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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, A rich and purposeful life has drawn to a close with |
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the death of Elizabeth Nell Dyess Denman of Lake Jackson on April |
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25, 2019, at the age of 98; and |
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WHEREAS, Nell Dyess was born in Albany on October 15, 1920, to |
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Richard and Hallie Dyess, and she grew up with a brother, William; |
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after graduating from high school in 1938, she attended John |
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Tarleton College and earned a bachelor's degree in education at The |
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University of Texas at Austin in 1942; and |
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WHEREAS, In 1943, she wed Ben Denman, and the couple shared a |
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rewarding marriage that spanned more than seven decades before |
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Mr. Denman's death in 2014; Mrs. Denman was the proud mother of two |
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children, Ed and Marajen, and later in life, she was blessed with |
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three grandchildren, Elizabeth, Margaret, and David, and five |
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great-grandchildren, Stewart, Hallie, Charlie, Ben, and Owen; and |
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WHEREAS, The Denmans lived in Brownwood, Tulsa, Oklahoma, and |
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Richmond, Virginia, before settling in Dallas in 1966; early in her |
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life, Mrs. Denman taught school, directed a church youth choir, and |
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hosted a women's radio show, but by the time her family moved to |
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Tulsa, she had become a widely recognized expert in floral design |
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and horticulture and a national master flower show judge; she went |
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on to teach horticulture and flower arranging for 60 years, and she |
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played a leading role in the establishment of the Dallas Arboretum |
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and Botanical Gardens, where she was a board member emeritus and the |
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recipient of the first Founders Award; over the course of her life, |
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she was president of seven local garden clubs as well as president |
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of Texas Garden Clubs, Inc., director of the South-Central Region |
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of the National Garden Clubs, and a board member of the National |
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Council of State Garden Clubs; she wrote articles for many |
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gardening magazines, published two books, and was named Garden Club |
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Woman of the Year at the State Fair of Texas; and |
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WHEREAS, After retiring with her husband to Lake Jackson, |
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Mrs. Denman remained active with the Brazosport Center for the Arts & |
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Sciences and the Brazosport Symphony Orchestra, and she |
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contributed significantly to the growth of the Brazosport Symphony |
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League; and |
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WHEREAS, Talented, generous, and energetic, Nell Denman |
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loved to beautify the world with gardens and flowers, and she leaves |
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behind a legacy of service to her family, her faith, and her |
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community that will continue to inspire all those who knew and loved |
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her; now, 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 memory of Elizabeth Nell |
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Dyess Denman and extend heartfelt sympathy to the members of her |
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family: to her son, Judge Ed Denman, and his wife, Bettye; to her |
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daughter, Marajen Denman; to her grandchildren, Elizabeth Denman |
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Williams and her husband, Michael, Margaret Denman Beck and her |
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husband, Doug, and David Denman and his wife, Misty; to her |
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great-grandchildren, Stewart, Hallie, and Charlie Williams and Ben |
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and Owen Denman; and to her other relatives and 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 Elizabeth |
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Nell Dyess Denman. |