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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, The State of Texas lost a trailblazing jurist with |
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the death of Mary Lou Robinson of Amarillo on January 26, 2019, at |
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the age of 92; and |
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WHEREAS, Born to Gerald and Frances Strueber in Dodge City, |
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Kansas, on August 25, 1926, the former Mary Lou Strueber grew up in |
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Amarillo; she met her future husband, A. J. Robinson, at The |
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University of Texas School of Law, and they established the |
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Robinson & Robinson firm in Amarillo; in 1955, Ms. Robinson was |
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appointed judge of the Potter County Court-at-Law, and she later |
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became judge of the 108th District Court and associate justice and |
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then chief justice of the 7th Court of Appeals; in 1979, she was |
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appointed by President Jimmy Carter as United States district judge |
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for the Northern District of Texas, a position she held for almost |
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four decades; and |
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WHEREAS, Judge Robinson was known for her fairness, |
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integrity, and meticulous application of the law; she ran her |
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courtroom with tremendous professionalism, and she dug deeply into |
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the issues of every case in order to understand all aspects; while |
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serving as a role model and mentor to other women in the legal |
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community, she also advocated powerfully for women's rights and the |
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passage of the Texas Equal Rights Amendment, and she helped to |
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effect change in laws that prohibited married women from entering |
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into binding contracts; in 2018, she became the first woman within a |
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five-state area to have a federal courthouse named in her honor; and |
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WHEREAS, The devoted mother of three children, Rebecca, |
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Diana, and Matthew, Judge Robinson taught them the importance of |
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family, hard work, honesty, and service; she eventually knew the |
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joy of becoming a proud grandmother and great-grandmother; deeply |
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committed to the community, she served on the boards of a host of |
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civic organizations, and she was an elder of Westminster |
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Presbyterian Church; and |
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WHEREAS, Mary Lou Robinson set an inspiring example as a |
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pioneer of the Texas judiciary and a pillar of the legal community |
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for over six decades, and she will be remembered with admiration and |
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affection by all who were fortunate enough to know her; now, |
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therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 86th Texas |
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Legislature hereby pay tribute to the life of Mary Lou Robinson and |
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extend sincere sympathy to the members of her family: to her |
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children, Rebecca McCoy and her husband, Mark, Diana Robinson and |
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her fiancé, Ed Hatchett, and Matthew Robinson and his wife, Mary; to |
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her grandchildren, Jeremy Gruhlkey and his wife, Naeun Rim, Bradley |
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Gruhlkey, Ashley Kelley and her husband, Taylor, Rachel Robinson |
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and Joel Lehtinen, Blake Elms and her husband, Gatlin, David Tubb |
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and his wife, Hayley, and Frances Tubb; to her |
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granddaughter-in-law, Elana Harvey; to her nine |
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great-grandchildren; and to her many other relatives and friends; |
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and, be it 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 the |
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Honorable Mary Lou Robinson. |