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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, The Lone Star State lost an esteemed citizen with |
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the passing of Nelda McQuien Laney of Hale Center on August 24, |
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2016, at the age of 73; and |
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WHEREAS, The daughter of Helen and John McQuien, the former |
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Nelda McQuien was born in Garza County on June 7, 1943; she |
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graduated from Plainview High School and went on to complete her |
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bachelor's degree in education with honors at Texas Tech |
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University, where she met her future husband, James E. "Pete" |
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Laney; the couple became the parents of four children, James, |
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KaLyn, Jamey, and J. Pete, and later welcomed into their family six |
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grandchildren, Austin, Grant, Gavin, and Holden Phillips and |
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Clayton and Kendall Laney; and |
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WHEREAS, Mrs. Laney taught in Hale Center schools, and as her |
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husband pursued a career in public life, she became a splendid |
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campaigner; during his long tenure in the Texas House of |
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Representatives, including five terms as speaker, Mrs. Laney |
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provided invaluable assistance, and she led the effort to restore |
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the State Capitol and served as vice chair of the Texas Capitol |
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Restoration Celebration and as co-chair of the Capitol Fund Drive, |
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which raised private money for furnishings; in order to sustain |
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continuing preservation efforts and related educational programs, |
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she created a series of collectible Texas Capitol holiday |
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ornaments, which became enormously successful, generating more |
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than $8 million to date; and |
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WHEREAS, In 2004, Mrs. Laney implemented a commemorative |
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ornament series for Keep Texas Beautiful, and for a dozen years, she |
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handled everything from the selection of themes to marketing and |
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public relations; she was the most successful salesperson for the |
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program and attended the organization's annual conferences each |
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summer in order to promote the project; along the way, she designed |
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ornaments for more than a dozen other entities across the state, |
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among them Texas Tech; and |
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WHEREAS, Mrs. Laney worked tirelessly in behalf of her alma |
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mater, serving as national president of the Texas Tech Alumni |
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Association and chairing the fund-raising committee for the $4.5 |
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million McKenzie-Merket Alumni Center expansion; in addition, she |
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served on the boards of the Texas Book Festival, the Friends of |
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Libraries and Archives of Texas, the National Center for Missing |
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and Exploited Children, and Greater Texas Community Partners, and |
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she was a member of Kappa Alpha Theta, the Omega Delphi Study Club, |
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the Caprock District Women's Club, and a host of other |
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organizations; and |
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WHEREAS, Widely admired for her vision and leadership, |
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Mrs. Laney won the affectionate nickname "the First Lady of West |
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Texas"; her work on the Capitol restoration earned a Star of Texas |
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Preservation Award and special recognition from the Texas Women's |
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Alliance; moreover, she was the recipient of the inaugural Woman of |
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Achievement Award from the Texas Federation of Women's Clubs, and |
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she was selected as Woman of the Year in both Plainview and Hale |
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Center; in 2007, she and her husband received the Texas Tech Alumni |
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Association's Lauro F. Cavazos Award, and two years later, she was |
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named a Distinguished Alumna of the Texas Tech College of |
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Education; she was also inducted into the Future Homemakers of |
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America Texas Hall of Fame and was named a Lifetime Member of the |
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Girl Scouts; and |
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WHEREAS, While pursuing her many civic endeavors, Mrs. Laney |
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made time for her cherished family and many friends, and she was a |
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surrogate mother and grandmother to countless people; her warmth, |
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kindness, grace, and good humor brightened the days of everyone |
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around her; and |
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WHEREAS, Nelda Laney demonstrated her great love for Texas |
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and its people in myriad ways, and although she is deeply missed by |
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all who were privileged to share in her love and friendship, her |
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enormous contributions will continue to resonate for years to come; |
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now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 85th Texas |
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Legislature hereby pay special tribute to the life of Nelda McQuien |
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Laney and extend profound condolences to her loved ones; 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 Nelda |
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Laney. |