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SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
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WHEREAS, Family-owned businesses play a vital role in the |
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prosperity of the Lone Star State, and in 2018, the Shoults family |
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of Marshall celebrated the 75th anniversary of Bear Creek |
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Smokehouse; and |
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WHEREAS, This iconic enterprise was established in 1943, when |
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Hick and Nellie Shoults set up a small smokehouse and began smoking |
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the turkeys they raised on their farm; aided from the start by their |
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son, Bobby, the family first sold their turkeys through local |
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grocers, and as their products became more popular, they further |
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developed their seasonal business to include a wider selection of |
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smoked meats, including beef, pork, and chicken; and |
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WHEREAS, The family eventually stopped raising their own |
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livestock and focused on expanding the smokehouse operations, and |
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in 1959, Bobby Shoults's new bride, Brenda, joined the company, |
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helping take catalog orders from customers across the nation; when |
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Bobby and Brenda's son, Robbie, came aboard, he took the smokehouse |
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in a new direction, opening a general store to supplement the |
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wholesale business; and |
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WHEREAS, Bobby Shoults passed away in 2017, but Bear Creek |
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continues to thrive under the leadership of his son, Robbie, his |
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grandson, Hunter, and their wives, Tracy and Stacia, as well as |
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through the invaluable efforts of their more than 50 employees; in |
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October 2018, the business entered a new phase with the grand |
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opening of a 10,000-square-foot general store and event center, |
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which is available for weddings, reunions, and parties; and |
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WHEREAS, Over the course of three-quarters of a century, four |
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generations of the Shoults family have built one of the signature |
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businesses of East Texas, and by creating jobs and helping to |
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strengthen the economic environment of Marshall, Bear Creek |
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Smokehouse is contributing to the vitality of that community; now, |
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therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the 86th Legislature of the State of Texas |
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hereby congratulate the members of the Shoults family on the 75th |
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anniversary of Bear Creek Smokehouse and extend to them and to their |
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employees sincere best wishes for continued success; 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 the Shoults family as an expression of high regard by |
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the Texas House of Representatives and Senate. |