H.R. No. 1284
R E S O L U T I O N
WHEREAS, During the weeks that followed the mass shooting at
the Cielo Vista Walmart in El Paso on August 3, 2019, the Zaragoza
Rotary Club partnered with El Paso City Council member Henry Rivera
to maintain the temporary memorial that was created to honor the 22
people who lost their lives on that tragic day; and
WHEREAS, To commemorate those who were killed in the horrific
attack, El Pasoans began visiting and bringing flowers, candles,
stuffed animals, signs, and other items to a makeshift memorial
overlooking the Walmart parking lot; soon after, El Paso City
Representative Henry Rivera recognized the need to tidy up the
memorial, and he went on to enlist the help of the Zaragoza Rotary
Club of El Paso, which volunteered to make weekly visits to the site
before a permanent structure could be established; and
WHEREAS, Rotary Club volunteers removed wilting flowers from
the memorial, which were then taken to the El Paso Zoo to be
recycled into compost; the organization continued performing this
service until the store reopened on November 14 and the memorial was
removed; on November 23, a permanent monument called the "Grand
Candela," a 30-foot-tall illuminated obelisk, was unveiled and
dedicated to each of the victims and survivors of the tragedy; and
WHEREAS, In the immediate aftermath of the horrific events of
August 3, 2019, El Pasoans gathered at the makeshift memorial to
mourn and pay their respects to the innocent people whose lives were
cut short by an appalling act of violence, and Representative Henry
Rivera and the Zaragoza Rotary Club are deserving of praise for
their commitment to ensuring that the site received the care that it
deserved; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 87th Texas
Legislature hereby commend El Paso City Representative Henry Rivera
and the Zaragoza Rotary Club of El Paso for their efforts to
maintain the temporary memorial at the Cielo Vista Walmart in El
Paso and extend to them sincere best wishes for the future; and, be
it further
RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
prepared for Representative Rivera and the Zaragoza Rotary Club as
an expression of high regard by the Texas House of Representatives.
Ordaz Perez
______________________________
Speaker of the House
I certify that H.R. No. 1284 was adopted by the House on May
23, 2021, by a non-record vote.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House