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| 4 | 4 | | SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION |
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| 5 | 5 | | WHEREAS, Residents of Texarkana lost an admired civic leader |
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| 6 | 6 | | with the passing of Martha Leah Williams Morriss on April 6, 2019, |
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| 7 | 7 | | at the age of 92; and |
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| 8 | 8 | | WHEREAS, The daughter of Jeffie and Isaac Williams, the |
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| 9 | 9 | | former Martha Williams was born in Mount Pleasant on June 13, 1926, |
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| 10 | 10 | | and grew up with two brothers, Bill and Jim; her family moved to |
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| 11 | 11 | | Texarkana when she was 10, and after graduating from Texas High |
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| 12 | 12 | | School, she completed her bachelor's degree in mathematics at |
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| 13 | 13 | | Randolph-Macon Woman's College; on December 31, 1948, she married |
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| 14 | 14 | | Joshua Rutland Morriss Jr., and they were blessed with three sons, |
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| 15 | 15 | | Josh, Don, and William; and |
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| 16 | 16 | | WHEREAS, Mrs. Morriss gave back to her fellow citizens |
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| 17 | 17 | | through her support for many worthwhile organizations; she served |
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| 18 | 18 | | as president of the Junior League of Texarkana, and she was |
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| 19 | 19 | | instrumental in the founding of the Texarkana Regional Arts and |
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| 20 | 20 | | Humanities Council; in addition, she generously shared her time and |
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| 21 | 21 | | talents with the Texarkana Symphony Orchestra, the Literary Council |
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| 22 | 22 | | of Bowie and Miller Counties, and numerous educational endeavors; |
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| 23 | 23 | | widely admired for her contributions to the cultural scene, she was |
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| 24 | 24 | | appointed to the Texas Commission on the Arts; together with her |
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| 25 | 25 | | husband, she also played a key role in the establishment of MRC |
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| 26 | 26 | | Cornerstone Retirement Community; and |
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| 27 | 27 | | WHEREAS, The Texarkana Independent School District |
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| 28 | 28 | | recognized Mr. and Mrs. Morriss for their exceptional efforts in |
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| 29 | 29 | | behalf of education by naming the Martha and Josh Morriss |
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| 30 | 30 | | Mathematics & Engineering Elementary School in their honor; |
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| 31 | 31 | | moreover, in 2015 the district named the couple Distinguished |
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| 32 | 32 | | Alumni and acknowledged Mrs. Morriss for her education advocacy and |
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| 33 | 33 | | her work to benefit the TRAHC ArtSmart program, which brings the |
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| 34 | 34 | | arts to schools; over the years, she was the recipient of myriad |
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| 35 | 35 | | other accolades, including the C. E. Palmer Award for community |
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| 36 | 36 | | service from the Texarkana Chamber of Commerce; and |
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| 37 | 37 | | WHEREAS, For more than a half century, Mrs. Morriss taught |
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| 38 | 38 | | the Fellowship Sunday school class at Williams Memorial United |
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| 39 | 39 | | Methodist Church, and every summer, she organized Bible Storytime |
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| 40 | 40 | | for Vacation Bible School; she served on the Perkins School of |
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| 41 | 41 | | Theology Executive Board, and she and Mr. Morriss delivered Holy |
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| 42 | 42 | | Communion to shut-ins together as well; and |
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| 43 | 43 | | WHEREAS, Martha Morriss lived a rich and purposeful life |
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| 44 | 44 | | centered on her family, her faith, and her community, and she will |
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| 45 | 45 | | long be remembered with deep affection by all who knew her; now, |
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| 46 | 46 | | therefore, be it |
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| 47 | 47 | | RESOLVED, That the 86th Legislature of the State of Texas |
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| 48 | 48 | | hereby pay tribute to the memory of Martha Leah Williams Morriss and |
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| 49 | 49 | | extend sincere sympathy to the members of her family: to her |
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| 50 | 50 | | husband, Josh Morriss Jr.; to her sons, Josh Morriss III and his |
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| 51 | 51 | | wife, Diana, Don Morriss and his wife, Patsy, and William Morriss |
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| 52 | 52 | | and his wife, Rita; to her grandchildren, Meredith and David |
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| 53 | 53 | | Farren, Susannah and Daniel Linnett, Marjorie and Chad Matthews, |
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| 54 | 54 | | Allison and Brady Wright, Whitney and Ross Ormond, Melanie and Ben |
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| 55 | 55 | | Tkach, and Brad and Goodwin McCutcheon; to her 15 |
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| 56 | 56 | | great-grandchildren; to her special niece, Joan Baldridge-Ballard; |
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| 57 | 57 | | and to her other relatives and friends; and, be it further |
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| 58 | 58 | | RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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| 59 | 59 | | prepared for her family and that when the Texas House and Senate |
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| 60 | 60 | | adjourn this day, they do so in memory of Martha Leah Williams |
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| 61 | 61 | | Morriss. |
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