TITLE: Honoring State Representative Sylvester Turner for his service.

SUMMARY: Honoring State Representative Sylvester Turner for his service.

FULL TEXT:
WHEREAS, For more than a quarter-century, the Honorable Sylvester Turner has served his fellow Texans with enormous skill and dedication as the state representative for House District 139 in Harris County; and WHEREAS, Representative Turner was first elected in 1988, and over the course of his noteworthy tenure, he has worked tirelessly to improve the lives of all citizens and to promote reform in education, health care, human services, consumer rights, and juvenile justice; along the way, he has earned renown for his ability to build consensus and for his leadership in numerous roles, including speaker pro tempore, an office he held from 2003 to 2009; and WHEREAS, A longtime member of the House State Affairs Committee, Representative Turner served for four terms as its vice chair; he currently serves as vice chair of the House Appropriations Committee and as chair of its Subcommittee on Articles I, IV, and V, and he is a member of the Legislative Budget Board; additionally, he chairs both the Texas Legislative Black Caucus and the Greater Houston Area Legislative Delegation; and WHEREAS, Representative Turner has lent his expertise to a host of committees related to fiscal matters, and he chaired the House Criminal Justice Appropriations Committee and the House Select Committee on Hurricane Ike Storm Devastation to the Texas Gulf Coast; in addition, he has served on the House Calendars Committee and the House Select Committee on Electric Generation Capacity and Environmental Effects, among others; and WHEREAS, Especially dedicated to the well-being of those who are most vulnerable, Representative Turner authored the bill that added 127,000 previously uninsured children to the Texas Children's Health Insurance Program; he was named one of the "13 Big Voices for Little Texans in 2013" by the Court Appointed Special Advocates Association, and that same year, he was presented with the Humanitarian Award at the national conference of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity; moreover, he has been lauded by Texas Monthly magazine and other publications and by such organizations as the NAACP, the Texas Veterans Commission, the Texas Classroom Teachers Association, Common Cause of Texas, the Texas Pediatric Society, and the Texas Police Chiefs Association; and WHEREAS, This proud native son of the Bayou City was instrumental in the creation of the Houston Astros MLB Urban Youth Baseball Academy, which provides free baseball and softball instruction to youngsters at Sylvester Turner Park; he coordinates the annual Acres Homes Juneteenth Parade, as well as a number of other local events, and he has given generously of his time and talents to the United Negro College Fund, the Acres Homes Citizens Chamber of Commerce, and the Coalition for School Improvement; and WHEREAS, With deep roots in the Houston community, Sylvester Turner became speaker of the student senate at the University of Houston, and he went on to graduate from Harvard Law School; he joined Fulbright and Jaworski before establishing his own firm, Barnes and Turner, in 1983; while in private practice, he has also served as an adjunct professor at the Thurgood Marshall School of Law and as a lecturer for the South Texas College of Law and the University of Houston Law School continuing legal education program; he is a member of Brookhollow Baptist Church, and in all his endeavors, he enjoys the love and support of his daughter, Ashley Paige Turner; and WHEREAS, Combining both idealism and pragmatism, Representative Turner has gained a well-deserved reputation as "the conscience of the house," serving as a passionate and eloquent voice for Texans from all walks of life, and his accomplishments will continue to benefit countless citizens in the years to come; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 84th Texas Legislature hereby commend the Honorable Sylvester Turner for his exemplary public service and extend to him sincere best wishes for continued success and happiness; and, be it further RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be prepared for Representative Turner as an expression of high regard by the Texas House of Representatives. Miles Straus Gonz lez Otto Allen Guerra Paddie Alonzo Guillen Parker Alvarado Gutierrez Paul Anchia Harless Pe a Anderson of Dallas Hernandez Phelan Anderson of McLennan Herrero Phillips Ashby Howard Pickett Aycock Huberty Price Bell Hughes Raney Bernal Hunter Raymond Blanco Isaac Reynolds Bohac Israel Riddle Bonnen of Brazoria Johnson Rinaldi Bonnen of Galveston Kacal Rodriguez of Bexar Burkett Keffer Rodriguez of Travis Burns Keough Romero, Jr. Burrows King of Hemphill Rose Button King of Parker Sanford Canales King of Taylor Schaefer Capriglione King of Uvalde Schofield Clardy Klick Schubert Coleman Koop Shaheen Collier Krause Sheets Cook Kuempel Sheffield Craddick Landgraf Simmons Crownover Larson Simpson Cyrier Laubenberg Smith Dale Leach Smithee Darby Longoria Spitzer Davis of Dallas Lozano Springer Davis of Harris Lucio III Stephenson Deshotel M rquez Stickland Dukes Martinez Thompson of Brazoria Dutton Martinez Fischer Thompson of Harris Elkins McClendon Tinderholt Faircloth Metcalf Turner of Collin Fallon Meyer Turner of Harris Farias Miles Turner of Tarrant Farney Miller of Comal VanDeaver Farrar Miller of Fort Bend Villalba Fletcher Minjarez Vo Flynn Moody Walle Frank Morrison White of Bell Frullo Mu oz, Jr. White of Tyler Galindo Murphy Workman Geren Murr Wray Giddings Naishtat Wu Goldman Nev rez Zedler Gonzales Oliveira Zerwas Speaker of the House I certify that H.R. No. 3525 was adopted by the House on May 31, 2015, by a non-record vote. Chief Clerk of the House