|
|
SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 41
|
|
|
|
In Memory |
|
of |
|
Kathryn Piekarski |
|
|
WHEREAS, A life lived with joy and purpose drew to a close |
|
with the passing of Kathryn Bridget Connolly Piekarski of Tyler |
|
on January 10, 2025, at the age of 72; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, The daughter of Jewel and John Connolly, the |
|
former Bridget Connolly was born in Lakeland, Florida, on |
|
December 12, 1952; she earned her bachelor's degree in |
|
journalism from the University of South Florida and contributed |
|
to multiple publications as a writer and editor during high |
|
school and college; in 1981, she became the proud mother of a |
|
daughter, Kathryn, and devoted herself to her upbringing; she |
|
shared a fulfilling marriage of 27 years with her husband, |
|
Anthony Piekarski; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, Mrs. Piekarski lived in many cities, among them |
|
Memphis, Tennessee, New Orleans, Louisiana, Anchorage, Alaska, |
|
Sarasota, Florida, and London, England; continuing her |
|
education, she ultimately earned a master's degree in social work |
|
and mental health counseling from the University of Alaska |
|
Anchorage; early in her career, she helped schoolchildren in |
|
Anchorage and across Central Florida and assessed patients in |
|
crisis for hospitals and counties; she eventually established a |
|
successful private practice and counseled individuals and |
|
families for decades in Florida and then Tyler, where she and her |
|
husband settled in 2014 to be close to her grandchildren; |
|
wherever she resided, her kindness, empathy, magnetic |
|
personality, and keen intellect brought her many lasting |
|
friendships; she served as a docent in numerous museums and art |
|
galleries, including the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, and worked |
|
tirelessly to promote the arts and her favorite local artists; |
|
the many organizations she supported included Doctors Without |
|
Borders, the SPCA, and a number of symphony orchestras; she also |
|
served as co-chair for the American Cancer Society of Anchorage; |
|
and |
|
|
WHEREAS, Although Bridget Piekarski is deeply missed, she |
|
has left her family and friends with many cherished memories, and |
|
she will forever hold a special place in their hearts; now, |
|
therefore, be it |
|
|
RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas, 89th |
|
Legislature, 1st Called Session, hereby pay tribute to the |
|
life of Kathryn Bridget Connolly Piekarski and extend sincere |
|
sympathy to the members of her family: to her husband, Anthony |
|
Piekarski; to her daughter, Kathryn Hamilton-Crain, and her |
|
husband, Burton; to her brother, Tom Connolly, and his wife, |
|
Karen; to her stepchildren, Garreth Piekarski and his wife, |
|
Tess Tomasi, and Leah Piekarski; to her grandchildren, Gabriel |
|
and John Bradshaw, Burton, Erik, Patrick, and Zoe Crain, Cora |
|
Piekarski, Stella and Iris Martin, and Billy Vermeulen; and to |
|
her many other relatives and host of friends; and, be it |
|
further |
|
|
RESOLVED, That an official copy of this Resolution be |
|
prepared for her family and that when the Texas Senate adjourns |
|
this day, it do so in memory of Bridget Piekarski. |
|
|
Hughes |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
________________________________ |
|
|
President of the Senate |
|
|
|
|
|
I hereby certify that the |
|
|
above Resolution was adopted by |
|
|
the Senate on August 15, 2025, by |
|
|
a rising vote. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
________________________________ |
|
|
Secretary of the Senate |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
________________________________ |
|
|
Member, Texas Senate |