H.R. No. 855
                                  R E S O L U T I O N
    1-1        WHEREAS, The passing of Hazel Vaughn Leigh on April 27, 1995,
    1-2  has deeply saddened the many friends of this esteemed civic leader
    1-3  and founder of the Fort Worth Boys Club, and her death will be
    1-4  widely mourned throughout the city she made her lifelong home; and
    1-5        WHEREAS, A native of the Diamond Hill area of north Fort
    1-6  Worth, Ms. Leigh organized the Fort Worth Boys Club Council 60
    1-7  years ago in an effort to combat the high rate of juvenile
    1-8  delinquency on the city's north side by providing positive
    1-9  activities for the underprivileged and largely Hispanic youth of
   1-10  the area, who were particularly hard hit by the Great Depression;
   1-11  and
   1-12        WHEREAS, Enlisting the help of several friends and the local
   1-13  Kiwanis Club, she initiated the club's first after-school program
   1-14  on February 1, 1935, which attracted 250 local boys who eagerly
   1-15  exhausted the fledgling organization's supply of hot chocolate and
   1-16  quickly signed on as charter members; under Ms. Leigh's direction,
   1-17  the club was soon running its program at the Boulevard Methodist
   1-18  Church gym where club members participated in volleyball and boxing
   1-19  and occasionally were treated to trips to the Isis Theater, in
   1-20  addition to receiving a square meal that was often hard to come by
   1-21  in those days; and
   1-22        WHEREAS, Within a year of the establishment of the Fort Worth
   1-23  Boys Club, juvenile delinquency in the area had plummeted by more
   1-24  than 75 percent, and Ms. Leigh's program began to garner local
    2-1  acclaim and national attention from the Roosevelt administration,
    2-2  which deemed the program worthy of staff assistance from the
    2-3  National Youth Administration; and
    2-4        WHEREAS, This extraordinary woman continued to provide
    2-5  steadfast leadership to the boys club as its director in the years
    2-6  that followed, and, determined to enhance her own professional
    2-7  skills to better serve the club, she earned a degree in social work
    2-8  from Texas Christian University while working a 60-hour week; in
    2-9  the 1960s she furthered her education with graduate studies at New
   2-10  York University; and
   2-11        WHEREAS, Under Ms. Leigh's visionary direction, the Fort
   2-12  Worth Boys Club continued to flourish and evolve, becoming a United
   2-13  Fund agency and securing affiliation with the Boys Clubs of
   2-14  America; in 1969, the club merged with several other youth clubs in
   2-15  the Fort Worth area to operate under the auspices of the Boys &
   2-16  Girls Clubs of Greater Fort Worth, which today serves 5,000 young
   2-17  people annually; and
   2-18        WHEREAS, Roundly praised and admired by all who knew her,
   2-19  Ms. Leigh was honored with the Golden Boy award from the Boys Clubs
   2-20  of America in 1960 for her significant contributions to youth, and
   2-21  she also enjoyed the distinction of being the first woman director
   2-22  of a boys club to receive this coveted award; and
   2-23        WHEREAS, Ms. Leigh retired as the executive director of the
   2-24  boys club in 1972 after successfully guiding the organization she
   2-25  had created for nearly four decades; in later years, she remained
   2-26  active in the community and continued to support the club through
   2-27  valuable fund-raising efforts as a member of the Women's Board; and
    3-1        WHEREAS, Hazel Vaughn Leigh played a pivotal role in changing
    3-2  the lives of numerous young men for the better as the founder of
    3-3  the Fort Worth Boys Club Council, and the memory of this remarkable
    3-4  woman will long endure in the hearts of the many people who were
    3-5  touched by her dedication, compassion, and goodwill; now,
    3-6  therefore, be it
    3-7        RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 74th Texas
    3-8  Legislature hereby pay tribute to the life of Hazel Vaughn Leigh
    3-9  and extend deepest sympathy to the many friends, colleagues, and
   3-10  relatives of this beloved lady; and, be it further
   3-11        RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
   3-12  prepared for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Fort Worth and that
   3-13  when the Texas House of Representatives adjourns this day, it do so
   3-14  in memory of Hazel Vaughn Leigh.