H.R. No. 195
                                  R E S O L U T I O N
    1-1        WHEREAS, On February 20, 1995, Jack and Nona Collins of
    1-2  Amarillo will reunite in marriage to celebrate the 50th anniversary
    1-3  of their first wedding; and
    1-4        WHEREAS, Jack and Nona became acquainted in Childress, Jack's
    1-5  birthplace and Nona's hometown at the time, when Jack was 19 and
    1-6  Nona was 13; and
    1-7        WHEREAS, Nona was 14 when Jack first proposed marriage before
    1-8  being shipped overseas as a member of the Army Air Corps, but Nona
    1-9  declined, and there followed a long-distance courtship of letters
   1-10  and pictures between Nona in Oklahoma and Jack "somewhere" in
   1-11  England, Africa, or Italy; and
   1-12        WHEREAS, Jack returned to American soil on February 11, 1945,
   1-13  and he and Nona were married 11 days later, February 22, 1945,
   1-14  waiting a total of two days after his arrival at her home before
   1-15  being married, in order to pay respect to her father's advice to
   1-16  not rush to a decision; and
   1-17        WHEREAS, Their union contributed two sons to the postwar baby
   1-18  boom, first Terry in 1948 and then Steve in 1951, and Terry and
   1-19  Steve were raised to be grown in the Panhandle towns of Childress,
   1-20  Borger, Vernon, and Amarillo, the last of which has been Jack and
   1-21  Nona's home for 35 years; and
   1-22        WHEREAS, With the gifts of intellect, self-confidence, and
   1-23  independence given them by their parents, Terry and Steve both
   1-24  became lawyers, Terry a noted energy lawyer in private practice in
    2-1  Washington, D.C., and in corporate practice in Houston, and Steve a
    2-2  longtime counsel to this legislature through his service at the
    2-3  Texas Legislative Council; and
    2-4        WHEREAS, PappaJack and MammaNo, as they are known to their
    2-5  grandchildren and neighborhood children, have been blessed with
    2-6  four wonderful grandchildren--Erin, Ryan, Drew, and Shelley--each
    2-7  of whom in the eyes of loving grandparents is above average; and
    2-8        WHEREAS, Through the 50 years of their marriage, Jack and
    2-9  Nona have been blessed with friends and family who have shared
   2-10  their lives and who now wish to honor and congratulate them on this
   2-11  special occasion; now, therefore, be it
   2-12        RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 74th Texas
   2-13  Legislature hereby extend its congratulations to these fine Texans
   2-14  on the occasion of their golden wedding anniversary; and, be it
   2-15  further
   2-16        RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
   2-17  prepared for Jack and Nona Collins as an expression by the Texas
   2-18  House of Representatives of its wish for them for many more years
   2-19  of companionship and joy.