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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, Ivy L. Walls of Houston is being honored with a 2025 |
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Outstanding Texan Award from the Texas Legislative Black Caucus; |
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and |
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WHEREAS, The owner of Ivy Leaf Farms, Ms. Walls is dedicated |
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to improving the health of her fellow Sunnyside residents; she |
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became a third-generation farmer after earning her bachelor's |
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degree in biology from Prairie View A&M University and beginning a |
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career in the medical field; during the COVID-19 pandemic, she was |
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employed as an infection preventionist by the Memorial Hermann |
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Health System; she understood the importance of good nutrition in |
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battling illness and recognized a serious need in Sunnyside, a |
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USDA-designated food desert in which few residents had ready access |
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to a grocery store with fresh produce; and |
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WHEREAS, Ms. Walls started growing vegetables in her |
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parents' backyard to give to neighbors; finding great satisfaction |
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in that endeavor, she began cultivating five acres owned by her |
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parents and quit her job to establish Ivy Leaf Farms in 2020; using |
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her entrepreneurial skills, she launched a GoFundMe on social |
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media; she also received a $10,000 grant from a joint initiative by |
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Beyoncé Knowles-Carter and the NAACP; building community |
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connections, the farm hosts events and offers opportunities for |
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neighbors to get in touch with nature and learn about sustainable |
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growing practices and nutrient-dense foods; in addition, staff |
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members visit schools to help set up community gardens that will |
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encourage interest in agriculture among the next generation; |
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Ms. Walls cofounded Black Farmer Box, which provides locally |
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sourced produce to food desert residents, and then Fresh Houwse |
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Grocery, a bodega-style business that features the products of |
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local farmers and serves as a neighborhood gathering place; and |
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WHEREAS, Through her vision and commitment to improving the |
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well-being of her fellow Houstonians, Ivy Walls has set an |
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inspiring example of civic-minded entrepreneurship, and she is |
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indeed deserving of special recognition; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 89th Texas |
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Legislature hereby congratulate Ivy L. Walls on her receipt of a |
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2025 Outstanding Texan Award from the Texas Legislative Black |
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Caucus and extend to her sincere best wishes for the future; and, be |
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it further |
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RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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prepared for Ms. Walls as an expression of high regard by the Texas |
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House of Representatives. |
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Simmons |
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______________________________ |
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Speaker of the House |
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I certify that H.R. No. 621 was adopted by the House on April |
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17, 2025, by the following vote: Yeas 130, Nays 10, 2 present, not |
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voting. |
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______________________________ |
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Chief Clerk of the House |
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