81R6561 MG-D

By: Creighton H.R. No. 509

R E S O L U T I O N

WHEREAS, The Texas Commission on the Arts has named David Mercier Parsons of Conroe a finalist in the competition for state poet laureate; and

WHEREAS, After graduating from Austin High School, Dave Parsons went on to serve in the U.S. Marine Corps and to earn a bachelor's degree from Texas State University; he worked in advertising and marketing until he left the corporate world behind to explore his passion for poetry; in 1985, he went abroad to study with the writer and National Book Award finalist Stanley Plumly through the University of Houston's London program, and he later received the National Endowment for the Humanities Dante Fellowship to the State University of New York; on returning to Texas, he began teaching for the Willis Independent School District, and he resumed his studies at the University of Houston, earning a master's degree in creative writing and literature in 1991; and

WHEREAS, Since making the decision to pursue the arts as a profession, Mr. Parsons has published four books of poetry, The Retail Representative; Life, Love, and the Pursuit of Happiness; Editing Sky; and Color of Mourning; his poems have also been featured in various journals and magazines, including the Texas Review, the Touchstone Literary Review, the New Review Poetry Digest, and Louisiana Literature; and

WHEREAS, In addition to receiving favorable reviews from scholarly journals and local newspapers, Mr. Parsons has earned numerous accolades for his writing; in 1989, he won the French/American Legation poetry prize for a piece published in Standpoints: The Journal for Teachers of English in France, and in 1998 he was a finalist for the X. J. Kennedy Book Prize; the following year, his book Editing Sky was the winner of the Texas Review Poetry Prize and a finalist for the Violet Crown Book Award; Mr. Parsons has also been invited to appear at the Texas Book Festival, the Writers League of Texas Author's Gala, the Rice University/University of Houston Reading Series, the Houston and Austin Poetry Festivals, and many other events across the state; and

WHEREAS, This esteemed poet has further contributed to the arts by encouraging his fellow citizens to embrace and appreciate literature; as a creative writing professor, he has cultivated the talents of his students at Lone Star College-Montgomery for the past 17 years; in 1993, he created the Montgomery County Literary Arts Council Writers In Performance Series, through which he has helped bring more than 100 distinguished authors to the area for free readings and lectures, and he has sponsored events honoring the poets Emily Dickinson and Walt Whitman; he has also served on the Conroe Commission on the Arts and Culture and the Houston Arts Alliance Panel, and he was selected to teach the poetry workshop for Inprint Inc.; moreover, he was named the Montgomery County poet laureate for 2005 through 2010, a role that enables him to continue advancing literary arts in his community; and

WHEREAS, In all of his endeavors, Mr. Parsons enjoys the love and support of his wife, Nancy, and his four children, Robert, Laura, Brandy, and Allison; and

WHEREAS, Through his poetry, teaching, and community outreach, Dave Parsons has touched the lives of countless individuals, and he may indeed reflect with great pride on the positive impact he has had on the arts in Texas; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 81st Texas Legislature hereby congratulate David Mercier Parsons on his nomination for Texas poet laureate and commend him on his accomplished literary career; and, be it further

RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be prepared for Mr. Parsons as an expression of high regard by the Texas House of Representatives.