| |
| |
|
|
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
|
|
|
WHEREAS, The Honorable James Ray Gayle III of Angleton passed |
|
|
away on May 18, 2022, at the age of 84, leaving his loved ones and |
|
|
friends to reflect on his remarkable life and his many years of |
|
|
dedicated service to the community; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, J. Ray Gayle was born in Houston on October 29, 1937, |
|
|
to James Ray Gayle Jr. and Lavenia Brewer Gayle, and he grew up with |
|
|
the companionship of a sister, Janice; he competed on the |
|
|
basketball, baseball, and track teams at Angleton High School, and |
|
|
he continued to distinguish himself athletically as a pole vaulter |
|
|
at The University of Texas; after earning an accounting degree in |
|
|
1960, he graduated from the UT School of Law in 1966; he served his |
|
|
country as a member of the United States Navy and the Naval Reserve, |
|
|
attaining the rank of lieutenant; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, In 1966, Mr. Gayle began his career as a felony |
|
|
prosecutor for Midland County; he worked for several years as a |
|
|
trial attorney in Texarkana and Angleton, and in 1973, he was |
|
|
appointed judge of County Court at Law No. 1 in Brazoria County; |
|
|
five years later, he successfully ran for judge of the 239th |
|
|
District Court, and he was returned to office by county voters for |
|
|
five successive terms for 24 years of service; he retired from that |
|
|
post and assumed senior judge status in 2003; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, Judge Gayle was a member of the State Bar of Texas, |
|
|
the Brazoria County Bar Association, and the Texas Bar Foundation; |
|
|
he gave back to his fellow citizens through his service as an elder |
|
|
and trustee of the First Presbyterian Church of Angleton, as |
|
|
president of the Angleton Lions Club and the Angleton Wildcat |
|
|
Athletic Booster Club, and as a member of the Greater Angleton |
|
|
Chamber of Commerce; he also coached both Little League and Babe |
|
|
Ruth baseball, and in recognition of his civic involvement, he |
|
|
received the Boy Scouts' 2018 Golden Eagle Award and the 2022 |
|
|
Community Champion Award; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, In all his endeavors, Judge Gayle enjoyed the love |
|
|
and support of his wife of 58 years, Nancy, their children, Shannon |
|
|
Gayle Sebesta and her husband, the Honorable Pat Sebesta, and James |
|
|
Ray "Chip" Gayle IV and his wife, Parrish Gayle, and their |
|
|
grandchildren, Patrick Sebesta and his wife, Keri, William, |
|
|
Christopher, Annabelle, and John Sebesta, and Jessica Gayle; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, A devoted family man, a proud veteran, and a pillar |
|
|
of his community, J. Ray Gayle leaves behind a legacy of service |
|
|
that will forever inspire all those who held him dear; now, |
|
|
therefore, be it |
|
|
RESOLVED, That the 88th Legislature of the State of Texas |
|
|
hereby pay tribute to the life of the Honorable James Ray Gayle III |
|
|
and extend sincere sympathy to those who mourn his passing; 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 and Senate adjourn this day, they do so in memory of |
|
|
J. Ray Gayle. |