88R9875 AMB-D
By: Plesa H.R. No. 85
R E S O L U T I O N
WHEREAS, Victor L. Holmes and Mark A. Phariss of Plano have
made a lasting, positive difference through their advocacy for the
LGBTQ+ community; and
WHEREAS, A longtime couple, Vic Holmes and Mark Phariss were
two of the plaintiffs in DeLeon v. Abbott, a successful lawsuit
against the State of Texas that ended its prohibitions against
same-sex marriages; they also supported the right to marry by
filing amicus briefs with the U.S. Supreme Court in Obergefell v.
Hodges and the Texas Supreme Court in Pidgeon v. Turner; their
stalwart efforts garnered national attention, and in 2017, the
University of North Texas Press published a book, Accidental
Activists: Mark Phariss, Vic Holmes, and Their Fight for Marriage
Equality in Texas; they wed on November 21, 2015; and
WHEREAS, Mr. Phariss has practiced business law in Texas for
38 years; dedicated to civil rights, he has championed the Equality
Act and nondiscrimination ordinances in San Antonio and Plano; he
has served on the boards of such organizations as the Human Rights
Campaign, Equality Texas, and the Hendrick Scholarship Foundation;
in 2018, he became the first openly gay candidate to be nominated in
a contested party primary for a Texas Senate seat, and in the
general election, he carried the vote in Plano, Richardson, and
Dallas; and
WHEREAS, For more than two decades, including the Don't Ask,
Don't Tell era, Mr. Holmes served his country in the United States
Air Force, attaining the rank of major; today, he teaches aspiring
physician assistants as an associate professor at the University of
North Texas Health Science Center at Fort Worth; he serves as the
faculty advisor for Pride at UNTHSC, and he has shared his time and
talents with the boards of numerous nonprofit organizations, among
them, Ed-U-Care Dallas, the LBGT PA Caucus, and the Coalition for
Aging LGBT; and
WHEREAS, Vic Holmes and Mark Phariss have demonstrated an
unyielding commitment to the advancement of human rights and the
LGBTQ+ community, and in so doing, they have earned the admiration
and appreciation of innumerable people; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 88th Texas
Legislature hereby honor Victor L. Holmes and Mark A. Phariss for
their civic engagement and contributions to the LGBTQ+ community
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 Mr. Holmes and Mr. Phariss as an expression of high
regard by the Texas House of Representatives.