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Bill Sarpalius | |
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| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromTexas's13th district | |
| In office January 3, 1989 – January 3, 1995 | |
| Preceded by | Beau Boulter |
| Succeeded by | Mac Thornberry |
| Member of theTexas Senate from the31st district | |
| In office January 13, 1981 – January 3, 1989 | |
| Preceded by | Bob Price |
| Succeeded by | Teel Bivins |
| Personal details | |
| Born | William Clarence Sarpalius (1948-01-10)January 10, 1948 (age 78) Los Angeles,California, U.S. |
| Party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Jenny Barnett |
| Children | 1 |
| Education | Clarendon College Texas Tech University (BS) West Texas A&M University (MBA) |
William Clarence Sarpalius (/sɑːrˈpɔːləs/; born January 10, 1948) is an American politician and lobbyist who served in theUnited States House of Representatives from 1989 to 1995. ADemocrat, he representedTexas's 13th congressional district, a large tract of land which stretched from theTexas Panhandle eastward toWichita Falls.
Born inLos Angeles,[1] Sarpalius experiencedhomelessness as a young boy inHouston, along with his mother and two younger brothers. In 1961, when he was thirteen, he and his brothers were placed atCal Farley's Boys Ranch nearAmarillo. By the time he was nineteen, Sarpalius was the state president of theFuture Farmers of America.
He first attendedClarendon College inClarendon, Texas. He subsequently received aBachelor of Science degree inagribusiness fromTexas Tech University inLubbock, from which he was later named a distinguished alumnus. In 1972, Sarpalius was hired by Cal Farley's Ranch as a vocational agriculture teacher at the school. In 1978, he left the ranch to return to school and received anM.B.A. fromWest Texas State University inCanyon, Texas. He then launched a career in agribusiness.
In 1980, Sarpalius successfully ran for a seat in theTexas State Senate, a body in which he served until 1989. He was elected in 1988 to the U.S. House of Representatives, where he was a member of theAgricultural Committee. Sarpalius was one of a number of congressmen involved in drafting the guidelines of theNorth American Free Trade Agreement. As aLithuanian American, Sarpalius called for American aid toLithuania, which was occupied by theSoviet Union and then reclaimed its independence at the end of theCold War. In 1998, he was awarded theOrder of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas, "the highest award and recognition that Lithuania could give to a noncitizen by the President of Lithuania."[citation needed]
"The president said some very nice things about my efforts in helping the Lithuanian people in their fight for freedom. He told the crowd about President Landsbergis's visit to my office that night in 1989 and the vision that he had shared with me. He acknowledged the members of Congress who had worked tirelessly to help the tiny Baltic states gain their freedom from the Soviet Union."[2]
Sarpalius won a second term in the House in 1990, when he defeatedRepublicanState RepresentativeRichard A. Waterfield ofCanadian inHemphill County, who resigned from the legislature to make the congressional race. In 1992, Sarpalius faced a spirited challenge from his Republican predecessor,Beau Boulter of Amarillo, who vacated the House seat in 1988 to challenge DemocraticU.S. SenatorLloyd Bentsen.
In 1994, however, Sarpalius was one of a large number of House Democrats unseated in the "Republican Revolution". He lost to formerReagan administration officialMac Thornberry, taking only 45 percent of the vote to Thornberry's 55 percent. Thornberry would go on to hold the seat for almost a quarter-century. To date, Sarpalius is the last Democrat to garner even 40 percent of the district's vote.
After leaving Congress, Sarpalius was appointed by U.S. PresidentBill Clinton as a top official in theU.S. Department of Agriculture. He is currently the chief executive officer of Advantage Associates, a powerful Washington consulting firm made up of former elected officials. After the success of his bookThe Grand Duke from Boys Ranch, he became a sought after motivational public speaker.[citation needed]
Sarpalius isRoman Catholic and affiliated withLions International. He has a son, David William Sarpalius, from a former marriage.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
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| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromTexas's 13th congressional district 1989–1995 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial) | ||
| Preceded byas Former U.S. Representative | Order of precedence of the United States as Former U.S. Representative | Succeeded byas Former U.S. Representative |
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