H.R. No. 673
R E S O L U T I O N
1-1 WHEREAS, The Texas House of Representatives is honored to pay
1-2 tribute today to one of the state's most esteemed citizens, Judge
1-3 Abner McCall, who will be celebrating his 80th birthday on June 8,
1-4 1995; and
1-5 WHEREAS, This distinguished gentleman was born on June 8,
1-6 1915, in Perrin in Jack County; when he was quite young, his father
1-7 died, and his mother was left to care for a family of four small
1-8 children; and
1-9 WHEREAS, When his mother's health worsened, he and his
1-10 brothers and sister were sent to the Fort Worth Masonic Home and
1-11 School; early realizing the importance of education, he graduated
1-12 from there in 1933 as valedictorian of his class; and
1-13 WHEREAS, This outstanding student received a Masonic
1-14 scholarship to attend Baylor University, intending to become a
1-15 lawyer; and
1-16 WHEREAS, Abner McCall worked his way through college mowing
1-17 lawns, working in the business office, and selling tickets to
1-18 school activities; after graduating at the head of his law school
1-19 class in 1938, he scored higher on the bar exam than any previous
1-20 examinee; and
1-21 WHEREAS, An impressed Baylor President Neff offered him a job
1-22 teaching in the law school, which he accepted; he had previously
1-23 worked in Longview, where he met his first wife, Frances Bortle;
1-24 they were married in 1940, and together they made a home and raised
2-1 four energetic and intelligent children: Anne, Bette Gail, Richard
2-2 Vernon, and Kathleen; Frances predeceased him in 1969, and in 1970
2-3 he wed Mary W. Russell of Waco; and
2-4 WHEREAS, In 1943, he joined the Federal Bureau of
2-5 Investigation as a special agent working to apprehend deserters,
2-6 draft dodgers, and escaped prisoners of war; and
2-7 WHEREAS, In 1948, Abner McCall was appointed dean of Baylor
2-8 Law School, the youngest dean in the history of the law school; in
2-9 1956, Governor Allan Shivers named Dean McCall to fill an interim
2-10 position on the Texas Supreme Court; and
2-11 WHEREAS, When his term was finished, he returned to his
2-12 beloved Baylor as he said he would; and
2-13 WHEREAS, A man of rare ability and unquestioned integrity, he
2-14 served as the dean of Baylor Law School from 1948 through 1959; he
2-15 was promoted to executive vice president in 1959, and in 1961 he
2-16 became president of Baylor University; Judge McCall served as
2-17 chancellor from 1981 until 1985; and
2-18 WHEREAS, Under his leadership, Baylor University increased
2-19 its academic stature, national reputation, and capital assets; the
2-20 size of its campus increased from about 40 acres to about 300
2-21 acres, and student enrollment rose to around 10,000; he also hired
2-22 Jack Patterson in 1970 as athletic director, and he hired Grant
2-23 Teaff, the outstanding Baylor football coach; in 1963 he began
2-24 Baylor's development program in order to increase the university's
2-25 endowment, which has increased to over $130 million; and
2-26 WHEREAS, Throughout his meritorious career, his service to
2-27 education has taken many different forms; he served on the board of
3-1 trustees of the Waco Independent School District and on the
3-2 steering committee of the Waco Adopt A School; he helped organize
3-3 and was second president of the Independent Colleges and
3-4 Universities of Texas, Incorporated; he served as a trustee of the
3-5 Masonic Home Independent School District, and he has received so
3-6 many honors and awards that a list of them would fill several
3-7 pages; and
3-8 WHEREAS, A man of strong religious convictions, Judge McCall
3-9 has worked devotedly on behalf of the Southern Baptist Convention,
3-10 which he served as vice president and in support of the Baptist
3-11 General Convention of Texas, which he served as president; he has
3-12 been an active member of First Baptist Church in Waco, where he has
3-13 also served as deacon and taught a Bible study class; and
3-14 WHEREAS, An excellent example of what one man can achieve,
3-15 Judge McCall has been accorded the highest of honors among his
3-16 peers; he has been appointed to the Texas Judicial Council by
3-17 several different Texas governors; he was appointed to serve as
3-18 Texas Commissioner on the Education Commission for the States; and
3-19 WHEREAS, His unequaled record of personal and professional
3-20 contributions to his church, university, city, and state have made
3-21 this notable gentleman a treasured asset; now, therefore, be it
3-22 RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 74th
3-23 Legislature hereby commend the life and the career of Judge Abner
3-24 McCall and wish him a happy 80th birthday; and, be it further
3-25 RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
3-26 prepared for Mr. McCall as an expression of highest regard by the
3-27 Texas House of Representatives.