R E S O L U T I O N 1-1 WHEREAS, Throughout her lifetime, Tipper Gore has been an 1-2 outspoken advocate for families, women, and children, and her work 1-3 focusing on such important issues as mental health, homelessness, 1-4 young people's exposure to violent and explicit entertainment, 1-5 children's health, education, and physical fitness indeed merits 1-6 special legislative recognition; and 1-7 WHEREAS, Born on August 19, 1948, Mary Elizabeth Aitcheson 1-8 was nicknamed "Tipper" by her mother and was raised in Arlington, 1-9 Virginia; she first met Al Gore at his high school senior prom and 1-10 they were married on May 19, 1970, while the future vice president 1-11 was serving in the U.S. Army; and 1-12 WHEREAS, That same year, Mrs. Gore received her bachelor's 1-13 degree in psychology from Boston University, and in 1975 she earned 1-14 her master's degree in psychology from George Peabody College at 1-15 Vanderbilt University; an avid photographer, she worked as a 1-16 photojournalist for The Tennessean until her husband was elected to 1-17 congress in 1976; and 1-18 WHEREAS, While a congressional spouse, Mrs. Gore sought to 1-19 become involved in issues she had always cared about, namely, 1-20 mental health and homelessness; she helped form the Congressional 1-21 Wives Task Force and the group met periodically to discuss those 1-22 and other topics of importance to women and families; and 1-23 WHEREAS, In 1985 she received national attention for her work 1-24 with the Parents' Music Resource Center (PMRC), an organization 2-1 that worked closely with the National Parent Teacher Association to 2-2 gain a voluntary agreement with the record industry to place 2-3 warning labels on music marketed to children that contained 2-4 explicit or violent lyrics; and 2-5 WHEREAS, Mrs. Gore is also the author of two books: the 2-6 first, Raising PG Kids in an X-Rated Society, highlights her 2-7 efforts with the PMRC; the second, Picture This, A Visual Diary, is 2-8 a scrapbook of photos and memories of her family and her 2-9 experiences as the nation's Second Lady; all proceeds from the book 2-10 have been donated to the National Health Care for the Homeless 2-11 Council, headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee; and 2-12 WHEREAS, A major advocate for the homeless and mentally ill, 2-13 Mrs. Gore serves as mental health policy advisor to President 2-14 Clinton, and she has founded and worked with numerous 2-15 organizations, including Families for the Homeless and Tennessee 2-16 Voices for Children; she is currently working on a photographic 2-17 exhibit, to open at the Corcoran Gallery of Art in September 1999, 2-18 which will illustrate the positive solutions that promote a 2-19 continuum of care to move people out of homelessness; and 2-20 WHEREAS, Mrs. Gore is a nationally recognized authority on 2-21 the topic of mental health services; a vocal proponent for the 2-22 parity of mental health benefits with those of health benefits 2-23 under medical insurance plans, she continues to work closely with 2-24 the administration to ensure the inclusion of mental health 2-25 services in health care policy, such as the Children's Health 2-26 Initiative; and 2-27 WHEREAS, In his 1999 State of the Union address, President 3-1 Clinton announced the first White House Conference on Mental 3-2 Health, to be chaired by Mrs. Gore; she has made a strong 3-3 commitment to eliminating the stigma and discrimination associated 3-4 with mental illness and to educating Americans about the need for 3-5 quality, affordable mental health care; and 3-6 WHEREAS, Under Mrs. Gore's leadership, the White House 3-7 Conference on Mental Health will seek to shed light and 3-8 understanding on issues surrounding mental illness and its impact 3-9 on people of all ages; it will highlight cutting-edge treatments 3-10 and approaches to recovery, dispel myths about mental illness, and 3-11 bring us closer to a time when mental health will be given the same 3-12 level of importance as physical health; and 3-13 WHEREAS, This dynamic and accomplished woman also serves in a 3-14 leadership role with the administration on many other issues and 3-15 initiatives, including "America Goes Back to School," the 3-16 Interagency Council on Homelessness, the Back to Sleep Campaign to 3-17 reduce the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, and the National 3-18 Youth Fitness Campaign of the President's Council on Physical 3-19 Fitness and Sports; and 3-20 WHEREAS, Few Americans are as widely recognized for their 3-21 advocacy in behalf of children and families as is our nation's 3-22 Second Lady, and it is truly a great pleasure to honor her at this 3-23 time; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That the House of 3-24 Representatives of the 76th Texas Legislature hereby welcome Mary 3-25 Elizabeth "Tipper" Gore to the State Capitol and commend her for 3-26 her exceptional efforts in helping America's families and children. Edwards _______________________________ Speaker of the House I certify that H.R. No. 1165 was adopted by the House on May 25, 1999, by a non-record vote. _______________________________ Chief Clerk of the House