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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, A businessman who excelled in many fields and who |
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was a highly respected community leader in Houston, William James |
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Miller passed away on July 18, 2006, at age 78; and |
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WHEREAS, Born March 17, 1928, Bill Miller grew up in Houston |
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and served his country as a paratrooper in the U.S. Army's 11th |
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Airborne Division, which occupied Japan in World War II; following |
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his discharge, he earned a bachelor's degree in chemical |
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engineering from Texas A&M University then moved to Massachusetts |
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to attend the Harvard Business School, graduating with a master's |
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degree in 1953; and |
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WHEREAS, Returning to Houston with his wife, the former Mary |
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Catherine Farrington, and their children, Mr. Miller began a |
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business career that saw him assume a leadership role in a number of |
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companies; in the energy services industry, he founded Miller Oil |
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and Gas, which he directed for the rest of his life, and he was |
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president of Houston Engineers, Inc., which developed the Hydra-Jar |
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tool used in oil drilling; applying his expertise to the banking and |
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insurance sector, he became president of the Lawrence Ilfrey |
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Insurance Company, chaired the founding board of the Bank of |
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Tanglewood, which later became the Bank of Texas, and was a board |
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member for University State Bank and for Tanglewood Bank, which is |
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now Northern Trust Bank; and |
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WHEREAS, The interests of this notable entrepreneur also |
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extended to real estate development; during his 30-year tenure as |
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president of the Tanglewood Corporation, he oversaw the creation of |
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several business and residential complexes in Houston's Tanglewood |
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neighborhood; he was also a driving force in the growth of Uptown |
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Houston, serving as the first president of the improvement district |
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that administered the area and acting as chair of the Uptown Houston |
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Association; and |
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WHEREAS, A prominent figure in civic and religious affairs, |
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he was active in numerous organizations, including the Kiwanis Club |
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of Downtown Houston, the Houston Child Guidance Center, and the |
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Texas Medical Center Library, and was a member of the vestries of |
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Saint John the Divine Episcopal Church and Saint Martin's Episcopal |
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Church; devoted to his wife, children, and grandchildren, Mr. |
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Miller frequently brought the family together for boating and |
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skiing excursions, and he also enjoyed tennis, which he regularly |
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played with a group of close friends; and |
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WHEREAS, With a record of achievement that distinguishes him |
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as a business leader of great talent and wide-ranging abilities, |
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Bill Miller made a significant contribution to the economic |
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prosperity of the Lone Star State, and his visionary endeavors |
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contributed to Houston's growth over the past half-century; now, |
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therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 80th Texas |
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Legislature hereby pay tribute to the life of William James Miller |
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and extend sincere sympathy to the members of his family: to his |
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wife, Mary Catherine Miller; to his children, William Farrington |
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Miller, Catherine Michelle Miller Shedd and her husband, Clifford |
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Ernest Shedd III, James Giddings Miller and his wife, Amy Henderson |
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Miller, and Kendall Farrington Miller and his wife, Cynthia |
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Marshall Miller; to his grandchildren, William Farrington Miller |
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II, Catherine Whitney Lorene Miller, Travis William Shedd, Daniel |
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Oliver Shedd, Austin Truett Miller, Marshall Giddings Miller, and |
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Weston Alan Miller; to his step-grandchildren, James |
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Hazeltine-Shedd, Robert John Hazeltine-Shedd, and Kyle Dalton |
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Pence; and to his many other relatives and friends; and, be it |
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further |
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RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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prepared for his family and that when the Texas House of |
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Representatives adjourns this day, it do so in memory of William |
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James Miller. |
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Woolley |
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______________________________ |
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Speaker of the House |
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I certify that H.R. No. 582 was unanimously adopted by a |
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rising vote of the House on March 22, 2007. |
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______________________________ |
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Chief Clerk of the House |
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