[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 14]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 20145]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                   HONORING JUDGE BASCOM BENTLEY, III

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JEB HENSARLING

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, December 18, 2017

  Mr. HENSARLING. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor and remember a 
dear friend, Judge Bascom Bentley, III, who passed away peacefully on 
December 11, 2017.
  Bascom was a life-long resident of Palestine, Texas and served almost 
3 decades with distinction as the Judge for Texas' 369th District Court 
until his recent retirement. Prior to that he served as County Court at 
Law Judge, County Attorney for Anderson County and also the City 
Attorney for Palestine. Along with his time on the bench, Bascom taught 
as a professor at Trinity Valley Community College for 37 years. The 
totality of his awards and honors are too numerous to list here today, 
but he has been honored by civic groups, charitable organizations, 
educational institutions and veteran groups. And he was honored 
multiple times for his good work as a judge including one from the 
Texas Gang Investigators Association that seems to sum everything up--
the ``Damn Good Judge'' award.
  Bascom touched countless lives, including mine. His wit and humor 
were unmatched and his knowledge endless--likely fueled by his 
unquenchable thirst and love for history. For those who knew Bascom, 
they saw compassion and love for others that was unbounding.
  As the Representative for the 5th District of Texas, I am honored to 
have known such a wonderful and unique person, and I will forever 
treasure our many conversations through the years. I send my deepest 
and sincerest condolences to his mother, Kelly, wife, Carol, to his 
children Bonnie, Matthew, William and Hunter, as well as the rest of 
his family and innumerable friends. May we all remember a life well 
lived.

                          ____________________