TITLE: Honoring Helen Smith, Baytown's "Pie Lady."

SUMMARY: Honoring Helen Smith, Baytown's "Pie Lady."

FULL TEXT:
WHEREAS, Helen Smith of Baytown is an innovative entrepreneur and an inspiring role model for women; and WHEREAS, Mrs. Smith's success story began in the early 1980s, when she was a single mother of three and had recently lost her job; struggling to provide for her children, she took a risk and created a professional opportunity for herself; because she had always liked to bake, she approached five local restaurants, asking them to include her homemade pies on their menus until she could find employment; soon thereafter, Mrs. Smith was overwhelmed by enthusiastic pastry lovers who wanted to place their own personal orders for her pies; and WHEREAS, To keep up with the demand, Mrs. Smith purchased a second oven at a garage sale and began waking at 3 a.m. to bake pies, which she then carefully packed into her car to deliver around town; though she temporarily slowed down when she took on a position as a secretary for Texaco for four years, she never lost sight of her culinary and entrepreneurial aspirations; and WHEREAS, With the support of her family and friends and advice from the Lee College Small Business Assistance Center, Mrs. Smith applied for a small business loan; when her application was approved, she rented and renovated a small building, and on the opening day of Helen's Kitchen, a line of customers gathered outside the front door; sales surpassed more than $100,000 that first year, and soon Baytown's Pie Lady, as she was newly nicknamed, moved into a larger space and hired employees to keep up with the demand for as many as 200 pies a day; and WHEREAS, Mrs. Smith made another savvy business decision when she approached area grocery stores to see if they were interested in selling her frozen, cholesterol-free pie shells; they agreed, and shortly after, her homemade crusts graced the shelves of small stores throughout Baytown, and then larger chain grocery stores across Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi; her pie shells can now be found at Sam's Clubs across the country; and WHEREAS, In 1988, the United States Small Business Administration named Mrs. Smith the "Woman Advocate of the Year" in Texas; as a result of this honor, she began receiving requests to visit seminars across the country; in the fall of 2011, she gained national attention when she was invited to appear on Good Morning America to share a new pie she invented; inspired by President Obama's two favorite kinds of pie, sweet potato and pecan, Mrs. Smith combined the two into one; the then 77-year-old, who had never been to New York before, was featured in a segment with renowned chef Emeril Lagasse; and WHEREAS, Helen Smith's determination and creativity proved to be a winning recipe for a flourishing business, and she may take justifiable pride in the sweet success she has achieved; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 83rd Texas Legislature hereby recognize Helen Smith for her dedication to preserving the tradition of making pies from scratch and extend to her sincere best wishes for continued success; and, be it further RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be prepared for Mrs. Smith as an expression of high regard by the Texas House of Representatives. Smith Straus M. Gonzalez of El Paso Oliveira Allen N. Gonzalez of El Paso Orr Alonzo Gooden Otto Alvarado Guerra Paddie Anchia Guillen Parker Anderson Gutierrez Patrick Ashby Harless Perez Aycock Harper-Brown Perry Bell Hernandez Luna Phillips Bohac Herrero Pickett Bonnen of Brazoria Hilderbran Pitts Bonnen of Galveston Howard Price Branch Huberty Raney Burkett Hughes Ratliff Burnam Hunter Raymond Button Isaac Reynolds Callegari Johnson Riddle Canales Kacal Ritter Capriglione Keffer Rodriguez of Bexar Carter King of Hemphill Rodriguez of Travis Clardy King of Parker Rose Coleman King of Taylor Sanford Collier King of Zavala Schaefer Cook Kleinschmidt Sheets Cortez Klick Sheffield of Bell Craddick Kolkhorst Sheffield of Coryell Creighton Krause Simmons Crownover Kuempel Simpson Dale Larson Smith Darby Laubenberg Smithee Davis of Dallas Lavender Springer J. Davis of Harris Leach Stephenson S. Davis of Harris Lewis Stickland Deshotel Longoria Strama Dukes Lozano Taylor Dutton Lucio III Thompson of Brazoria Eiland Marquez Thompson of Harris Elkins Martinez Toth Fallon Martinez Fischer Turner of Collin Farias McClendon Turner of Harris Farney Menendez Turner of Tarrant Farrar Miles Villalba Fletcher Miller of Comal Villarreal Flynn Miller of Fort Bend Vo Frank Moody Walle Frullo Morrison White Geren Munoz, Jr. Workman Giddings Murphy Wu Goldman Naishtat Zedler Gonzales Nevarez Zerwas Speaker of the House I certify that H.R. No. 395 was adopted by the House on February 14, 2013, by a non-record vote. Chief Clerk of the House