House Resolution 141

(As Adopted by House)

A RESOLUTION MOURNING THE LOSS AND COMMEMORATING THE LIFE AND LEGACY OF MR. CHRISTOPHER THOMAS BRUNI.

WHEREAS, it is written in Ecclesiastes 3:1 that "To everything there is a season and a time for every purpose under the Heaven," and as such, the immaculate author and finisher of our soul's destiny summoned the mortal presence of dearly beloved, Mr. Christopher Thomas Bruni, to eternal rest, rendering great sorrow and loss to his family, friends and community; and

WHEREAS, the loving son of Jeff and Angela Bruni, Christopher Thomas Bruni unexpectedly passed away at the young age of 22 on July 31, 2022, and there is now a hush in our hearts as we come together to pay our respects to the memory of those who have been called to join that innumerable heavenly caravan; and

WHEREAS, born on June 19, 2000, Christopher attended Bayou View Elementary and Middle Schools and graduated from Gulfport High School in 2018 with a 3.9 GPA and class rank of 5th out of 375, and while at Gulfport High School (GHS), he served as student body president, president of the Interact and Spanish Clubs, vice president of the National Honor Society and Key Club, and he was a 4-year letterman on the GHS varsity men's soccer team; and

WHEREAS, Christopher was very passionate about soccer, and during his senior year, he was selected as co-team Captain, and went on to win the Mississippi High School Activities Association (MHSAA) State Championship, was voted Most Valuable Player and received the Ray Bishop Award for the highest GPA, and he was also selected to the State Association of Coaches Varsity Boys All-Star South Team and the Region 6A Varsity Team; and

WHEREAS, he began playing organized soccer, truly his favorite sport, at the age of four with the Roadrunners rec team and played on numerous select soccer teams with the South Mississippi Soccer Club through his freshman year in college, during which time his select teams won five state championships, and he developed many valuable friendships across the state and the southeast through this sport, including through his five-time selection to the Mississippi Olympic Development team for his age group; and

WHEREAS, in addition to excelling on the soccer pitch, Christopher was also an Eagle Scout, an accomplishment of which he was extremely proud, and he received many prestigious honors and awards, including being named a state finalist for the Wendy's High School Heisman, "Mr. Interact – Best Overall Male" and Exchange Club Student of the Year for the State of Mississippi in his senior year and was awarded the Samsung Scholarship Award for Mississippi; and

WHEREAS, additionally, Christopher was inducted into the Gulfport High School Hall of Fame, served on the City of Gulfport Mayor's Youth Council, and was selected to attend the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA), where he later was chosen to serve as a counselor from 2018 through 2022; and

WHEREAS, Christopher went on to attend Millsaps College on an academic scholarship, where he majored in biochemistry and not only graduated summa cum laude with honors in May 2022, but also graduated having a perfect all-A academic career through high school and college and having passed his final comprehensive examination in biochemistry "with excellence," and his honors thesis (Synthesis of an Allosteric HIV Integrase Inhibitors based on a Pyridine Pharmacohire) was presented during his senior year and was eventually published; and

WHEREAS, while in college, Christopher continued to pursue his soccer dreams in addition to his academic ones, as he was a four-year starter on the Varsity Men's Soccer Team, and he was also a two-year Senator in the Student Body Association, a member of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity, President of the Millsaps College Republicans and a member of the Millsaps Rotaract Club; and

WHEREAS, Christopher also received numerous awards in college, including the Joseph B. Price General Chemistry Award for the highest GPA in chemistry, the Charles A. Preuss Pre-Medical Scholarship (SAE National Foundation), the Physics Service Award and the Chemistry Research Award, and he was a member of the Omicron Delta Kappa, Sigma Lambda, Alpha Epsilon Delta, and Beta Beta Beta honoraries, and was one of a few from Millsaps College tapped into the Phi Beta Kappa Society, the oldest and most prestigious academic honorary in the country, and he had been selected into the Mississippi Rural Physicians Scholarship Program as he had been accepted into medical school at the University of Mississippi Medical Center, with his medical school career set to commence August 2022; and

WHEREAS, Christopher and his family are life-long members of St. James Catholic Church in Gulfport, Mississippi, and in his spare time, he enjoyed playing the piano, the violin, and the guitar as well as running, playing soccer and tennis, and being with his family and cats; and

WHEREAS, for 22 years, the State of Mississippi, the City of Gulfport and thousands of others were touched by Christopher's generous heart, broad smile and kind spirit, and he will be fondly remembered by all those who had the opportunity to know him and experience his greatness; and

WHEREAS, Christopher is survived by his parents; sister, Dr. Catie Lee Bruni; his older brother, Jeff Bruni, Jr.; paternal grandparents, Dr. Ron and Lee Bruni; maternal grandmother, Charlene Dudley; aunts and uncles, Dr. Tim and Tracie Bruni and their children, Colton, Cooper, Lexi and Cohen; Damian and Jennifer Bruni and their children, Xavier and Blaise; Chrissy Bruni Lane and her husband, Charlie and their children, Charlie, Jr. and Ezra; Rodney and Ellen Dudley and their children, Ross, Chase and Tye and their families; Ron and Dr. Sue Dudley Cunningham and their children, Dr. Bryant Walker and Alana Walker and their families; Dr. Dava Sue Cleveland; and Anna Marie Lenz and her children; and a host of other relatives and friends; and

WHEREAS, it is the policy of the House of Representatives to honor and commend the lives of genuine and selfless individuals, especially those such as Mr. Christopher Thomas Bruni, whose light, though prematurely extinguished like a candle in the wind, illuminated the path of hope, faith and righteousness for all he encountered along his brief earthly sojourn:

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, That we do hereby mourn the loss and commemorate the life and legacy of Mr. Christopher Thomas Bruni and express deepest sympathy to his family and friends upon his passing.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be furnished to the family of Christopher Thomas Bruni and to the members of the Capitol Press Corps.