89R22313 BPG-D
By: Hagenbuch S.R. No. 442
R E S O L U T I O N
WHEREAS, A full and generous life drew to a close with the
passing of Joseph Burt Dial of San Antonio on December 18, 2024, at
the age of 88; and
WHEREAS, The son of William Angelo Dial and Ina Grace
Spaulding, Joe Dial was born in Kilgore on April 27, 1936; he
graduated from the Texas Military Institute and went on to attend
The University of Texas at Austin; in 1957, he married his high
school sweetheart, the former Gertrude Emily Koontz, and they
raised four children on their 3X Ranch in Montgomery County; a
prominent livestock breeder, Mr. Dial built 3X into a globally
recognized brand, working with foreign governments and the
Inter-American Development Bank to advance exports of registered
Brahman cattle; he also served on the board of the American Brahman
Breeders Association; honoring his father's legacy, he cofounded
the Former Texas Rangers Foundation in 1971 and served as
president, director, and chair; and
WHEREAS, Mr. Dial served in a number of government leadership
roles, including inaugural chair of the Environmental Protection
Agency's Gulf of Mexico Citizens Advisory Committee; he was
appointed to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission by President
George H. W. Bush, and while working in the nation's capital and
representing the commission abroad, he completed his bachelor's
degree in business management at the University of Maryland; in
1993, he wed Marilyn Scott Smith; they lived in Cambridge,
Massachusetts, during his tenure as a teaching fellow at the
Institute of Politics at the Harvard University John F. Kennedy
School of Government; subsequently, he pursued a new career as an
international consultant, guiding development of governmental
regulatory agencies and private-sector futures exchanges; and
WHEREAS, In 2004, Mr. Dial moved to Saint Jo; he continued to
be active in civic life, and he was a lifelong member of the
Episcopal Church; he loved to entertain his grandchildren at Katy
Lake and spend family vacations in Colorado; he moved to San Antonio
in 2021 to spend even more time with his loved ones; and
WHEREAS, Joe Dial is deeply missed by those he left behind,
but his kindness, integrity, and strong faith will remain a lasting
source of inspiration to all who knew him; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the Senate of the 89th Texas Legislature
hereby pay tribute to the memory of Joseph Burt Dial and extend
sincere condolences to the members of his family: to his children,
Joseph Dial, Catherine Dial Easley, Emily Dial Heard and her
husband, Richard, and Peggy Dial and her husband, Stephen Shearer;
to his stepson, Walter Smith; to his grandchildren, Samantha Heard
DeYoung, Richard Joseph Heard, William Zachary Easley, Emma
Isabella Easley, and Emily Katelyn Heard; to his
great-granddaughter, Heather Liv Heard; and to his many other
relatives and friends; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
prepared for his family and that when the Texas Senate adjourns this
day, it do so in memory of Joe Dial.