SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 482
WHEREAS, The Senate of the State of Texas is pleased to
recognize Lifeline Chaplaincy for its exceptional hospital
ministry work; and
WHEREAS, A ministry of the Church of Christ, Lifeline
Chaplaincy is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing
compassionate care and support to the seriously ill and their
families and caregivers and to being an educational resource for
crisis ministry; and
WHEREAS, Lifeline Chaplaincy traces its roots to the
charitable work of Marie Banister, who in 1968 began visiting the
children's ward at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston;
she became known as "The Pillow Lady" after she began bringing
small, handmade pillows to the children; and
WHEREAS, Today, the organization employs five full-time
chaplains and has a great number of committed pastoral care
volunteers who serve in hospitals across the state; its many
programs include the Soft Touch Ministry, which draws on the
inspiration of Marie Banister's work to create and deliver
handmade pillows, lap robes, cancer caps, and other specialty
items to patients; and
WHEREAS, Another key Lifeline Chaplaincy program is
Compassionate Touch, which is dedicated to providing emergency
short-term resources to hospital patients and caregivers; the
program grew out of Lifeline Chaplaincy's long-standing close
relationships with hospital social services personnel, who work
directly with the organization to coordinate help for those in
need, and it now serves more than 2,000 patients and families
each year; and
WHEREAS, Compassionate Touch provides one-time funding for
such immediate expenses as hotels, food, parking, travel, and
utilities, usually within 48 hours, and without bureaucratic
delays; assistance is provided irrespective of a patient's race,
gender, type of injury or illness, age, ethnicity, geographical
origin, or religious preference, and the organization has
disbursed $2.5 million since its inception in 1997; and
WHEREAS, Lifeline Chaplaincy also offers a range of
workshops and seminars to train church leaders and pastoral care
volunteers to help patients and families in crisis; it is truly
fitting that this outstanding organization receive special
recognition for offering support and comfort to those who need it
most; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas, 85th
Legislature, hereby commend the staff and volunteers of Lifeline
Chaplaincy on their commitment to providing care and support to
hospital patients, their families, and their caregivers and extend
to them best wishes for continued success; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution be prepared for
this exceptional organization as an expression of high regard
from the Texas Senate.
Watson
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President of the Senate
I hereby certify that the
above Resolution was adopted by
the Senate on March 22, 2017.
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Secretary of the Senate
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Member, Texas Senate