88R9366 EME-D
By: Moody H.R. No. 63
R E S O L U T I O N
WHEREAS, A life dedicated to social and environmental justice
and to the service of her nation drew to a close with the death of
Judith P. Ackerman of El Paso on November 6, 2022, at the age of 69;
and
WHEREAS, Judy Ackerman joined the 28th Infantry of the
Pennsylvania Army National Guard in 1980, embarking upon a
distinguished 27-year career in the U.S. Army; she was one of the
first women to teach a course for primary noncommissioned officers
in the NCO education system, and she was a lesson developer at the
U.S. Army's Sergeants Major Academy and the first sergeant for the
Equipment Maintenance Center of 21st Theater Support Command in
Kaiserslautern, Germany; throughout her military service, she was a
champion for diversity and equal opportunity, and she retired from
the army in 2007 at the rank of sergeant major; and
WHEREAS, In 1995, Sergeant Ackerman transferred to Fort
Bliss, and she fell in love with the El Paso region; she was a leader
in the effort to declare the Castner Range of the Franklin Mountains
as a national monument, and in 2012 she handcuffed herself to a
bulldozer to protect the Rio Bosque wetlands from construction; she
also played a leading role in the development of the Knapp Land
Nature Preserve; and
WHEREAS, A member of the League of Women Voters and a
deputized voter registrar, Ms. Ackerman signed up thousands of
voters in El Paso County; she also helped to found the Viejitas for
Choice network to preserve reproductive rights; she was an active
member of many other organizations, including the Sierra Club, the
Friends of the Rio Bosque, the El Paso Chapter of the Native Plant
Society of New Mexico, the Trans-Pecos Chapter Texas Master
Naturalists, and the Frontera Land Alliance; and
WHEREAS, Judy Ackerman lived a rich and purposeful life
dedicated to conserving the natural splendor of El Paso and to
fighting for social justice, and her passion and commitment will
forever inspire all those who knew and loved her; now, therefore, be
it
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 88th Texas
Legislature hereby pay tribute to the life of Judy Ackerman and
extend sincere condolences to her husband, Jamie Ackerman, to the
other members of her family, and to her countless friends; and, be
it further
RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
prepared for her family and that when the Texas House of
Representatives adjourns this day, it do so in memory of Judy
Ackerman.