| |
| |
|
|
R E S O L U T I O N
|
|
|
WHEREAS, Residents of Hidalgo County are mourning the loss of |
|
|
admired community leader Neal Gordon Galloway of Weslaco, who |
|
|
passed away on March 10, 2017, at the age of 90; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, The son of John and Ruth Galloway, Neal Galloway was |
|
|
born in Weslaco on September 11, 1926, and grew up with his brother, |
|
|
Bruce, and his sister, Phyllis; he played on the football team at |
|
|
Edcouch-Elsa High School, and after graduating in 1943, he briefly |
|
|
attended Texas A&M University before joining the U.S. Navy; he |
|
|
served for two years during World War II, operating and maintaining |
|
|
radar equipment, and then returned to Texas A&M, where he earned a |
|
|
bachelor's degree in agricultural economics; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, While working as a lifeguard in McAllen, |
|
|
Mr. Galloway met his future wife, the former Laura Frances Duff, |
|
|
and they were married in 1950; the couple shared 64 years together |
|
|
and raised six children, Gayle, Carol, Mary Kay, John, Robert, and |
|
|
Susan; later in life, Mr. Galloway welcomed into his family nine |
|
|
grandchildren, Stuart, Laura, Valerie, Neal, Katy, Patrick, |
|
|
Stephen, Stephanye, and Travis, and two great-grandchildren, |
|
|
Murphy and Winfield; after his wife Fran passed away, he was |
|
|
fortunate enough to find love again, and he married Jacqueline Hall |
|
|
in 2015; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, Apart from spending a year after college as a |
|
|
traveling salesman, Mr. Galloway made farming in South Texas his |
|
|
life's work; he also assisted in the study and eradication of insect |
|
|
and plant diseases at the Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension |
|
|
Center in Weslaco; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, This civic-minded Texan served two terms on the Elsa |
|
|
City Council, and from 1961 to 1965, he was the city's mayor and |
|
|
justice of the peace; he further contributed to the community by |
|
|
helping to establish the Knapp Memorial Methodist Hospital; in |
|
|
1967, he was appointed chair of the charter board of the Region One |
|
|
Educational Service Center, and he served for 33 years on the board |
|
|
of the Delta Lake Irrigation District, including a term as |
|
|
president; he also held a seat as commander of the American Legion |
|
|
Delta Post No. 189, and during the 1960s, he made game films for the |
|
|
Edcouch-Elsa Yellow Jackets football team; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, A man of strong religious faith, Mr. Galloway was a |
|
|
lifelong member of First United Methodist Church of Edcouch, |
|
|
serving the congregation as lay leader and Sunday school teacher |
|
|
and representing the church for more than three decades at the |
|
|
annual Southwest Texas Conference; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, A devoted family man, a successful farmer, and a |
|
|
respected community leader, Neal Galloway lived a rich and |
|
|
purposeful life, and memories of his warmth, good humor, and |
|
|
commitment to civic engagement will long inspire all who had the |
|
|
good fortune to know him; now, therefore, be it |
|
|
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 85th Texas |
|
|
Legislature hereby pay tribute to the memory of Neal Gordon |
|
|
Galloway and extend heartfelt sympathy to his family and many |
|
|
friends; and, be it further |
|
|
RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
|
|
prepared for his family and that when the Texas House of |
|
|
Representatives adjourns this day, it do so in memory of Neal |
|
|
Galloway. |