R E S O L U T I O N

 1-1           WHEREAS, With the passing of Mary Frances Baylor on March 16,

 1-2     1997, at the age of 67, the city of Austin and its historic

 1-3     Clarksville community have suffered a great loss; and

 1-4           WHEREAS, She was born August 9, 1929, and lived her entire

 1-5     life on the same block in the Clarksville neighborhood where her

 1-6     ancestors made their home more than a century ago; she was a

 1-7     graduate of Old Anderson High School and also attended

 1-8     Huston-Tillotson College in Austin; and

 1-9           WHEREAS, Mrs. Baylor will long be remembered for her abiding

1-10     commitment to her community; a valued employee of the City of

1-11     Austin's Health and Human Services Department for 24 years, she

1-12     directed the Clarksville Neighborhood Center, and her knowledge of

1-13     both the area residents and the city's social service agencies made

1-14     her an effective liaison between the two groups; and

1-15           WHEREAS, Active in President Lyndon Johnson's War on Poverty

1-16     program, she educated the community on a variety of important

1-17     issues, offered assistance to help others overcome life's daily

1-18     hurdles, and also drew on her abundant skills to have the

1-19     neighborhood's streets paved and sewers installed; and

1-20           WHEREAS, In addition, this remarkable woman organized one of

1-21     the nation's first community-based nonprofit development

1-22     corporations to build low-income housing in the area and served on

1-23     the board of the McAuley Institute for low-income housing; she was

1-24     amply rewarded for her stalwart efforts when 18 homes were built,

 2-1     allowing low-income African-American families to remain in, or move

 2-2     back to, Clarksville; and

 2-3           WHEREAS, In all her endeavors, she was sustained by her

 2-4     abiding faith as a devout member of Sweethome Missionary Baptist

 2-5     Church, where she was both church clerk and an active member of the

 2-6     Missionary Society; and

 2-7           WHEREAS, Mary Baylor's gentle but adamant stand for justice

 2-8     and equal treatment of all races has inspired countless individuals

 2-9     to serve the community, and though her presence will be deeply

2-10     missed, her legacy will long endure; now, therefore, be it

2-11           RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 75th Texas

2-12     Legislature hereby pay tribute to the life of Mary Frances Baylor

2-13     and extend sincere sympathy to the members of her family: to her

2-14     devoted husband of 49 years, Charles E. Baylor; to her three

2-15     daughters, Cynthia, Linda, and Vicky; to her sons, Ronnie and Skip;

2-16     to her five grandchildren, Kevin, Terry, April, Kisha, and Tony; to

2-17     her great-grandchild, "Dusty"; to her aunt and uncle, Artie B. and

2-18     Mack Myers; and to the many other friends and relatives of this

2-19     beloved woman; and, be it further

2-20           RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be

2-21     prepared for the members of her family and that when the Texas

2-22     House of Representatives adjourns this day, it do so in memory of

2-23     Mary Frances Baylor.

                                                                       Maxey

                                                                    Naishtat

                                             _______________________________

                                                   Speaker of the House

               I certify that H.R. No. 536 was unanimously adopted by a

         rising vote of the House on April 18, 1997.

                                             _______________________________

                                                 Chief Clerk of the House