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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, The city of Houston lost an esteemed leader and a |
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dynamic trailblazer with the death of Eleanor Whilden Tinsley on |
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February 10, 2009, at the age of 82; and |
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WHEREAS, The daughter of W. C. and Georgiabel Whilden, the |
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former Eleanor Whilden was born in Dallas on October 31, 1926; she |
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attended William and Mary College before going on to earn her |
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bachelor's degree from Baylor University; she married a fellow |
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Baylor graduate, James Tinsley, and they moved to Houston in 1953; |
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the devoted couple became the parents of three children and later |
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welcomed seven grandchildren and a great-granddaughter into the |
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family; they shared a rewarding relationship for 59 years until Mr. |
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Tinsley's death in 2007; and |
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WHEREAS, Mrs. Tinsley was active in civic and church affairs |
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as a young mother; deeply committed to racial equality and civil |
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rights, she joined the Citizens for Good Schools slate as a |
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desegregation candidate for the Houston Independent School |
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District, winning election in 1969 and becoming president in 1972; |
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during this turbulent time, she endured vandalism and harassment, |
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but remained true to the causes in which she believed; she was |
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instrumental in making the integration process orderly and |
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peaceful, and in developing the magnet school concept that became a |
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national model; Mrs. Tinsley also led the way in the establishment |
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of the Volunteers in Public School program and the creation of the |
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Houston Community College System; and |
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WHEREAS, Following her school board tenure, Mrs. Tinsley was |
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appointed to the board of the Houston Housing Authority; she became |
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president of Harris County Children's Protective Services and |
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helped found the Texas Council of Child Welfare Boards, serving as |
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its president; in 1979, she became one of the first women elected to |
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citywide political office in Houston and during her 16 years in |
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office, she initiated important legislation dealing with |
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anti-crime measures, city administration, urban planning, and |
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economic development; and |
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WHEREAS, This petite, elegant woman possessed enormous |
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reserves of both charm and resolve; adopting the turtle as her |
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symbol, she proclaimed that only people who stick their necks out |
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get things done; she radically altered the way the city served its |
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citizens and she improved quality of life by fighting to ban indoor |
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smoking, restrict the proliferation of unsightly billboards, |
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establish the 9-1-1 emergency network, organize the mounted patrol, |
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and establish the READ Commission for adult literacy; in 1983, she |
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created the SPARK School Park Program to develop public school |
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grounds into neighborhood parks; and |
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WHEREAS, After leaving public office, Mrs. Tinsley continued |
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to work in behalf of SPARK, which has won numerous local, state, and |
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national awards; through the years, she participated in many |
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community organizations and served on the boards of Planned |
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Parenthood, the Baylor Alumni Association, and the Baptist General |
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Convention of Texas; in addition, she volunteered in political |
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campaigns, most recently supporting President Barack Obama from the |
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very beginning of his campaign for the Democratic nomination; and |
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WHEREAS, The city of Houston named both a downtown park and an |
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elementary school in Mrs. Tinsley's honor; she was elected to the |
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Texas Women's Hall of Fame and was named a distinguished alumna by |
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Baylor University; the Houston Post listed her as one of |
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"Twenty-five People Who Changed Houston," and among countless other |
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accolades, she received the Institute of Rehabilitation and |
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Research President's Award for her efforts in behalf of people with |
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disabilities; in January 2009, Planned Parenthood inducted her into |
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the prestigious Margaret Sanger Circle; and |
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WHEREAS, Eleanor Tinsley helped make the Houston political |
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system more open and representative of its diverse population, and |
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was a tireless champion for civil and human rights and civic |
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improvement; through her vision and tenacity, she has left Houston |
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a safer and a more livable and tolerant city; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 81st Texas |
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Legislature hereby pay tribute to the life of Eleanor Whilden |
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Tinsley and extend sincere sympathy to the members of her family: to |
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her daughters, Kathleen Ownby and her husband, David, and Marilyn |
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Daniel and her husband, B. D.; to her son, Tom Tinsley, and his |
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wife, Cathy; to her grandchildren, Dan Ownby and his wife, Allison, |
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Emily Elliott and her husband, Brooks, Bethany Mateosian and her |
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husband, Sam, James and Claire Tinsley, and Angela and Bill Daniel; |
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to her great-granddaughter, Lucy Elliott; to her brother, Walter |
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Whilden, and his wife, Jennie; to her sister-in-law, Dorothy |
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Whilden; and to her other relatives and friends; and, be it further |
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RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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prepared for her family and that when the Texas House of |
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Representatives adjourns this day, it do so in memory of Eleanor |
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Tinsley. |