In memory of Edna Belle Pemberton of Dallas.

89(R) HR 891 - Enrolled version - Bill Text

H.R. No. 891

R E S O L U T I O N

WHEREAS, Edna Belle Pemberton passed away on April 13, 2025,

at the age of 81, leaving her family, friends, and neighbors to

reflect on her remarkable life and her many years of dedicated

service to Dallas's Oak Cliff community; and

WHEREAS, Born in Chicago, Illinois, on March 27, 1944, Edna

Pemberton grew up as the youngest of nine children; she married the

love of her life, DarNell Pemberton, on September 19, 1964, and

together, they raised four daughters, Edna Jean, Rita, Lisa, and

Myra; the couple later relocated to Richmond, California, and

adopted eight nieces and nephews, becoming a family of 14; and

WHEREAS, Mrs. Pemberton was employed as a manager at Kmart,

and she continued her career with the company after moving with her

family to Dallas, where she made her home in the Oak Cliff

neighborhood and became highly involved in civic life; through

Kmart, she initiated a number of school supply programs; she also

advocated for her employees by collaborating with the City of

Dallas and DART to establish Route 66, a bus line serving residents

of Oak Cliff; and

WHEREAS, Over the years, Mrs. Pemberton benefited numerous

people by organizing clothing giveaways for flood survivors,

establishing a citywide homeless program called Bridge Over

Troubled Water alongside her husband, and successfully campaigning

for a juvenile curfew ordinance to keep youth off the streets and

away from criminal activities; she was an active supporter of

several youth programs at Concord Church, and in the aftermath of

Hurricane Katrina in 2005, she organized members of her church and

coordinated with various agencies to help provide relief to

evacuees; in recognition of her efforts, FEMA offered her a job as a

volunteer liaison and credited her with aiding approximately 84,000

people, many of whom subsequently relocated to Dallas; and

WHEREAS, Mrs. Pemberton found time to serve other

organizations as well, among them Friends of Red Bird Airport, Camp

Wisdom Now, Operation Community Care, and Parkland Hospital; she

also held membership on the boards of the Martin Luther King Center

in South Dallas and the Dallas NAACP, which named a community award

in honor of her and her husband; together with Mr. Pemberton, she

established the group Positively Oak Cliff to help strengthen the

local economy and introduce valuable initiatives such as an

aviation education program for young teens at Red Bird Airport and

youth etiquette programs at Red Bird Mall; and

WHEREAS, In the later years of her life, Mrs. Pemberton was

deeply invested in maintaining and revitalizing Red Bird Mall, and

she was appointed by Mayor Tom Leppert to act as a liaison between

the mall's tenants and the City of Dallas as community officials

sought to save it from closure; she further volunteered her time as

a voter registrar and precinct chair, and in addition to receiving

several governor's awards, she had the distinction of carrying the

Olympic torch through Dallas in 1996; and

WHEREAS, Edna Pemberton was a woman of great compassion and

generosity who dedicated much of her life to serving the needs of

her community, and although she will be profoundly missed, her

legacy will live on in the hearts of the countless people touched by

her many good works; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 89th Texas

Legislature hereby pay tribute to the memory of Edna Belle

Pemberton and extend sincere sympathy to all those who mourn her

passing; and, be it further

RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be

prepared for her family and that when the Texas House of

Representatives adjourns this day, it do so in memory of Edna

Pemberton.

Y. Davis of Dallas

______________________________

Speaker of the House

I certify that H.R. No. 891 was unanimously adopted by a

rising vote of the House on April 24, 2025.

______________________________

Chief Clerk of the House