1-1                                     1                                  
 1-2                          SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 160
 1-3                                  In Memory
 1-4                                     of
 1-5                              June Pickney Ross
 1-6           WHEREAS, June Pickney Ross of Galveston, who passed away
 1-7     on January 5, 2001, at the age of 79, was beloved by a host of
 1-8     friends for her integrity and compassion and for a lifetime
 1-9     devoted to community service; and
1-10           WHEREAS, Born August 18, 1921, in Washington, D.C.,
1-11     she attended Washington schools and Howard University; during
1-12     World War II she joined the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps, Special
1-13     Services, and rose to the rank of sergeant major before being
1-14     honorably discharged; she subsequently worked as a statistician
1-15     with the Bureau of Labor Statistics in Washington, D.C.; and
1-16           WHEREAS, In 1953 June Ross had plans to move to California,
1-17     but en route to the West Coast she stopped off in Houston to visit
1-18     friends and was persuaded to stay; the first job she obtained was
1-19     with radio station KCOH, where she broadcast under the name "Hatti
1-20     Holmes"; and
1-21           WHEREAS, From the mid-1960s until her retirement in
1-22     late 2000, June Ross was deeply involved with Community Action
 2-1     agencies, one of the initiatives launched by the War on Poverty;
 2-2     Community Action agencies are private nonprofit and public bodies
 2-3     charged with designing and administering programs to combat poverty
 2-4     within their region; and
 2-5           WHEREAS, After serving as an executive assistant with the
 2-6     Harris County Community Action Association, she became interim
 2-7     executive director of the Galveston County Community Action
 2-8     Council in 1973 and the permanent director of the council in
 2-9     1976; the Galveston council is responsible for providing services
2-10     not only for Galveston, but also for Brazoria, Fort Bend, and
2-11     Wharton counties; in 1976 June Ross served simultaneously as
2-12     interim executive director of the Dallas County Community Action
2-13     Council; and
2-14           WHEREAS, Over the course of her 27 years with the Galveston
2-15     council, June Ross initiated numerous programs to address the
2-16     needs of area residents; these included senior citizens' centers
2-17     in Hitchcock and La Marque, transportation services for
2-18     Galveston County seniors, telephone reassurance calls to
2-19     seniors, the handicapped, and the sick, and a halfway house for
2-20     substance abusers, as well as Meals-on-Wheels, a Senior Citizen's
2-21     Day, the Children's Olympics, and the Children's Summer Feeding
2-22     Program; and
2-23           WHEREAS, June Ross was frequently asked to speak to civic,
2-24     church, and fraternal groups in Texas and in other states about
2-25     the needs of the underprivileged; locally, a host of organizations
2-26     benefited from her wisdom and experience; she served on the boards
 3-1     of United Way and several social service agencies and was treasurer
 3-2     of Children and Youth 2001, a coordinated effort to reduce infant
 3-3     mortality in the African American and Latino communities of
 3-4     Galveston; and
 3-5           WHEREAS, In addition to these and other community efforts,
 3-6     she chaired the Mayor's Drug Task Force and served as vice chair
 3-7     of the Galveston County Health Board; she served as president of
 3-8     the Texas Association of Community Action Agencies and as first
 3-9     vice president and treasurer of the National Association of
3-10     Community Action Agencies; and
3-11           WHEREAS, In recognition of her enormous contributions,
3-12     June Ross received the Rabbi Henry Cohen Humanitarian Award from
3-13     Temple B'Nai Israel in Galveston and a lifetime achievement award
3-14     from the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs; and
3-15           WHEREAS, The passionate commitment and immense skills that
3-16     June Ross brought to her work have left a priceless legacy, in the
3-17     vital aid and opportunity provided for countless area residents,
3-18     in the encouragement and training of new community workers, and
3-19     in the inspiration fired in many hearts by her incandescent life;
3-20     now, therefore, be it
3-21           RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas,
3-22     77th Legislature, hereby pay tribute to the life of
3-23     June Pickney Ross and extend sincere sympathy to her godchildren:
3-24     Gus Thomas, Jennifer Irene Morris, Rachael Pena, Dawn Thomas, and
3-25     Darlene Dezon; to her staff at the Galveston County Community
3-26     Action Council; and to the many other close friends of this
 4-1     treasured woman; and, be it further
 4-2           RESOLVED, That official copies of this Resolution be
 4-3     prepared for the Galveston County Community Action Council and
 4-4     for her godchildren as an expression of deepest sympathy from
 4-5     the Texas Senate, and that when the Texas Senate adjourns this
 4-6     day, it do so in memory of June Pickney Ross.
 4-7                                                                 Jackson
 4-8                                  ______________________________________
 4-9                                         President of the Senate
4-10                                       I hereby certify that the above
4-11                                  Resolution was adopted by the Senate
4-12                                  on February 1, 2001, by a rising vote.
4-13                                  ______________________________________
4-14                                         Secretary of the Senate
4-15                                  ______________________________________
4-16                                           Member, Texas Senate