House Resolution 24

(As Adopted by House)

A RESOLUTION COMMENDING THE LIFE AND LONGEVITY OF MRS. MARGARET MAE SUMNER BRELAND AND CONGRATULATING HER ON CELEBRATING THE OCCASION OF HER 100TH BIRTHDAY ON FEBRUARY 28, 2017.

WHEREAS, Mrs. Margaret Mae Sumner Breland, born on February 28, 1917, to Oscar Samuel Sumner and Agie Arminda Hollowell Sumner, eagerly anticipates the celebration of the 100th anniversary of her birth on Tuesday, February 28, 2017, to be commemorated with a celebration acknowledging and honoring her motherhood and service; and

WHEREAS, the granddaughter of Civil War soldier and the 1872 founder of Sumner, Mississippi, Joseph Burton, the young and curious Margaret Mae arrived in Tallahatchie County, Mississippi, with her parents by covered wagon when she was approximately six years old, and settled on Simpson Plantation; and

WHEREAS, it was there on the family's homestead that Margaret picked cotton, fished on Cassidy Bayou and attended school at Swan Lake with her eight siblings, one of whom, her youngest brother Earl remains her sole surviving sibling; and

WHEREAS, as fate would lend itself to the building upon the blueprint divinely designed for the pattern of her life by the great deity and grand architect of our lives' design, Margaret Mae's heart was pierced by the love and chivalrous affection of Leonard Elmer Breland, and the duo became bone of one another's bone and flesh of one another's flesh after exchanging the nuptials of holy matrimony on December 1, 1934, and together built a lifetime of memories in the home built by Mr. Leonard's hands in Webb, until it was orchestrated by God in divine providence to summon the life of Mr. Breland to that eternal paradise in the sky in October 1974; and

WHEREAS, a God-fearing Christian before all other roles she assumed, a devoted wife next, and though having no children of her own, as a maternal and loving aunt to all 31 of her nieces and nephews, who affectionately bestowed upon her the name, Aunt Marg, Mrs. Breland is the living embodiment of a woman of Proverbs 31:10 virtuosity and distinction, possessing an ambitious spirit akin to that of King David as she seeks to be a woman after God's own heart, committed to her faith, her family and being an upstanding and highly revered pillar of the community; and

WHEREAS, the matriarch of her family dynasty, Mrs. Breland, who has witnessed many historic events in our nation's triumphant rise from an agrarian culture to an industrial and technological powerhouse, remains the archetype icon and central foundation of her family that retains an unbreakable bond of love, honor, devotion, commitment and encouragement, and blessed with a prosperous life of health, longevity, spiritual devotion and a treasure trove of love from her family and friends, as she has abounded in wisdom and knowledge; and

WHEREAS, in her life's younger prime, Mrs. Breland spent most of her time working at the local drug store Hightowers and subsequently at T. Taittel Coat Factory in Drew, and passed her spare time in nature tending her garden; and

WHEREAS, Mrs. Breland who lived independently in the home built by her husband on Cassidy Bayou until 2012, when a fall necessitated her to be provided assistance through Tallahatchie County General Hospital Extended Care in Charleston, continues to lead an exemplary life, exuding the love of Christ through her tender love, care and impartation of the values of self-assuredness, perseverance, service and benevolence obtained with her years of wisdom into the lives of all whom she has encountered during her life's sojourn; and

WHEREAS, it is the policy of the House of Representatives to commend the life of such an outstanding individual as Mrs. Margaret Mae Sumner Breland, who attributes her longevity to good, clean, moral living and her faith in God, as she celebrates this most auspicious occasion with her family and friends, as she remains thankful to God for allowing her to see another day:

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, That we do hereby express gratitude and thanksgiving for the life of Mrs. Margaret Mae Sumner Breland, congratulate her on 100 years of a beautiful well-lived earthly pilgrimage, and express sincere wishes for continued health, joy, peace and prosperity for years to come.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be furnished to Mrs. Margaret Mae Sumner Breland and to the members of the Capitol Press Corps.