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SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 26
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In Memory |
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of |
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Ruth Carter Stevenson |
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WHEREAS, The Senate of the State of Texas honors and |
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commemorates the life of noted philanthropist and arts patron |
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Ruth Carter Stevenson, who died January 6, 2013, at the age of 89; |
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and |
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WHEREAS, Ruth Carter was born October 19, 1923, the |
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daughter of oilman and Fort Worth Star-Telegram publisher Amon |
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Carter, Sr.; she grew up in Fort Worth, where her childhood |
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remembrances included visits from such luminaries as President |
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Franklin Roosevelt, Will Rogers, and Charles Lindbergh; she |
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attended Arlington Heights High School before entering Sarah |
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Lawrence College, where she majored in chemistry and studied art |
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history; and |
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WHEREAS, After the death of her father in 1955, the |
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responsibility of carrying out his wishes to create a museum to |
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house his extensive art collection fell to Ruth; she collaborated |
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with famed architect Philip Johnson to create the Amon Carter |
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Museum of American Art, which opened in 1961 and has since become |
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one of the foremost museums in the country; and |
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WHEREAS, Under her leadership, the museum expanded its |
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focus beyond the western art favored by her father and acquired a |
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collection considered among the finest in the world; among the |
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exhibits that helped give rise to the museum's prominence was a |
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1966 retrospective of the work of Georgia O'Keeffe; the two women |
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began a close friendship, which lasted until the artist's death |
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in 1986; and |
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WHEREAS, Through the years, Ruth Carter Stevenson became a |
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valued civic leader in the Fort Worth community; she founded the |
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Arts Council of Fort Worth and Tarrant County and served on the |
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board of the Fort Worth City Art Commission, and she was a member |
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of The University of Texas Board of Regents; she received the |
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International Award of Excellence in Conservation from the |
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Botanical Research Institute of Texas; and |
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WHEREAS, Ruth Carter Stevenson was a woman of great vision, |
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elegance, and determination whose leadership and passion for art |
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have enriched the Fort Worth community and will serve as an |
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inspiration for generations to come; and |
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WHEREAS, She was devoted to her family, and she leaves |
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behind memories that will be treasured forever by all who were |
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privileged to share in her life; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas, 83rd |
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Legislature, hereby extend sincere condolences to the bereaved |
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family of Ruth Carter Stevenson; and, be it further |
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RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution be prepared for |
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her family as an expression of deepest sympathy from the Texas |
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Senate, and that when the Senate adjourns this day, it do so in |
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memory of Ruth Carter Stevenson. |
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Davis |
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________________________________ |
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President of the Senate |
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I hereby certify that the |
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above Resolution was adopted by |
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the Senate on January 23, 2013, by |
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a rising vote. |
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________________________________ |
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Secretary of the Senate |
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________________________________ |
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Member, Texas Senate |