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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, The citizens of Austin have lost a respected |
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activist and civic leader with the death of former city council |
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member John Treviño Jr. on April 4, 2017, at the age of 78; and |
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WHEREAS, John Treviño was born in Austin on October 18, 1938, |
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to Salome and Juan Treviño; he took on a number of odd jobs in his |
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youth, working in a laundry, moving furniture, and delivering |
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blueprints, and when he was seven, he became an altar boy, a role |
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that encouraged in him a lifelong commitment to the service of |
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others; and |
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WHEREAS, At the age of 17, Mr. Treviño secured his father's |
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permission and enlisted in the U.S. Army, where he was a |
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paratrooper in the 82nd Airborne Division; after his discharge, |
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Mr. Treviño returned to Austin and worked at several jobs before a |
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priest took note of his leadership qualities and urged him to "do |
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more"; in 1965, be became the first paid antipoverty worker at the |
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East First Neighborhood Center in East Austin; and |
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WHEREAS, Mr. Treviño's early efforts included bringing IRS |
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volunteers into East Austin to help residents prepare their taxes, |
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starting a neighborhood cleanup that evolved into the city's |
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official bulk trash collection program, and leading the effort to |
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establish health clinics and low-cost medical services in the |
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neighborhood; he also inspired social work students from The |
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University of Texas at Austin to work in the community, and under |
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his direction, members of the Volunteers in Service to America |
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(VISTA) program established the Austin Tenants' Council and the |
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Meals on Wheels program; and |
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WHEREAS, One of a group of young Mexican American activists |
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in the city who were dubbed by journalists as the "Young Turks" and |
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the "Brown Machine," Mr. Treviño became, in 1975, the first Mexican |
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American to be elected to the Austin City Council; his fellow |
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council members chose him as mayor pro tem, and he also served for |
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three months as interim mayor; and |
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WHEREAS, During Mr. Treviño's 13-year tenure on the council, |
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his efforts to promote the awarding of city contracts to businesses |
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owned by women and minorities led to the creation of the Small and |
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Minority Business Resources Department; he also worked to improve |
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infrastructure in minority communities and to ensure that women and |
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minorities were represented among the city's staff and on its |
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boards and committees; and |
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WHEREAS, Mr. Treviño left the city council in 1988 and went |
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to work at UT Austin, where he played a vital part in the |
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Historically Underutilized Business program; from 1997 to 2009, he |
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also served on the board of Capital Metro; in 2006, the city named |
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John Treviño Jr. Metropolitan Park at Morrison Ranch, along the |
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Colorado River, in his honor; and |
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WHEREAS, For more than half a century, John Treviño dedicated |
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himself to making the city of Austin a better place to live for all |
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of its citizens, and his commitment to social justice, inclusivity, |
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and equal rights will continue to inspire all those who follow in |
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his footsteps; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 85th Texas |
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Legislature hereby pay tribute to the memory of John Treviño Jr. and |
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extend heartfelt sympathy to the members of his family: to his |
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children, John, Mary Theresa, Peter, Michael, Mark, Patricia, and |
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Jesse; to their mother, Connie Loya Treviño; to his special friend, |
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Judy Ford; and to his other relatives and many friends; and, be it |
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further |
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RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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prepared for his family and that when the Texas House of |
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Representatives adjourns this day, it do so in memory of John |
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Treviño Jr. |