their mother, Connie Loya Treviño; to his special friend,
Judy Ford; and to his other relatives and many 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 John
Treviño Jr.
Rodriguez of Travis
______________________________
Speaker of the House
I certify that H.R. No. 2265 was unanimously adopted by a
rising vote of the House on May 25, 2017.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House