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HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
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WHEREAS, The State of Texas and the field of oceanography |
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lost a renowned educator with the passing of Robert Osborne Reid of |
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College Station on January 23, 2009, at the age of 87; and |
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WHEREAS, Born in Connecticut on August 24, 1921, Professor |
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Reid moved with his family to Los Angeles in 1935; during the early |
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years of the war, he participated in an army training program in |
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meteorology at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, and on |
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completing the course in 1943, he was commissioned a second |
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lieutenant in the Army Air Corps; posted to England as a weather |
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officer, he worked on a team whose mission was to predict weather |
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and tides for the Normandy Invasion; after the end of the war in |
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Europe, he served in the Pacific Theater; and |
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WHEREAS, Following his discharge from the military, Bob Reid |
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finished his undergraduate degree in mechanical engineering at the |
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University of Southern California and then, in 1946, he joined the |
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first class admitted to a pioneering graduate oceanography program |
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at Scripps; subsequently, he and his fellow alumni would play a |
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significant role in developing other early oceanography programs |
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around the world, based on the Scripps interdisciplinary approach; |
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and |
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WHEREAS, In 1951, Professor Reid was recruited to become a |
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founding faculty member of the new graduate Department of |
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Oceanography and Meteorology at Texas A&M University; over the |
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ensuing years, he served as department chair, conducted important |
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research in coastal oceanography and engineering, and helped to |
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establish an ocean engineering program in the Department of Civil |
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Engineering; in addition, he chaired or co-chaired the advisory |
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committees of about 70 doctoral students and nearly 40 master's |
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students; and |
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WHEREAS, Professor Reid also lent his expertise to a host of |
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extracurricular committees, organizations, and professional |
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journals; among the many accolades conferred on this esteemed |
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scientist and educator were awards for distinguished teaching and |
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research, an honorary doctorate from Old Dominion University, and a |
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medal from the University of Liege, Belgium; in 1983, his former |
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students organized a symposium in his honor, and in 1987, Texas A&M |
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named him distinguished professor emeritus; Professor Reid was a |
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Fellow of the American Geophysical Union and American |
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Meteorological Society and a member of the National Academy of |
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Engineering and National Academy of Sciences; and |
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WHEREAS, Bob Reid exchanged wedding vows with the former |
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Marjorie Ferry in 1947, and the couple became the parents of three |
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sons and three daughters; and |
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WHEREAS, A kind and gentle man who considered himself a Texan |
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by choice, Professor Reid made significant contributions to the |
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advancement of 20th-century oceanography and brought great honor to |
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Texas A&M University and to the Lone Star State; now, therefore, be |
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it |
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RESOLVED, That the 81st Legislature of the State of Texas |
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hereby pay tribute to the life of Professor Robert Osborne Reid and |
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extend sincere sympathy to the members of his family: to his wife |
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of 62 years, Marjorie Ferry Reid; to his sons and daughter-in-law, |
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Thomas Reid, Russell Reid, and Robert and Tina Reid; to his |
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daughters, Nancy Reid and Carol McCormick; to his son-in-law, |
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William V. Anderson; to his grandchildren, Kimberlee Spurlin, |
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Wesley, Katherine, and Nicholas Paul Reid, Sarah Naomi McCormick, |
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and Brandon, Nolan Daniel, and Ellie Lynn Anderson; to his |
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great-grandchildren, Garrett Heitman, Aaden and Kason Anderson, |
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and Kaely Brown; and to his 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 and Senate adjourn this day, they do so in memory of |
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Professor Robert Osborne Reid. |
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Brown of Brazos |
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______________________________ |
______________________________ |
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President of the Senate |
Speaker of the House |
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I certify that H.C.R. No. 117 was unanimously adopted by a |
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rising vote of the House on March 26, 2009. |
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______________________________ |
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Chief Clerk of the House |
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I certify that H.C.R. No. 117 was unanimously adopted by a |
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rising vote of the Senate on April 29, 2009. |
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______________________________ |
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Secretary of the Senate |
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APPROVED: __________________ |
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Date |
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__________________ |
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Governor |