1-1 1 1-2 SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 224 1-3 WHEREAS, The Senate of the State of Texas is proud to 1-4 join the citizens of Brooks County in a joyous celebration 1-5 of Brooks County Day at the State Capitol on February 17, 1999; 1-6 and 1-7 WHEREAS, The Texas Senate is proud to honor the residents 1-8 of that important county and to recognize their invaluable 1-9 contributions to the State of Texas; and 1-10 WHEREAS, On March 11, 1911, in the 32nd Legislature, 1-11 Governor Colquitt signed the bill into law that formed 1-12 Brooks County from Starr, Hidalgo, and Zapata counties; before 1-13 this time, Texans who lived in this area often had to spend a 1-14 week traveling to the nearest courthouse and back, just to 1-15 conduct business and to pay taxes; and 1-16 WHEREAS, Brooks County was named after the legislator and 1-17 former Texas Ranger, Captain James A. Brooks, who helped make 1-18 the formation of the new county a reality for all his constituents 1-19 at home by introducing the bill and fighting for its passage in 1-20 the Texas House of Representatives; when he returned to Falfurrias 1-21 from Austin, Captain Brooks received a hero's welcome and was 1-22 carried triumphantly on the citizens' shoulders, and a silver 1-23 tea service was presented to his family in gratitude for his 1-24 dedication to their cause; and 2-1 WHEREAS, Falfurrias was chosen as the county seat of 2-2 Brooks County in an election on September 2, 1911; and 2-3 WHEREAS, Falfurrias, which means "The Land of Heart's 2-4 Delight," is said to have received its name when a young 2-5 Lipan Indian brave said "falfurrias" as he looked at the beauty 2-6 of what is now Brooks County; and 2-7 WHEREAS, Another Falfurrias legend revolves around an old 2-8 faith healer born in Jalisco, Mexico, named Don Pedrito, who came 2-9 to the Los Olmos Ranch in 1881 and was said to have been given the 2-10 power of healing in a vision after he, himself, was healed by his 2-11 faith; for 25 years, he ministered to the thousands of pilgrims who 2-12 sought to be healed by him, and today a Texas Historical Marker 2-13 relates his story and thousands of visitors continue to come to 2-14 his shrine; and 2-15 WHEREAS, Falfurrias was established by Edward C. Lasater 2-16 near Laguna Salada but was moved to its present site in 1903 to 2-17 be on the line of the new Texas and New Orleans Railroad which 2-18 enabled the town to be the main trading center of Brooks County; 2-19 and 2-20 WHEREAS, To attract settlers to the desolate area, Lasater 2-21 advertised the sale of small dairy farms, and then he built the 2-22 Falfurrias Creamery to process the milk from the dairies; and 2-23 WHEREAS, News and literature for the area are provided by 2-24 the Falfurrias Facts, which has served the people of the 2-25 county for 92 years, and the Ed Rachal Memorial Library, an 2-26 exceptional small library with a collection of more than 56,000 3-1 volumes, a genealogy section, and more than 3,000 video cassettes, 3-2 records, and tapes; and 3-3 WHEREAS, The artifacts, pictures, guns, and other relics of 3-4 the south Texas frontier are preserved and exhibited in the 3-5 Heritage Museum in Falfurrias; and 3-6 WHEREAS, The 942 square miles of brushy, mesquite covered, 3-7 light to dark sandy loam soils that comprise Brooks County lie 3-8 southwest of Corpus Christi in the Texas region referred to as 3-9 the Rio Grande Plain; in the 1920s irrigation made this area 3-10 ideal for the people of Brooks County to raise crops, as well 3-11 as cattle; and 3-12 WHEREAS, The economy of this south Texas land is based on 3-13 dairy and beef cattle and oil and gas and is best known for its 3-14 famous Falfurrias Cream Butter and for its watermelons, cotton, and 3-15 sorghums; and 3-16 WHEREAS, Hunters appreciate the abundance of deer, turkey, 3-17 javelina, and birds available in this area, while fishermen 3-18 find the short drive to the coast convenient for gulf and deep-sea 3-19 fishing; and 3-20 WHEREAS, Brooks County is home to the Encino division of the 3-21 renowned King Ranch, which has been managed for three generations 3-22 by the McBride family; and 3-23 WHEREAS, Brooks County is well known for the excellence of its 3-24 school system; the Brooks County Independent School District 3-25 has restructured its academic program with reading recovery, 3-26 accelerated reading, academic teaming, and interactive technology 4-1 accessibility; and 4-2 WHEREAS, Although Falfurrias students enjoy competing at the 4-3 state level in power lifting, tennis, cross-country, track and 4-4 field, they excel in baseball; state champions in 1991 and state 4-5 finalists in 1993, Falfurrias reached the state playoffs in 1991, 4-6 1992, 1993, and 1994; now, therefore, be it 4-7 RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas, 4-8 76th Legislature, hereby recognize February 17, 1999, as 4-9 Brooks County Day and extend best wishes to its residents for 4-10 a most enjoyable and rewarding event; and, be it further 4-11 RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution be presented 4-12 to the Brooks County Judge, Homer Mora, and the Commissioners 4-13 Court of Brooks County, Jay Michael Guerra, the Mayor of 4-14 Falfurrias, Ms. Linda Villarreal, Superintendent of the 4-15 Brooks County Independent School District, and Milton Menking, 4-16 President of the Falfurrias Chamber of Commerce, as a memento 4-17 of this important day and as an expression of the high regard 4-18 of the Texas Senate. 4-19 Truan 4-20 Armbrister Gallegos Nixon 4-21 Barrientos Harris Ogden 4-22 Bernsen Haywood Ratliff 4-23 Bivins Jackson Shapiro 4-24 Brown Lindsay Shapleigh 4-25 Cain Lucio Sibley 4-26 Carona Luna Wentworth 4-27 Duncan Madla West 4-28 Ellis Moncrief Whitmire 4-29 Fraser Nelson Zaffirini 4-30 Perry, President of the Senate 4-31 ______________________________________ 4-32 President of the Senate 4-33 I hereby certify that the above 4-34 Resolution was adopted by the Senate 5-1 on February 16, 1999. 5-2 ______________________________________ 5-3 Secretary of the Senate 5-4 ______________________________________ 5-5 Dean of the Senate