Bill Text: TX HR1970 | 2021-2022 | 87th Legislature | Enrolled
Bill Title: In memory of Lauro and Maria Celia Lopez of Rio Grande City.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2021-06-04 - Reported enrolled [HR1970 Detail]
Download: Texas-2021-HR1970-Enrolled.html
| H.R. No. 1970 | ||
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| WHEREAS, Over the course of their lives, Lauro and Maria | ||
| Celia Lopez shared an enduring love story, and their family is | ||
| celebrating the couple's legacy of commitment; and | ||
| WHEREAS, A native of Rio Grande City, Lauro L. Lopez was born | ||
| on May 20, 1924, to Otila Zarate and Ernesto Lopez; after graduating | ||
| from Rio Grande City High School, he enlisted in the United States | ||
| Army in 1943; he was deployed to Shrivenham, England, where he was | ||
| stationed at the headquarters of General Dwight D. Eisenhower, and | ||
| he went on to serve as a medical clerk-typist at a field hospital in | ||
| Europe; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Mr. Lopez was honorably discharged in 1946, and | ||
| after returning home, he studied geology at The University of Texas | ||
| at Austin; for a time, he worked in the garment district in New York | ||
| while pursuing a career in photography; in 1948, he moved back to | ||
| Rio Grande City, where he sold cars, worked on the Falcon Dam | ||
| project, and found employment at LFD Furniture Store; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Maria Celia Lopez was born in Rio Grande City on | ||
| November 6, 1928, to Mateo and Hortencia Saenz; she graduated from | ||
| Rio Grande City High School in 1945, and she subsequently earned her | ||
| license to become a hairdresser, her lifelong passion; she went on | ||
| to open the Co-ed Beauty Shop, which she ran for 22 years; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Mr. and Mrs. Lopez shared a remarkable 67 years of | ||
| marriage; their family grew to include five children, Daniel, | ||
| Diana, Dalinda, Delia, and David Lauro Lopez, who preceded his | ||
| parents in death, as well as a number of grandchildren and | ||
| great-grandchildren; partners in life as well as in business, the | ||
| couple owned and operated Triple L Furniture & Appliance, which | ||
| Mr. Lopez opened in 1970, with Mrs. Lopez serving as the store's | ||
| office manager; after 35 years, they closed the store and retired in | ||
| 2005; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Mr. and Mrs. Lopez were actively involved in a | ||
| number of organizations; Mr. Lopez served as president of the Rio | ||
| Grande City Chamber of Commerce and vice president of the Rio Grande | ||
| Valley Partnership, and he helped lead the successful effort to | ||
| reincorporate Rio Grande City in 1993; he held other prominent | ||
| positions in the community as mayor pro tempore, city alderman, and | ||
| chair of the South Texas Economic Development Corporation, and in | ||
| 1999, he was appointed by then-Governor George W. Bush to the South | ||
| Texas Development Council, where he chaired the board of directors; | ||
| a charter member of his local Rotary Club, he was a recipient of the | ||
| Paul Harris Fellow award in 1997; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Both husband and wife were parishioners of | ||
| Immaculate Conception Church and active members of the Order of the | ||
| Alhambra, El Cid Caravan No. 106, which Mr. Lopez led as grand | ||
| commander; Mr. Lopez was a fourth degree Knight of Columbus, while | ||
| Mrs. Lopez was involved in her children's education as a PTA member | ||
| of the Immaculate Conception School, and she also participated in | ||
| the Sewing Club and other organizations; they enjoyed traveling | ||
| throughout the United States and the world and socializing with | ||
| their many friends; Mr. Lopez passed away on June 25, 2016, at the | ||
| age of 92, and Mrs. Lopez passed away on March 19, 2018, at the age | ||
| of 89; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Through their commitment to their family, their | ||
| faith, and their community, Lauro and Maria Celia Lopez touched the | ||
| lives of countless people during their time on this earth, and they | ||
| will forever be remembered with admiration by all those who held | ||
| them dear; now, therefore, be it | ||
| RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 87th Texas | ||
| Legislature hereby pay tribute to the memory of Lauro and Maria | ||
| Celia Lopez; and, be it further | ||
| RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be | ||
| prepared for their family and that when the Texas House of | ||
| Representatives adjourns this day, it do so in memory of Lauro and | ||
| Maria Celia Lopez. | ||
| Guillen | ||
| ______________________________ | ||
| Speaker of the House | ||
| I certify that H.R. No. 1970 was unanimously adopted by a | ||
| rising vote of the House on May 31, 2021. | ||
| ______________________________ | ||
| Chief Clerk of the House | ||
