| 1 | 1 | | H.R. No. 525 |
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| 2 | 2 | | |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | R E S O L U T I O N |
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| 5 | 5 | | WHEREAS, Family and friends were deeply saddened by the |
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| 6 | 6 | | passing of Ollie Garza of Fort Worth on December 1, 2022, at the age |
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| 7 | 7 | | of 58; and |
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| 8 | 8 | | WHEREAS, The son of Ollie and Marie Garza, "Babe" Garza was |
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| 9 | 9 | | born in Fort Worth on May 9, 1964, and he grew up with the |
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| 10 | 10 | | companionship of three brothers, Johnny, Rudy, and Anthony; a |
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| 11 | 11 | | natural born athlete, he played numerous sports throughout his |
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| 12 | 12 | | youth until October 19, 1978, when a tragic accident while playing |
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| 13 | 13 | | football for Diamond Hill-Jarvis High School left him paralyzed at |
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| 14 | 14 | | the age of 14; never deterred by his need for a wheelchair, he |
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| 15 | 15 | | graduated from high school in 1982 and went on to earn a bachelor's |
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| 16 | 16 | | degree from The University of Texas at Arlington in 1996; and |
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| 17 | 17 | | WHEREAS, Alongside a successful career in business, |
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| 18 | 18 | | Mr. Garza was an active member of his community; he gave generously |
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| 19 | 19 | | of his time to numerous organizations, including the Gridiron |
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| 20 | 20 | | Heroes Spinal Cord Injury Foundation, Hispanic Organization |
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| 21 | 21 | | Helping Others, and Toastmasters International, and he was also a |
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| 22 | 22 | | member of the Dallas Wheelchair Sidekicks quad-rugby team that won |
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| 23 | 23 | | the national championship in 1989; in addition, he authored the |
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| 24 | 24 | | book Why Not Me? 8 Keys to Turning Tragedy into Triumph as a |
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| 25 | 25 | | testament to his journey of recovery, independence, and success; |
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| 26 | 26 | | and |
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| 27 | 27 | | WHEREAS, Babe Garza earned the admiration of all who knew him |
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| 28 | 28 | | through his strength of character and perseverance in the face of |
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| 29 | 29 | | life's challenges, and he will forever remain a source of |
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| 30 | 30 | | inspiration to those he leaves behind; now, therefore, be it |
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| 31 | 31 | | RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 88th Texas |
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| 32 | 32 | | Legislature hereby pay tribute to the memory of Ollie Garza and |
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| 33 | 33 | | extend sincere condolences to the members of his family: to his |
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| 34 | 34 | | parents, Ollie and Marie Garza; to his daughter, Alexandria |
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| 35 | 35 | | Vasquez; to his stepdaughter, Victoria Rios; to his brothers, |
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| 36 | 36 | | Johnny Garza and his wife, Stephanie, and Rudy Garza and his wife, |
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| 37 | 37 | | Leann; to his nieces, Amanda Perez, Samantha Xayavong and her |
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| 38 | 38 | | husband, Kevin, and Jasmine Garza; to his nephews, Andrew Garza, |
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| 39 | 39 | | Joshua Garza, Rudy Garza II, and Jorge "BJ" Perez; to his |
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| 40 | 40 | | grandniece, Evelyn "Evie" Xayavong; and to his other relatives and |
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| 41 | 41 | | friends; and, be it further |
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| 42 | 42 | | RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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| 43 | 43 | | prepared for his family and that when the Texas House of |
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| 44 | 44 | | Representatives adjourns this day, it do so in memory of Babe Garza. |
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| 45 | 45 | | Romero, Jr. |
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| 46 | 46 | | ______________________________ |
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| 47 | 47 | | Speaker of the House |
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| 48 | 48 | | I certify that H.R. No. 525 was unanimously adopted by a |
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| 49 | 49 | | rising vote of the House on March 16, 2023. |
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| 50 | 50 | | ______________________________ |
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| 51 | 51 | | Chief Clerk of the House |
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