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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, Residents of southeast Houston lost a beloved |
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community activist and civic leader with the passing of Marie |
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Flickinger on November 11, 2024, at the age of 82; and |
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WHEREAS, Born in Council Bluffs, Iowa, on September 1, 1942, |
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to Alexander and Mary Spence, the former Marie Spence grew up with |
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the companionship of two siblings, Morris and Alexis; after |
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graduating from high school, she exchanged wedding vows with David |
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Flickinger in 1962, and the pair went on to share in the joy of |
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raising two sons, Fred and David; her family later grew to include |
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three granddaughters, Kimberly, Courtney, and Natalie, as well as |
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seven great-grandchildren, Abigail, Jackson, Penelope, Kelvin, |
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Noah, Elliana, and Isabella; and |
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WHEREAS, Mrs. Flickinger and her husband resided in Minnesota |
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before relocating to the Houston area, where they eventually |
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settled in the Sagemont subdivision; in addition to being a |
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homemaker, she found her way into the journalism field when she was |
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recruited by an editor for the Friendswood News; after gaining |
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experience reporting on issues in the South Belt/Ellington |
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community and Pasadena ISD, she joined a friend, Bobby Griffin, in |
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co-founding the South Belt-Ellington Leader, and she served the |
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weekly newspaper as publisher until her passing; and |
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WHEREAS, Through the years, Mrs. Flickinger developed a |
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reputation as a tireless advocate for her community, earning the |
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moniker "the mayor of South Belt"; although she covered hundreds of |
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news stories throughout her career, she was perhaps best known for a |
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series of investigative articles that exposed the dumping of toxic |
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waste at the Brio Superfund site in the 1980s, and her central role |
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in uncovering the scale of contamination in its neighboring |
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subdivision led to her being tapped to serve as the Environmental |
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Protection Agency's community liaison for the site; for many years, |
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she was also integral in securing infrastructure improvements to |
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mitigate flooding, including the construction of the South Belt |
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Stormwater Detention Basin; and |
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WHEREAS, During the 1990s, Mrs. Flickinger had the |
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distinction of being the first woman to be elected to the San |
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Jacinto College Board of Trustees, where she served for nearly 30 |
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years before recently retiring as its chair; among her many |
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achievements, she was a founding member and inaugural president of |
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the South Belt-Ellington Chamber of Commerce, and she oversaw the |
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introduction of an Early College High School program in Pasadena |
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ISD, for which the district named her its Distinguished Citizen of |
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the Year in 2015; moreover, she was known for organizing community |
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events such as the annual Fourth of July parade and Christmas drive |
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for the needy, and she demonstrated her strong Catholic faith as a |
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parishioner at St. Frances Cabrini Catholic Church and later as one |
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of the founding members of St. Luke the Evangelist Catholic Church; |
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and |
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WHEREAS, Mrs. Flickinger was inducted into the Hall of Honor |
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at Dobie High School in 2015 and received the M. Dale Ensign Trustee |
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Leadership Award from the Association of Community College Trustees |
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in 2013; she was also recognized by Governor Greg Abbott with the |
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Governor's Volunteer Award for her role in coordinating emergency |
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relief efforts during Hurricane Harvey; and |
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WHEREAS, Through her widespread civic contributions, Marie |
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Flickinger had a profound and positive impact on her community, and |
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those she leaves behind will continue to find inspiration in their |
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memories of this extraordinary woman; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 89th Texas |
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Legislature hereby pay tribute to the life of Marie Flickinger and |
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extend deepest sympathy to the members of her family: to her |
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husband, David Flickinger; to her sons, Fred Flickinger and his |
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wife, Leslie, and David Flickinger and his wife, Ellie; to her |
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granddaughters, Kimberly Lipina and her husband, Matthew, Courtney |
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Durham, and Natalie Abarca and her husband, Jose; to her |
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great-grandchildren, Abigail, Jackson, and Penelope Durham, Kelvin |
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Lopez, Noah and Elliana Abarca, and Isabella Delgado and her |
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husband, Sebastian; to her siblings, Morris Spence and Alexis |
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Lochner; and to her other relatives and friends; and, be it 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 Marie |
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Flickinger. |