By Averitt                                             H.R. No. 358
       74R7309 PFG-D
                                  R E S O L U T I O N
    1-1        WHEREAS, Chief Hospitalman Winfred Eugene Watkins will retire
    1-2  from the United States Naval Reserve on March 11, 1995, drawing to
    1-3  a close 20 years of outstanding service to his country as a
    1-4  reservist in our nation's armed forces; and
    1-5        WHEREAS, This patriotic gentleman first embarked on his
    1-6  military career in 1962 when he joined the U.S. Naval Reserve while
    1-7  still a student at Huston-Tillotson College in Austin; reporting
    1-8  for boot camp at the Naval Training Center in San Diego,
    1-9  California, he completed basic training and returned to Austin to
   1-10  resume his studies before being called to active duty in the fall
   1-11  of 1964; and
   1-12        WHEREAS, Assigned to the Hospitalman Corps School at Balboa
   1-13  Naval Hospital in San Diego, he excelled at his studies, serving as
   1-14  class adjutant and graduating at the head of his class; he went on
   1-15  to serve in the cardiology ward at Portsmouth Naval Hospital in
   1-16  Virginia where he earned a promotion to the rank of Second Class
   1-17  Petty Officer and later served in the hospital's  postsurgical ward
   1-18  until his discharge from active duty in 1966; and
   1-19        WHEREAS, After returning home to Waco, Chief Watkins enhanced
   1-20  the practical training he had received in the military by earning a
   1-21  bachelor's degree from Paul Quinn College and, shortly thereafter,
   1-22  accepted a position as a medical technologist with the Waco
   1-23  Clinical Pathology Laboratory; and
   1-24        WHEREAS, Chief Watkins earned a master's degree in
    2-1  microbiology from Baylor University in 1972 and this important
    2-2  educational achievement marked the beginning of a successful and
    2-3  rewarding new aspect to his medical career as an instructor of
    2-4  microbiology and biology; today, this highly regarded educator is
    2-5  in his 14th year of teaching at McLennan Community College and also
    2-6  is completing his second decade of service with the reserves,
    2-7  having reenlisted as a reservist in Waco in 1980; and
    2-8        WHEREAS, During his latest tenure in the military, Chief
    2-9  Watkins has ably served his country at posts with the USS Texas,
   2-10  Beaufort Naval Hospital, and Fleet Hospital 21 Headquarters, and he
   2-11  also has provided outstanding medical support for the U.S. Marine
   2-12  Corps Reserve in Waco; and
   2-13        WHEREAS, On the homefront, Chief Watkins has enjoyed a happy
   2-14  and rewarding marriage with his wife of 30 years, the former Erna
   2-15  Mayberry, and their marriage has been blessed by a daughter, Sharon
   2-16  Denise Watkins-Jones, a graduate of The University of Texas at
   2-17  Austin, a son, Andre Eugene Watkins, who is following in his
   2-18  father's footsteps as a member of the U.S. Navy, and most recently,
   2-19  a darling new grandson, Shawn Nika Watkins; and
   2-20        WHEREAS, Throughout the course of his exemplary career, Chief
   2-21  Hospitalman Winfred E. Watkins has adhered to the highest standards
   2-22  of integrity, leadership, and professional excellence, and he is
   2-23  indeed deserving of special praise and recognition on the momentous
   2-24  occasion of his retirement from the reserves; now, therefore, be it
   2-25        RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 74th Texas
   2-26  Legislature hereby commend Chief Hospitalman Winfred Eugene Watkins
   2-27  for his outstanding service as a member of the United States Naval
    3-1  Reserve and extend sincere best wishes to him for continued
    3-2  happiness and success in the future; and, be it further
    3-3        RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
    3-4  prepared for Chief Watkins as an expression of highest regard by
    3-5  the Texas House of Representatives.