Bill Text: TX HR588 | 2017-2018 | 85th Legislature | Enrolled
Bill Title: Honoring Alan Graham and Mobile Loaves & Fishes for their contributions to the community.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Republican 1)
Status: (Passed) 2017-03-08 - Reported enrolled [HR588 Detail]
Download: Texas-2017-HR588-Enrolled.html
| H.R. No. 588 | ||
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| WHEREAS, Mobile Loaves & Fishes has made a positive impact in | ||
| Central Texas through its efforts to benefit the homeless; and | ||
| WHEREAS, In September 1998, Alan Graham and several of his | ||
| fellow parishioners at St. John Neumann Catholic Church in Austin | ||
| began delivering meals out of the back of a minivan to people living | ||
| on the street; the civic-minded group quickly grew, and within | ||
| months it was able to purchase a more suitable vehicle for catering; | ||
| and | ||
| WHEREAS, Mobile Loaves & Fishes later expanded to San | ||
| Antonio; Providence, Rhode Island; New Bedford, Massachusetts; and | ||
| Minneapolis, Minnesota, and its thousands of volunteers have since | ||
| served more than five million meals; as the reach of its food truck | ||
| ministry increased, the organization implemented new programs, | ||
| including Community First! Village, a 27-acre master-planned | ||
| neighborhood in Austin that provides affordable, permanent housing | ||
| and a supportive community for the chronically homeless; the | ||
| development fosters a friendly, familial environment and includes | ||
| such services and amenities as a medical facility, an outdoor movie | ||
| theater, walking trails, a marketplace, and common spaces for | ||
| projects, worship, and meditation; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Through its Community Works initiative, Mobile | ||
| Loaves & Fishes offers microenterprise opportunities to those who | ||
| have experienced homelessness; Community First! residents join | ||
| with volunteers from across Austin to work as farmers in the Genesis | ||
| Gardens, which feature three acres of organic vegetables, hundreds | ||
| of fruit and nut trees, honeybees, dairy goats, chickens, and other | ||
| animals, as well as a geodome and aquaponics system; in addition, | ||
| residents can develop their talents and earn income at the | ||
| Community Art House and Community Forge and Workshop, as well as | ||
| through participation in the Community Concessions and Catering | ||
| program; and | ||
| WHEREAS, While meeting urgent needs for food, clothing, and | ||
| shelter, Mobile Loaves & Fishes also assists clients in gaining a | ||
| firmer foothold as contributing members of society, and in so | ||
| doing, it has strengthened the entire community; now, therefore, be | ||
| it | ||
| RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 85th Texas | ||
| Legislature hereby honor Alan Graham and Mobile Loaves & Fishes for | ||
| their tremendous contributions to the Lone Star State and extend to | ||
| the organization sincere best wishes for continued success with its | ||
| important work; and, be it further | ||
| RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be | ||
| prepared for Mobile Loaves & Fishes as an expression of high regard | ||
| by the Texas House of Representatives. | ||
| Workman | ||
| ______________________________ | ||
| Speaker of the House | ||
| I certify that H.R. No. 588 was adopted by the House on March | ||
| 2, 2017, by a non-record vote. | ||
| ______________________________ | ||
| Chief Clerk of the House | ||
