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SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
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WHEREAS, The Thomas T. Connally Department of Veterans |
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Affairs Medical Center was a fundamental part of the City of Marlin, |
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Texas, for more than 50 years, and its recent closure dealt a |
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significant blow to the community and surrounding area; and |
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WHEREAS, Beginning in 1943, the citizens of Marlin organized |
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a campaign to secure their city as the location for a proposed naval |
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medical facility; initially, 31 individual contributors donated |
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$2,025 to finance their preliminary effort, and two years later, |
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the city raised an additional $25,000 in small contributions from |
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the local citizenry to purchase 150 acres of land for a new naval |
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hospital; and |
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WHEREAS, Although Marlin's selection as the site for the |
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hospital had been announced in 1944, and the order approving |
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construction of the new 500-bed facility was signed by President |
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Harry S. Truman on July 1, 1945, congressional funding for the |
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project was omitted from appropriations legislation later that |
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year; and |
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WHEREAS, Undeterred, the residents focused on attracting a |
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200-bed Veterans Administration general and surgical hospital and |
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collected additional funds for the purchase of eight acres to |
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donate for the facility; the city's efforts came to fruition when |
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the Marlin Veterans Administration Hospital opened on November 1, |
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1950, with a staff of 14 physicians, 42 nurses, and two dentists; |
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during its 50 years of operation, the hospital provided hundreds of |
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jobs to area residents, continuing to reward the community's early |
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faith and determination; and |
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WHEREAS, In 1992, the facility was renamed the Thomas T. |
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Connally Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center after United |
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States Senator Connally, who championed the city's efforts to have |
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the hospital located in Marlin; regrettably, the medical center has |
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since been closed by the United States Department of Veterans |
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Affairs, and there currently are no plans for its reuse despite a |
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recent extensive remodeling; and |
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WHEREAS, Although the center's closure was a major economic |
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loss to the residents of Marlin, the city's spirit and goodwill have |
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yet to waver; in the aftermath of Hurricanes Rita and Katrina, |
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Marlin opened the Connally Veterans Administration Medical Center |
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to house medically fragile evacuees from the affected areas, but, |
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with that notable exception, the complex has sat empty and will |
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likely be razed if a permanent use for the center cannot be found; |
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and |
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WHEREAS, Fortunately, the Connally Veterans Administration |
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Medical Center facilities can be easily converted for a number of |
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uses by the state, presenting a practical and beneficial use for the |
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idle buildings; precedent for the adaptation of a Veterans |
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Administration facility to state use was established in 2001 when |
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the United States Congress authorized the conveyance, without |
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consideration, of all real property and improvements associated |
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with the Fort Lyon Veterans Administration Medical Center in Las |
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Animas, Colorado, to the state of Colorado; and |
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WHEREAS, Elected officials from Falls County and the City of |
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Marlin, as well as many civic leaders, have expressed their support |
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for the reuse of the Connally Veterans Administration Medical |
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Center, and given the City of Marlin's long history with the site |
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and the fact that it would cost more to destroy the center than to |
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convey the facility to the State of Texas, it is only fitting that |
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the state take advantage of this available resource; now, |
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therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the 80th Legislature of the State of Texas |
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hereby respectfully request the Congress of the United States to |
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authorize the secretary of the United States Department of Veterans |
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Affairs to convey the Thomas T. Connally Department of Veterans |
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Affairs Medical Center located in Marlin, Texas, to the State of |
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Texas; and, be it further |
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RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official |
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copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to |
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the speaker of the house of representatives and the president of the |
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senate of the United States Congress, to all members of the Texas |
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delegation to the congress, and to the secretary of the United |
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States Department of Veterans Affairs with the request that this |
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resolution be officially entered in the Congressional Record as a |
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memorial to the Congress of the United States of America. |