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| 6 | 7 | | R E S O L U T I O N |
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| 7 | 8 | | WHEREAS, Ivy L. Walls of Houston is being honored with a 2025 |
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| 8 | 9 | | Outstanding Texan Award from the Texas Legislative Black Caucus; |
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| 9 | 10 | | and |
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| 10 | 11 | | WHEREAS, The owner of Ivy Leaf Farms, Ms. Walls is dedicated |
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| 11 | 12 | | to improving the health of her fellow Sunnyside residents; she |
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| 12 | 13 | | became a third-generation farmer after earning her bachelor's |
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| 13 | 14 | | degree in biology from Prairie View A&M University and beginning a |
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| 14 | 15 | | career in the medical field; during the COVID-19 pandemic, she was |
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| 15 | 16 | | employed as an infection preventionist by the Memorial Hermann |
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| 16 | 17 | | Health System; she understood the importance of good nutrition in |
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| 17 | 18 | | battling illness and recognized a serious need in Sunnyside, a |
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| 18 | 19 | | USDA-designated food desert in which few residents had ready access |
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| 19 | 20 | | to a grocery store with fresh produce; and |
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| 20 | 21 | | WHEREAS, Ms. Walls started growing vegetables in her |
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| 21 | 22 | | parents' backyard to give to neighbors; finding great satisfaction |
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| 22 | 23 | | in that endeavor, she began cultivating five acres owned by her |
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| 23 | 24 | | parents and quit her job to establish Ivy Leaf Farms in 2020; using |
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| 24 | 25 | | her entrepreneurial skills, she launched a GoFundMe on social |
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| 25 | 26 | | media; she also received a $10,000 grant from a joint initiative by |
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| 26 | 27 | | Beyoncé Knowles-Carter and the NAACP; building community |
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| 27 | 28 | | connections, the farm hosts events and offers opportunities for |
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| 28 | 29 | | neighbors to get in touch with nature and learn about sustainable |
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| 29 | 30 | | growing practices and nutrient-dense foods; in addition, staff |
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| 30 | 31 | | members visit schools to help set up community gardens that will |
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| 31 | 32 | | encourage interest in agriculture among the next generation; |
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| 32 | 33 | | Ms. Walls cofounded Black Farmer Box, which provides locally |
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| 33 | 34 | | sourced produce to food desert residents, and then Fresh Houwse |
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| 34 | 35 | | Grocery, a bodega-style business that features the products of |
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| 35 | 36 | | local farmers and serves as a neighborhood gathering place; and |
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| 36 | 37 | | WHEREAS, Through her vision and commitment to improving the |
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| 37 | 38 | | well-being of her fellow Houstonians, Ivy Walls has set an |
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| 38 | 39 | | inspiring example of civic-minded entrepreneurship, and she is |
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| 39 | 40 | | indeed deserving of special recognition; now, therefore, be it |
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| 40 | 41 | | RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 89th Texas |
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| 41 | 42 | | Legislature hereby congratulate Ivy L. Walls on her receipt of a |
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| 42 | 43 | | 2025 Outstanding Texan Award from the Texas Legislative Black |
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| 43 | 44 | | Caucus and extend to her sincere best wishes for the future; and, be |
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| 44 | 45 | | it further |
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| 45 | 46 | | RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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| 46 | 47 | | prepared for Ms. Walls as an expression of high regard by the Texas |
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| 47 | 48 | | House of Representatives. |
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