By Davila                                              H.R. No. 308
       74R7142 JLZ-D
                                  R E S O L U T I O N
    1-1        WHEREAS,  Having lived a full and active life spanning three
    1-2  quarters of a century, James Benton Grace of Houston can take great
    1-3  pleasure and satisfaction in counting his many blessings, among
    1-4  them a large circle of loving and devoted friends who join in
    1-5  wishing this distinguished gentleman a happy 75th birthday; and
    1-6        WHEREAS, Born on February 28, 1920, in Nashville, Tennessee,
    1-7  this patriotic individual attended St. Ambrose College in
    1-8  Davenport, Iowa, until January 1942, when he interrupted his
    1-9  studies to come to the aid of his country shortly after its entry
   1-10  into World War II; and
   1-11        WHEREAS, Joining the U.S. Army Air Corps as a pilot cadet in
   1-12  April of that year, he soon distinguished himself as a military
   1-13  aviator, and in July 1943 he gained the distinction of becoming the
   1-14  first pilot to fly the four-engine B-24 Bomber; and
   1-15        WHEREAS, After a brief stint with the 15th Air Force in Italy
   1-16  in the spring of 1944, he was transferred to the 8th Air Force and
   1-17  stationed in Great Britain and flew numerous missions over Germany
   1-18  and France until August 1944; and
   1-19        WHEREAS, He was honorably discharged from the military in
   1-20  April 1945, and while enjoying the first few months of civilian
   1-21  life in Los Angeles, he met an agent for the Scindia Steam
   1-22  Navigation Company, Ltd., of India, who promptly offered Mr. Grace
   1-23  a job as a civil service pilot for the company's airline; and
   1-24        WHEREAS, In the ensuing years Mr. Grace's civilian career
    2-1  took him to many exotic locales around the world, but in 1965 he
    2-2  returned to Nashville, where he assumed the care of his widowed
    2-3  mother; the following year, he and his mother moved to Guadalajara,
    2-4  Mexico, where they spent 16 happy years together; and
    2-5        WHEREAS,  After their relocation to Houston in 1982,
    2-6  Mr. Grace continued to care for his beloved mother until her death
    2-7  in March 1993, at the age of 97; in Houston, he also found a
    2-8  nurturing circle of friends and a cause to which he gave himself
    2-9  with unflagging dedication and energy; and
   2-10        WHEREAS, An active member of the Houston Gay and Lesbian
   2-11  Political Caucus, he has been a volunteer at the city's AIDS
   2-12  Foundation since 1987; he also serves as a member of the board of
   2-13  the recently formed Houston Gay Veterans; and
   2-14        WHEREAS, A warm and compassionate individual, Mr. Grace has
   2-15  had the good fortune to live a rich and rewarding life, a life of
   2-16  selfless service to his country and to his fellowman that has been
   2-17  enriched in turn by the love and affection of devoted friends and
   2-18  family and that is indeed worthy of special recognition; now,
   2-19  therefore, be it
   2-20        RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 74th Texas
   2-21  Legislature hereby congratulate James B. Grace of Houston on the
   2-22  occasion of his 75th birthday and extend to him best wishes for
   2-23  many more years of continued health and happiness; and, be it
   2-24  further
   2-25        RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
   2-26  prepared for Mr. Grace as an expression of high esteem by the Texas
   2-27  House of Representatives.