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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, Words cannot adequately express the sorrow felt at |
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the loss of Kelly Walters of Arlington, a remarkable young woman |
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whose life was tragically cut short on January 16, 2015, at the age |
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of 20; and |
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WHEREAS, Adopted from the Gladney Center when she was only |
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two weeks old, Kelly Walters was a lively, inquisitive, and |
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physically daring child from a very early age, whether it was |
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swinging from the monkey bars at day care, playing on the roof with |
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a friend, or riding a goat at a birthday party without the goat's |
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permission; and |
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WHEREAS, Ms. Walters first showed signs of a budding interest |
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in politics in the first grade; when she complained about some rules |
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at school, her mother explained to her that the rules were set by |
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the school board and the State Board of Education, and Ms. Walters |
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decided that she needed to become president of the United States, |
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even writing to President Bill Clinton and offering to take over the |
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job during the contested election of 2000; on another occasion, |
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after she was written up by her teacher for poking another student |
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with a pencil, the indomitable Ms. Walters wrote under the |
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teacher's comments, "needs more pencils"; and |
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WHEREAS, At the age of seven, Ms. Walters watched the |
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coverage of the attack on New York on September 11, 2001, with her |
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mother, and after reading a book about a young girl in Afghanistan |
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who poses as a boy to feed her family, she was inspired to help women |
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and girls in the Arab world, a passion that continued into her |
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adulthood; and |
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WHEREAS, Ms. Walters began asking questions at the town hall |
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meetings of U.S. Representative Joe Barton when she was in her |
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teens, and when she was 17, he sponsored her as a page in the U.S. |
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Congress; close to home, she volunteered with the Tarrant County |
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Republican Party, was a leading member of the Arlington Republican |
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Club, and served as an election judge on several occasions; and |
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WHEREAS, After graduating from Lamar High School, |
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Ms. Walters enrolled in The University of Texas at Arlington, where |
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she was double-majoring in psychology and political science; she |
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was also studying Arabic, intending to follow through on her |
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youthful commitment to work for women's rights in the Arab world; at |
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the time of her death, she was planning to leave for an intensive |
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Arabic immersion program in Morocco; and |
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WHEREAS, Ms. Walters also showed her idealism and her concern |
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for others in her personal life on a daily basis, helping out |
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friends in need, taking an interest in individuals of all |
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backgrounds and beliefs, and earning the respect of people of all |
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ages with her intelligence, compassion, and maturity; and |
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WHEREAS, During her years on this earth, Kelly Walters |
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demonstrated a passion for life and a steadfast commitment to the |
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causes in which she believed, and her legacy will continue to |
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inspire all those who were privileged to know her; now, therefore, |
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be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 84th Texas |
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Legislature hereby pay tribute to the memory of Kelly Walters and |
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extend sincere condolences to her parents, Ginna Walters and Gary |
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Brizendine, and to her other relatives and many friends; and, be it |
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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 Kelly |
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Walters. |