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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, Norma Lynn Knobel Hunt of Dallas, the beloved |
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matriarch of one of the most influential families in American |
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sports, passed away on June 4, 2023, at the age of 85; and |
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WHEREAS, The daughter of Edward and Loretta Knobel, the |
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former Norma Knobel was born in Greenville on March 28, 1938; she |
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graduated from Richardson High School, earned a secondary education |
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degree from North Texas State University, and taught history at |
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Richardson High; in 1963, she began dating Lamar Hunt, who had |
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founded the American Football League four years earlier; the couple |
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wed on January 22, 1964, and they shared more than 40 happy years |
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together before Mr. Hunt's death in 2006; they raised two sons, |
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Clark and Daniel, and Mrs. Hunt also took great pride in her five |
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grandchildren; and |
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WHEREAS, Mrs. Hunt provided vital support to her husband as |
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he realized a series of important achievements in the sports world, |
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including the merger of the American and National Football Leagues |
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and the formation of World Championship Tennis and Major League |
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Soccer; at Mrs. Hunt's behest, the couple were founding investors |
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in the NBA's Chicago Bulls; above all, the Hunt name became |
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synonymous with the NFL and particularly with the Kansas City |
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Chiefs franchise, which Mr. Hunt established in 1963 by relocating |
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his Dallas-based AFL team to a new market; known as the First Lady |
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of Football, Mrs. Hunt attended all 57 Super Bowls to date, |
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starting with Kansas City's appearance in the inaugural 1967 title |
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contest and concluding with the 2023 Super Bowl, in which the Chiefs |
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claimed their third Lombardi Trophy; currently, her son Clark Hunt |
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is chair and CEO of the family-owned team; and |
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WHEREAS, Deeply engaged in the community, Mrs. Hunt was a |
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prominent benefactor of the Dallas Museum of Art, and she supported |
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such entities as the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, the Crystal Charity |
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Ball, and Park Cities Presbyterian Church; moreover, she was the |
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driving force in her family's acquisition of Bidwell Creek Vineyard |
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in California in 2000 and helped guide the development of its |
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award-winning wines; and |
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WHEREAS, Renowned for her generosity, her positive outlook, |
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and her abiding concern for others, Norma Hunt will be greatly |
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missed, but the passage of time will never diminish the joy and love |
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that she brought into the lives of all who knew her; now, therefore, |
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be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 88th Texas |
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Legislature, 2nd Called Session, hereby pay tribute to the memory |
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of Norma Lynn Knobel Hunt and extend heartfelt condolences to the |
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members of her family: to her sons, Clark Hunt and his wife, Tavia, |
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and Daniel Hunt and his wife, Toni; to her brother, Edward Knobel |
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III, and his wife, Paula; to her niece, Amy Knobel; to her |
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grandchildren, Gracelyn, Knobel, Ava, Darlington, and Tennyson |
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Hunt; and to her other relatives and many friends; and, be it |
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further |
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RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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prepared for her family and that when the Texas House of |
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Representatives adjourns this day, it do so in memory of Norma Hunt. |