H.R. No. 31

	R E S O L U T I O N
	WHEREAS, The state of Texas lost a distinguished businessman
	and leader with the passing of Paul Derald Meek of Fredericksburg on
	June 15, 2007, at the age of 76; and
	WHEREAS, Born in McAllen to Valley pioneers William Van Meek
	and Martha Mary Sharp Meek on August 15, 1930, Paul Meek earned a
	bachelor's degree in chemical engineering from The University of
	Texas at Austin; he began a noteworthy career in the petrochemical
	industry with Humble Oil and Refining Company in Baytown and went on
	to work for Cosden Oil and Chemical Company in Big Spring; after
	serving as president of Cosden and as a member of the board of
	directors of its parent company, FINA, he moved to Dallas in 1976 to
	assume the posts of chief operating officer and president of FINA;
	he later served as its chief executive officer and chairman of the
	board before retiring to his Hill Country ranch in 1996; and
	WHEREAS, In 1989, Governor Bill Clements appointed Mr. Meek
	to the Public Utility Commission, which he chaired until 1992;
	moreover, he served as chair of the Engineering Foundation Advisory
	Council at UT Austin, as director of the Admiral Nimitz Foundation,
	and as a member of the M. D. Anderson Cancer Center Board of
	Visitors, the UT Longhorn Foundation, the UT Chancellor's Council,
	and the UT McDonald Observatory Board of Visitors; named a
	Distinguished Engineering Graduate by his alma mater, he also
	sought to encourage high school students to pursue careers in
	science, engineering, and math as an advisor and benefactor of
	IGNITE, an educational nonprofit with those aims; and
	WHEREAS, Mr. Meek shared 40 years of marriage with Betty
	Robertson Meek, and the couple were blessed with four daughters,
	Paula, Katheryn, Carol Ann, and Linda; following the death of his
	first wife, he was fortunate enough to find love a second time with
	Sue Etchison Meek, and they enjoyed a rewarding nine-year union;
	and
	WHEREAS, Through his expertise, dedication, and guidance,
	Paul Meek contributed tremendously to the Lone Star State, and he
	leaves behind a legacy that will continue to resonate for any years
	to come; now, therefore, be it
	RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 81st Texas
	Legislature hereby pay tribute to the life of Paul Derald Meek and
	extend deepest sympathy to the members of his family: to his wife,
	Sue Etchison Meek; to his daughters, Paula Burford and her husband,
	Scott, Katheryn Hasemann and her husband, Charles, Carol Ann Miller
	and her husband, Rusty, and Linda Meek; to his grandchildren, Mary
	Catherine and Charlie Burford, Margaret and Andy Hasemann, Natalie,
	Paul, and Michelle Miller, Robert and Mary Catherine Russo, and
	Samantha and Forrest Poorman; to his stepdaughters, Tracy Russo and
	her husband, Bobby, and Christy Garrison and her husband, Kenny;
	and to his other relatives and friends; and, be it further
	RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
	prepared for his family and that when the Texas House of
	Representatives adjourns this day, it do so in memory of Paul Derald
	Meek.
	Hilderbran
	Straus Gattis Menendez
	Allen Geren Merritt
	Alonzo Giddings Miklos
	Alvarado Gonzales Miller of Comal
	Anchia Gonzalez Toureilles Miller of Erath
	Anderson Guillen Moody
	Aycock Gutierrez Morrison
	Berman Hamilton Naishtat
	Bohac Hancock Oliveira
	Bolton Hardcastle Olivo
	Bonnen Harless Orr
	Branch Harper-Brown Ortiz, Jr.
	Brown of Kaufman Hartnett Otto
	Brown of Brazos Heflin Parker
	Burnam Hernandez Patrick
	Button Herrero Paxton
	Callegari Hilderbran Peña
	Castro Hochberg Phillips
	Chavez Hodge Pickett
	Chisum Homer Pierson
	Christian Hopson Pitts
	Cohen Howard of Fort Bend Quintanilla
	Coleman Howard of Travis Raymond
	Cook Hughes Riddle
	Corte Hunter Rios Ybarra
	Crabb Isett Ritter
	Craddick Jackson Rodriguez
	Creighton Jones Rose
	Crownover Keffer Sheffield
	Darby Kent Shelton
	Davis of Harris King of Parker Smith of Tarrant
	Davis of Dallas King of Taylor Smith of Harris
	Deshotel King of Zavala Smithee
	Driver Kleinschmidt Solomons
	Dukes Kolkhorst Strama
	Dunnam Kuempel Swinford
	Dutton Laubenberg Taylor
	Edwards Legler Thibaut
	Eiland Leibowitz Thompson
	Eissler Lewis Truitt
	Elkins Lucio III Turner of Tarrant
	England Madden Turner of Harris
	Farabee Maldonado Vaught
	Farias Mallory Caraway Veasey
	Farrar Marquez Villarreal
	Fletcher Martinez Vo
	Flores Martinez Fischer Walle
	Flynn McCall Weber
	Frost McClendon Woolley
	Gallego McReynolds Zerwas
	______________________________
	Speaker of the House
	I certify that H.R. No. 31 was unanimously adopted by a rising
	vote of the House on February 26, 2009.
	______________________________
	Chief Clerk of the House