In memory of Marie Flickinger of Houston.

89(R) SR 428 - Enrolled version - Bill Text

SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 428

In Memory

of

Marie Flickinger

WHEREAS, Residents of southeast Houston lost a beloved

community activist and civic leader with the passing of Marie

Flickinger on November 11, 2024, at the age of 82; and

WHEREAS, Born in Council Bluffs, Iowa, on September 1,

1942, to Alexander and Mary Spence, the former Marie Spence grew

up with the companionship of two siblings, Morris and Alexis;

after graduating from high school, she exchanged wedding vows

with David Flickinger in 1962, and the pair went on to share in

the joy of raising two sons, Fred and David; her family later grew

to include three granddaughters, Kimberly, Courtney, and

Natalie, as well as seven great-grandchildren, Abigail, Jackson,

Penelope, Kelvin, Noah, Elliana, and Isabella; and

WHEREAS, Mrs. Flickinger and her husband resided in

Minnesota before relocating to the Houston area, where they

eventually settled in the Sagemont subdivision; in addition to

being a homemaker, she found her way into the journalism field

when she was recruited by an editor for the
Friendswood News
;

after gaining experience reporting on issues in the South

Belt/Ellington community and Pasadena ISD, she joined a friend,

Bobby Griffin, in co-founding the
South Belt-Ellington Leader
,

and she served the weekly newspaper as publisher until her

passing; and

WHEREAS, Through the years, Mrs. Flickinger developed a

reputation as a tireless advocate for her community, earning the

moniker "the mayor of South Belt"; although she covered hundreds

of news stories throughout her career, she was perhaps best known

for a series of investigative articles that exposed the dumping

of toxic waste at the Brio Superfund site in the 1980s, and her

central role in uncovering the scale of contamination in its

neighboring subdivision led to her being tapped to serve as the

Environmental Protection Agency's community liaison for the

site; for many years, she was also integral in securing

infrastructure improvements to mitigate flooding, including the

construction of the South Belt Stormwater Detention Basin; and

WHEREAS, During the 1990s, Mrs. Flickinger had the

distinction of being the first woman to be elected to the San

Jacinto College Board of Trustees, where she served for nearly 30

years before recently retiring as its chair; among her many

achievements, she was a founding member and inaugural president

of the South Belt-Ellington Chamber of Commerce, and she oversaw

the introduction of an Early College High School program in

Pasadena ISD, for which the district named her its Distinguished

Citizen of the Year in 2015; moreover, she was known for

organizing community events such as the annual Fourth of July

parade and Christmas drive for the needy, and she demonstrated

her strong Catholic faith as a parishioner at St. Frances Cabrini

Catholic Church and later as one of the founding members of St.

Luke the Evangelist Catholic Church; and

WHEREAS, Mrs. Flickinger was inducted into the Hall of Honor

at Dobie High School in 2015 and received the M. Dale Ensign

Trustee Leadership Award from the Association of Community College

Trustees in 2013; she was also recognized by Governor Greg Abbott

with the Governor's Volunteer Award for her role in coordinating

emergency relief efforts during Hurricane Harvey; and

WHEREAS, Through her widespread civic contributions, Marie

Flickinger had a profound and positive impact on her community,

and those she leaves behind will continue to find inspiration in

their memories of this extraordinary woman; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas, 89th

Legislature, hereby pay tribute to the life of Marie Flickinger

and extend deepest sympathy to the members of her family: to

her husband, David Flickinger; to her sons, Fred Flickinger and

his wife, Leslie, and David Flickinger and his wife, Ellie; to

her granddaughters, Kimberly Lipina and her husband, Matthew,

Courtney Durham, and Natalie Abarca and her husband, Jose; to

her great-grandchildren, Abigail, Jackson, and Penelope

Durham, Kelvin Lopez, Noah and Elliana Abarca, and Isabella

Delgado and her husband, Sebastian; to her siblings, Morris

Spence and Alexis Lochner; and to her other relatives and

friends; and, be it further

RESOLVED, That an official copy of this Resolution be

prepared for her family and that when the Texas Senate adjourns

this day, it do so in memory of Marie Flickinger.

Middleton

Alvarado

Hagenbuch

Menéndez

Bettencourt

Hall

Miles

Birdwell

Hancock

Nichols

Blanco

Hinojosa of Hidalgo

Parker

Campbell

Hinojosa of Nueces

Paxton

Cook

Huffman

Perry

Creighton

Hughes

Schwertner

Eckhardt

Johnson

Sparks

Flores

King

West

Gutierrez

Kolkhorst

Zaffirini

Patrick, President of the Senate

________________________________

President of the Senate

I hereby certify that the

above Resolution was adopted by

the Senate on April 23, 2025, by a

rising vote.

________________________________

Secretary of the Senate

________________________________

Member, Texas Senate