| 1 | 1 | | SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 626 |
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| 2 | 2 | | In Memory |
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| 3 | 3 | | of |
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| 4 | 4 | | Virginia Nancy Birt Baker |
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| 5 | 5 | | WHEREAS, A rich and purposeful life drew to a close with |
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| 6 | 6 | | the passing of Virginia Nancy Birt Baker on January 20, 2019, at |
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| 7 | 7 | | the age of 89; and |
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| 8 | 8 | | WHEREAS, The former Ginny Birt was born on August 22, 1929, |
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| 9 | 9 | | in Grand Rapids, Michigan, to Gladys and Charles Birt, and she |
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| 10 | 10 | | grew up with the companionship of a sister, Catherine; she moved |
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| 11 | 11 | | with her family to Texas at age 10 and went on to attend Highland |
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| 12 | 12 | | Park High School and Southern Methodist University, where she |
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| 13 | 13 | | graduated with a degree in interior design; and |
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| 14 | 14 | | WHEREAS, Seeking an opportunity to see the world, she |
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| 15 | 15 | | traveled to Europe to work as a civilian for the United States |
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| 16 | 16 | | Army and met her future husband, Charles "Chet" Baker, while in |
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| 17 | 17 | | Gelnhausen, Germany; the couple wed in 1956, and over the course |
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| 18 | 18 | | of a rewarding marriage that spanned 62 years, they became the |
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| 19 | 19 | | parents of four treasured children, Juliette, Christopher, |
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| 20 | 20 | | Nancy, and Matthew; later in life, Mrs. Baker was affectionately |
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| 21 | 21 | | known as "Grammar" to her 19 grandchildren and 13 |
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| 22 | 22 | | great-grandchildren; and |
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| 23 | 23 | | WHEREAS, In the 1960s, Mrs. Baker served as the textbooks |
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| 24 | 24 | | chair for the Daughters of the American Revolution, a role in |
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| 25 | 25 | | which she evaluated public school textbooks and testified |
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| 26 | 26 | | numerous times before the State Textbook Committee; out of a |
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| 27 | 27 | | strong desire to ensure that their children received a quality |
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| 28 | 28 | | education, she and Mr. Baker decided to homeschool, and with the |
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| 29 | 29 | | financial support and encouragement of her husband, Mrs. Baker |
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| 30 | 30 | | became a tireless advocate for that method of instruction, |
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| 31 | 31 | | publishing Teaching Your Children at Home, one of the first |
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| 32 | 32 | | manuals for parents; in addition, she spoke at homeschool |
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| 33 | 33 | | seminars and conferences in many states, wrote for national |
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| 34 | 34 | | homeschool publications, testified on behalf of home education |
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| 35 | 35 | | on numerous occasions, and was well-known for compiling a leaflet |
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| 36 | 36 | | titled You Ask Me Why?, which was distributed to tens of |
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| 37 | 37 | | thousands of legislators, parents, and educators across the |
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| 38 | 38 | | nation; and |
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| 39 | 39 | | WHEREAS, Over the years, Mrs. Baker received several |
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| 40 | 40 | | notable honors, including Trailblazers Awards from the Texas |
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| 41 | 41 | | Home Educators and the Pioneer Award and the Taking a Stand in |
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| 42 | 42 | | Texas award from the Texas Home School Coalition; and |
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| 43 | 43 | | WHEREAS, Mrs. Baker was also active with the Reading |
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| 44 | 44 | | Reform Foundation and was a frequent speaker at its seminars; she |
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| 45 | 45 | | was a longtime member of such societies as the Magna Charta |
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| 46 | 46 | | Dames, the Daughters of Founders and Patriots of America, and the |
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| 47 | 47 | | Sons and Daughters of the Pilgrims, and her research and writing |
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| 48 | 48 | | covered genealogy, politics, history, and biblical studies; and |
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| 49 | 49 | | WHEREAS, Ginny Baker generously shared her time, |
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| 50 | 50 | | knowledge, and expertise in her quest to empower parents to make |
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| 51 | 51 | | the best decisions for their children's education, and she will |
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| 52 | 52 | | forever be remembered with deep admiration and affection by her |
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| 53 | 53 | | loved ones and by those whose lives were touched by her work; now, |
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| 54 | 54 | | therefore, be it |
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| 55 | 55 | | RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas, 86th |
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| 56 | 56 | | Legislature, hereby pay tribute to the memory of Virginia Nancy |
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| 57 | 57 | | Birt Baker and extend heartfelt sympathy to her relatives and |
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| 58 | 58 | | friends; and, be it further |
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| 59 | 59 | | RESOLVED, That an official copy of this Resolution be |
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| 60 | 60 | | prepared for her family and that when the Texas Senate adjourns |
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| 61 | 61 | | this day, it do so in memory of Ginny Baker. |
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| 62 | 62 | | Hughes |
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| 63 | 63 | | ________________________________ |
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| 64 | 64 | | President of the Senate |
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| 65 | 65 | | I hereby certify that the |
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| 66 | 66 | | above Resolution was adopted by |
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| 67 | 67 | | the Senate on April 25, 2019, by a |
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| 68 | 68 | | rising vote. |
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| 69 | 69 | | ________________________________ |
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| 70 | 70 | | Secretary of the Senate |
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| 71 | 71 | | ________________________________ |
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| 72 | 72 | | Member, Texas Senate |
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