TITLE: In memory of Mary Lou Maas Grier of Boerne.

SUMMARY: In memory of Mary Lou Maas Grier of Boerne.

FULL TEXT:
WHEREAS, A full and productive life drew to a close with the passing of esteemed civic leader Mary Lou Maas Grier of Boerne on February 15, 2013, at the age of 87; and WHEREAS, The daughter of Tona Oliver Maas and Louise Emily Maas, the former Mary Lou Maas was born on April 4, 1925, in the Panama Canal Zone, where her father was involved in the construction and management of the Panama Canal Project; she graduated from Balboa High School in Panama before going on to study journalism at the University of Missouri, and she continued her education at San Antonio College; and WHEREAS, She met Baxter Redditt Grier in the Panama Canal Zone, and the couple were joined in matrimony in San Antonio; on the eve of World War II, Mrs. Grier joined her husband in Honolulu, where she worked at the United States Naval Base at Pearl Harbor; after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, she accepted a position on the editorial staff of the Honolulu Star-Bulletin;and WHEREAS, Mrs. Grier became the proud mother of three children, Bonnie, Bob, and Jim; while devoting herself to her home and family, she was extremely active in her community and civic life, and she played a key role in building the Republican Party in Texas; in 1968, she helped found the Kendall County Republican Women, and she worked tirelessly as a member of the Texas Federation of Republican Women and the National Federation of Republican Women; she was an officer, board member, and delegate to the organization's state and national federation conventions, and she regularly served as a delegate to county, state, and national Republican Party conventions; during the 1960s, she was vice chair of the Bexar County Republican Party and editor and publisher of the Bexar County Trumpeter,and she represented the 26th Senatorial District on the state Republican executive committee; she was named Outstanding Republican Woman of Texas in 1971 by the TFRW, and three years later, she became the party's first female nominee for statewide office when she ran for state land commissioner; and WHEREAS, Under the administrations of Presidents Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan, Mrs. Grier was appointed to a number of positions in Washington, D.C.; she served the Small Business Administration as deputy advocate for advisory councils and was later deputy director and then acting director of the Bureau of Outdoor Recreation in the U.S. Department of the Interior; subsequently, she served as deputy director and acting director of the National Park Service; and WHEREAS, This dynamic Texan gave generously of her time and talents as a member of the Texas Women's Alliance; she traveled extensively on nonpartisan missions to promote international trade, participating in a number of initiatives of the alliance and the U.S. Department of Commerce, among them trade missions to Spain, Switzerland, Prague, and Budapest; moreover, she took part in the Japan-Texas Association Annual Meeting-Trade Mission; and WHEREAS, A true pillar of the community, Mrs. Grier was president of the board of the Boerne Independent School District and vice chair of the World Affairs Council of San Antonio; she was a founding member of St. Mark Presbyterian Church and served the congregation in a variety of capacities, including ruling elder, trustee, and clerk of session; and WHEREAS, Mary Lou Maas Grier made a positive difference in the world around her through her many significant contributions, and although her death has brought great sorrow to her loved ones, memories of her kindness, leadership, and commitment to excellence will remain a source of inspiration to all who were privileged to know her; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 83rd Texas Legislature hereby pay tribute to the life of Mary Lou Maas Grier and extend sincere sympathy to the members of her family: to her daughter, Bonnie Lyons; to her sons, Bob and Jim Grier; to her son-in-law, Steve Lyons; to her daughters-in-law, Linda and Margaret; to her grandchildren, Jennifer and Jonathan; to her great-grandchildren, Emma, Sawyer, and James; and to her other relatives and many friends; and, be it further RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be prepared for the members of her family and that when the Texas House of Representatives adjourns this day, it do so in memory of Mary Lou Maas Grier.