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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, The late Sammie Jean Estes has been nominated for |
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induction into the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame; and |
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WHEREAS, Founded in 1975, the National Cowgirl Museum and |
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Hall of Fame in Fort Worth is dedicated to honoring and documenting |
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the lives of women who exemplify the spirit of the American West; |
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with a mission to preserve the history and impact of western women |
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living from the mid-1800s to the present, the Hall of Fame includes |
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nearly 200 artists, writers, entertainers, competitive performers, |
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ranchers, and others who have contributed to this distinctive |
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region; and |
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WHEREAS, Posthumously nominated to join this esteemed group, |
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"Sweet" Estes discovered a lifelong passion for horses at the age of |
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11, when she purchased her first pony for two dollars and began |
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charging neighborhood children a nickel to ride to the corner and a |
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dime to ride around the block; and |
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WHEREAS, Ms. Estes earned enough money to buy more horses, |
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and by 1941, she and her family had a stable of 15; the income from |
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her riding business paid for her college education as well as her |
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sister's; while a student at the University of North Texas in |
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Denton, Ms. Estes sponsored the Los Caballeros Riding Club and |
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taught her fellow students riding and horsemanship, as well as |
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classes on the anatomy and care of a horse; in addition to |
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instructing courses and keeping up with her own studies, she bred |
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many registered horses, and her "Double Dollar" brand could be |
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found on many fine quarter horses; and |
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WHEREAS, Ms. Estes earned both her bachelor's and her |
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master's degrees in physical education at UNT; for nearly five |
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decades, she taught horseback riding, backpacking, and wilderness |
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camping to students at UNT and at Texas Woman's University; and |
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WHEREAS, She also leased her horses for many years to summer |
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camps across Texas and Colorado and beyond, serving many of them as |
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a riding instructor; along the way, this inspiring woman managed to |
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overcome tuberculosis and to acquire her dream home, a 30-acre |
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property called Lone Chimney, in Colorado; it was there that she |
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passed away on August 16, 1989; and |
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WHEREAS, Sweet Estes shared her love of horses with |
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generations of young people; she lived an extraordinary life that |
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embodied the independence, character, and indomitable spirit of the |
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American cowgirl, and she is most deserving of this special honor; |
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now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 82nd Texas |
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Legislature hereby pay tribute to the memory of Sweet Estes on the |
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occasion of her posthumous nomination to the National Cowgirl |
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Museum and Hall of Fame. |
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Crownover |
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______________________________ |
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Speaker of the House |
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I certify that H.R. No. 968 was adopted by the House on April |
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7, 2011, by a non-record vote. |
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______________________________ |
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Chief Clerk of the House |
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