Bill Text: TX SR14 | 2013 | 83rd Legislature 3rd Special Session | Enrolled
Bill Title: In memory of John Graves.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)
Status: (Passed) 2013-08-05 - Reported enrolled [SR14 Detail]
Download: Texas-2013-SR14-Enrolled.html
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| In Memory | ||
| of | ||
| John Graves | ||
| WHEREAS, The Senate of the State of Texas honors and | ||
| commemorates the life of John Graves, who died July 31, 2013, at | ||
| the age of 92; and | ||
| WHEREAS, John Graves was a giant of Texas letters whose | ||
| writing evoked a state both magnificent and unforgiving and | ||
| balanced history, folklore, environmental observations, and | ||
| personal narrative in a cohesive whole; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Born August 6, 1920, in Fort Worth, he grew up | ||
| exploring the Trinity River bottoms and taking part in hunting | ||
| trips in South Texas with his father and uncles; after graduating | ||
| from Rice University, he enlisted in the United States Marine | ||
| Corps and served in the Pacific theater during World War II, | ||
| earning a Purple Heart and rising to the rank of captain; and | ||
| WHEREAS, After the war, he earned a master's degree from | ||
| Columbia University and became an English professor at The | ||
| University of Texas at Austin; he soon became disillusioned with | ||
| teaching and embarked on a period of wandering and reflection, | ||
| during which he traveled and lived abroad and wrote for magazines | ||
| and literary quarterlies; and | ||
| WHEREAS, He returned to Fort Worth in 1957, and he took a | ||
| position teaching creative writing at Texas Christian | ||
| University; he fell in love with and married Jane Cole, and the | ||
| couple raised two daughters, Helen and Sally; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Mr. Graves also rediscovered the Texas wildlife | ||
| and history that had captivated him as a young man; among the | ||
| pieces he wrote during this time was a short story entitled "The | ||
| Last Running," which was published in the Atlantic Monthly and | ||
| was reprinted in a collection of best American short stories; and | ||
| WHEREAS, When the federal government announced a plan to | ||
| build a series of dams along the Brazos River, turning it into a | ||
| series of lakes, he undertook a 175-mile canoe trip down the | ||
| river as a farewell to a waterway he had fished in and explored as | ||
| a youth; he wrote an article for Holiday magazine about his trip, | ||
| describing his journey and relating the history of the area, | ||
| including the encounters between the Comanche people and the | ||
| Anglo-Celtic Texans settling the region; and | ||
| WHEREAS, He expanded the article into a book, Goodbye to a | ||
| River, an elegy for an earlier, wild, unreconstructed Texas that | ||
| has been called the finest book ever written about the state; it | ||
| was nominated for a National Book Award and was the first book in | ||
| a set that became known as the Brazos Trilogy, which included | ||
| Hard Scrabble and From a Limestone Ledge; and | ||
| WHEREAS, John Graves was a man of vision, strength, and | ||
| courage whose deep love of Texas and singular ability to describe | ||
| its lost frontier will enrich the lives of countless readers for | ||
| years to come; and | ||
| WHEREAS, A devoted husband, father, and grandfather, he | ||
| leaves behind memories that will be treasured forever by his | ||
| family and his many friends; now, therefore, be it | ||
| RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas, 83rd | ||
| Legislature, 3rd Called Session, hereby extend sincere | ||
| condolences to the bereaved family of John Graves; and, be it | ||
| further | ||
| RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution be prepared for | ||
| his family as an expression of deepest sympathy from the Texas | ||
| Senate, and that when the Senate adjourns this day, it do so in | ||
| memory of John Graves. | ||
| Birdwell, Estes | ||
| ________________________________ | ||
| President of the Senate | ||
| I hereby certify that the | ||
| above Resolution was adopted by | ||
| the Senate on August 5, 2013, by a | ||
| rising vote. | ||
| ________________________________ | ||
| Secretary of the Senate | ||
| ________________________________ | ||
| Member, Texas Senate | ||
| ________________________________ | ||
| Member, Texas Senate | ||
