1 State of Arkansas
2 93rd General Assembly
3 Regular Session, 2021 SMR 4
4
5 By: Senators C. Tucker, B. Ballinger, Beckham, Bledsoe, Caldwell, L. Chesterfield, A. Clark, B. Davis, J.
6 Dismang, L. Eads, Elliott, J. English, Flippo, S. Flowers, T. Garner, Gilmore, K. Hammer, J. Hendren,
7 Hester, Hickey, Hill, K. Ingram, Irvin, B. Johnson, M. Johnson, G. Leding, M. Pitsch, Rapert, Rice, B.
8 Sample, G. Stubblefield, J. Sturch, D. Sullivan, Teague, D. Wallace
9 By: Representatives L. Fite, Dalby, Cozart, Lundstrum, Wing, Eaves, Womack, Christiansen,
10 McCullough, Hudson, A. Collins, Scott, V. Flowers, Clowney, Godfrey, F. Allen, Love, K. Ferguson, D.
11 Ferguson, M. Hodges, Richardson, Murdock, Ennett, Springer, Perry, Fielding, D. Garner, Magie, Nicks,
12 D. Whitaker, J. Mayberry
13
14 SENATE MEMORIAL RESOLUTION
15 TO REMEMBER SENATOR JIM ARGUE AND TO RECOGNIZE HIS
16 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE STATE OF ARKANSAS AND HIS LOCAL
17 COMMUNITY.
18
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20 Subtitle
21 TO REMEMBER SENATOR JIM ARGUE AND TO
22 RECOGNIZE HIS CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE STATE
23 OF ARKANSAS AND HIS LOCAL COMMUNITY.
24
25 WHEREAS, James B. Argue Jr. was born on August 19, 1951, in Carthage,
26 Texas, and died on May 3, 2018, in Little Rock, Arkansas, after a brief
27 illness at sixty-six (66) years of age; and
28
29 WHEREAS, he was known as "Jim" and was the son of Ann Bourland Argue
30 and Reverend James B. Argue Sr., a longtime pastor of the church Jim joined
31 at age fourteen (14) and was a member of until his death, Pulaski Heights
32 United Methodist Church in Little Rock; and
33
34 WHEREAS, Jim attended Little Rock public schools, graduated from Hall
35 High School, and received a bachelor's degree in history and political
36 science from Hendrix College in 1973; and
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2 WHEREAS, Jim embarked on a career in finance and investment after
3 college graduation before joining the United Methodist Foundation of Arkansas
4 as president in 1981, a position he held for thirty-five (35) years and a
5 role that capitalized on his fundraising skills and investment savvy, leading
6 to the organization's increasing its assets from sixty-seven thousand dollars
7 ($67,000) to over one hundred sixty-four million dollars ($164,000,000) under
8 his leadership; and
9
10 WHEREAS, Jim grew the United Methodist Foundation of Arkansas into one
11 (1) of the largest foundations for United Methodist churches in the United
12 States and gave the foundation financial security, efforts that are greatly
13 appreciated by the United Methodist church he so dearly loved; and
14
15 WHEREAS, in 1990, frustrated by the operation of state government, he
16 was persuaded to run for the House of Representatives by his close friends;
17 and
18
19 WHEREAS, Representative Argue served in the House of Representatives
20 until 1996 when he was elected to the Senate, where he served until 2006,
21 including as Chair of the Senate Committee on Education, and capped his
22 political career with service as President Pro Tempore of the Senate in 2005
23 and 2006; and
24
25 WHEREAS, Senator Argue was revered for his intellect and leadership on
26 education during his time in the legislature and was a key architect and
27 forceful negotiator in the state's response to the Arkansas Supreme Court
28 decision that required the education system in Arkansas to be reformed and
29 improved, and his legacy lies in the enhancement of the standards and funding
30 of the state's public education system; and
31
32 WHEREAS, always known as a thoughtful voice in the legislature, he
33 sought to work across the aisle to make government work, and in 1997, the
34 Center for Policy Alternatives in Washington, D.C., named Senator Argue a
35 Flemming Fellow, one (1) of many awards and honors throughout the years that
36 include a National Humanitarian Award by Just Communities of Central
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1 Arkansas, the renaming of the Leadership Greater Little Rock Distinguished
2 Leadership Award in his name, the Lincoln Humanitarian Award from the
3 Arkansas Rice Depot, the Friend of Children Award from Arkansas Advocates for
4 Children and Families, and the Hendrix College Ethel K. Millar Award for
5 Religious and Social Awareness and Distinguished Alumni Award; and
6
7 WHEREAS, Senator Argue served on the boards of Arkansas Advocates for
8 Children and Families, the Arkansas Travelers Baseball Club, the Arkansas
9 Historical Association, St. Vincent Medical Center, and the National
10 Conference for Community and Justice; served as a director of the Southwest
11 Educational Development Laboratory in Austin, Texas, and as an advisory board
12 member of the Southern Regional Education Board in Atlanta, Georgia; and
13 loved his family, baseball, and his friends, especially his best friends Bill
14 Mann and Dickie Lunsford; and
15
16 WHEREAS, Senator Argue is survived by his loving wife Elise and
17 daughters Sarah Argue and Emily Stotts, sons-in-law Matthew Anderson and Jeff
18 Stotts, and grandchildren Charlotte and Anderson Stotts,
19
20 NOW THEREFORE,
21 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE
22 STATE OF ARKANSAS:
23
24 THAT the individual members of the Senate remember Senator Jim Argue
25 and recognize his enormous contributions to the State of Arkansas and his
26 local community.
27
28 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT upon adoption of this resolution, an appropriate
29 copy be provided to Elise Argue and family by the Secretary of the Senate.
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