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CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
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WHEREAS, For nearly a century, the South Texas community of |
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Poteet has been known across the Lone Star State as a source of |
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delicious strawberries and as the host of a renowned annual |
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strawberry festival; and |
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WHEREAS, In 1911, city founders Henry and Ida Mumme began to |
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grow strawberries in their kitchen garden, and within 10 years, the |
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community's strawberry crop had become one of its most successful |
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products; local citizens invited residents of nearby San Antonio to |
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sample the town's strawberries in 1921, and the San Antonio |
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Express-News ran a story headlined "Crimson Berries Beckon Hungry |
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Tourists to Poteet"; and |
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WHEREAS, Building on the city's reputation, the Poteet Rotary |
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Club staged the first Poteet Strawberry Festival in April 1948, |
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hoping to provide an incentive for veterans of World War II to |
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return to area farms; the club also promoted more careful packing of |
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the crop so that each buyer would receive a uniform pint, flat, or |
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crate of berries; and |
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WHEREAS, Over the course of the past 67 years, the festival |
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has grown to become one of the signature springtime events in South |
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Texas, drawing 100,000 visitors and contributing up to $12 million |
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to the local economy each year; in addition to the strawberries |
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themselves, the popular gathering features live country music, a |
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rodeo, and a food show and auction; and |
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WHEREAS, The Poteet Strawberry Festival Association has also |
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presented college scholarships to deserving local students for the |
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past two decades; it currently gives away 10 scholarships each |
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year, while many of the more than 30 churches, schools, and civic |
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organizations that participate in the festival donate scholarships |
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as well; and |
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WHEREAS, This sweet, juicy, and colorful fruit is a delight |
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to behold and to taste, and for many years, the citizens of Poteet |
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have made the strawberry both a source of prosperity and a cause for |
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celebration; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the 84th Legislature of the State of Texas |
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hereby designate Poteet as the official Strawberry Capital of |
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Texas; and, be it further |
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RESOLVED, That, in accordance with the provisions of Section |
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391.003(e), Government Code, this designation remain in effect |
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until the 10th anniversary of its designation. |