Daniel James Kubiak | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Texas House of Representatives | |
| In office 1969–1983 | |
| Preceded by | Milton J. Schiller |
| Succeeded by | L. B. Kubiak |
| Constituency | Districts 27 and 36 |
| In office 1991 – August 30, 1998 | |
| Preceded by | L. B. Kubiak |
| Succeeded by | Charles B. Jones |
| Constituency | District 13 |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1938-03-19)March 19, 1938 Reagan,Falls County Texas, U.S. |
| Died | August 30, 1998(1998-08-30) (aged 60) Rockdale,Milam County Texas, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Divorced from Zana B. Kubiak (1993) |
| Children | Kelly Dan Kubiak Alyssa Lea Kubiak |
| Parent(s) | John T. and Connie S. Kubiak |
| Alma mater | Blinn College University of Texas at Austin |
| Occupation | Businessman; Educator |
Daniel James Kubiak (March 19, 1938 – August 30, 1998) was an educator and businessman fromRockdale, Texas, who served as aDemocratic member of theTexas House of Representatives from 1969 to 1983 and again from 1991 until his death in 1998. During his tenure in the House, he was particularly known for his support ofpublic education.
Kubiak was the oldest of six children born inReagan inFalls County to a Roman Catholic couple, John T. Kubiak (1914–2001), a farmer, later garage owner, and a native ofRobertson County, and the former Connie M. Snider (1915–1999).[1] He attended elementary and junior high school in Reagan but graduated in 1957 from Marlin High School inMarlin. In 1959, he received anAssociate of Arts degree fromBlinn College inBrenham inWashington County, Texas. Thereafter in 1962, he received aBachelor of Business Administration from theUniversity of Texas at Austin, which he attended on a football scholarship. In 1968, he procured aMaster of Education degree fromMidwestern State University inWichita Falls, Texas. He also pursued graduate studies atGeorgetown University in Washington, D.C. He later received a PhD in education from UT-Austin. From 1962 to 1963, he was a mathematics teacher and coach inVernon, Texas, where he was also a semi-professional football player for the 1962 state champion Vernon Vikings. He then spent five years from 1963 to 1968 atCypress-Fairbanks High School inHouston. In 1967, he received "Teacher of the Year" designation from both Cypress-Fairbanks High School and the Texas State Teachers Association.[2][3]
Initially, Kubiak was elected to the legislature in 1968 from District 27, when he unseated an incumbent Democrat in theprimary election. That district includedMilam, Robertson, and his native Falls counties. He was elected the year that U.S. PresidentLyndon B. Johnson of Texas declined to seek a second full term in office. There is a photograph on Kubiak's memorial page of a youthful Kubiak speaking with Johnson, probably in the late 1960s. Kubiak was reelected to the state House in 1970, a heavily Democratic year in whichLloyd M. Bentsen, Jr., won the U.S. Senate race in Texas against future PresidentGeorge Herbert Walker Bush. In 1972, afterredistricting, Kubiak defeated an incumbent Democrat in District 36, which includedWaller, Washington, Milam, and Robertson counties. He was also reelected in District 36 in 1974, 1976, 1978, and 1980.[4]
After his seventh term in the state House, Kubiak lost a Democratic primary race for Texas land commissioner toGarry Mauro ofBryan, a confidant of later U.S. PresidentBill Clinton. Kubiak's House seat was in turn won by his brother, L. B. Kubiak, aveterinarian.[5] In 1983, Dan Kubiak failed to unseatRepublican convertPhil Gramm forU.S. representative in the Bryan-College Station district. A former Democrat, Gramm switched parties to support the administration of PresidentRonald W. Reagan. Gramm resigned his House seat but retained the post in aspecial election in which Kubiak was one of Gramm's challengers. In 1984, Kubiak won the Democratic nomination for Congress over State SenatorHugh Parmer ofFort Worth but lost the general election to the still serving Republican,Joe Barton, who succeeded Gramm in the House upon Gramm's election to theU.S. Senate seat vacated byJohn G. Tower. During the 1980s, Kubiak devoted much of his energy to real estate, farming, and construction projects.[2]
In 1990, L. B. Kubiak did not seek reelection, and Dan Kubiak was instead elected to the state House from District 13, which then included Milam, Robertson, Washington and Waller counties. He was reelected in 1992, 1994 and 1996.[4] In 1992, District 13 was significantly redrawn to includeAustin,Brazos,Burleson, andLee counties as well as the continuing Milam and Washington counties. In 1992, as a Bill Clinton supporter, Kubiak won narrowly, 52 to 48 percent over the Brenham Republican Robert Mikeska, who fared particularly well in Washington and Austin counties in the southern end of the district. Thereafter, Kubiak devoted greater time and attention to those counties and won them both in 1996 over the Republican James Hartley. However, the margin in Austin County was a mere thirty-one votes.[6][unreliable source?]
Kubiak died in 1998 ofcardiovascular disease at the age of 60 at his home in Rockdale, while he was again campaigning for reelection.[7] Oddly, his intraparty rival for land commissioner from 1982,Garry Mauro, headed the Democratic ticket that year in a failed effort to deny a second term to RepublicanGovernorGeorge W. Bush. L. B. Kubiak sought the nomination to succeed his brother, but the party chairmen in the district unanimously turned to Teddy Boehm of Brenham, the wife of a retired physician, Henry Boehm, who had served as chairman of the Blinn College trustees. L. B. Kubiak refused to support Mrs. Boehm and instead endorsed the Republican nominee, Charles B. Jones of College Station, who claimed the seat for the first time in the 20th century for theGOP.[6][unreliable source?] According to theAustin American-Statesman, Mrs. Boehm questioned L. B. Kubiak's endorsement: "I do wonder if Mr. Jones is such a supporter of Mr. [Dan] Kubiak's principles, why was he running against him?"[6][unreliable source?]
On learning of Kubiak's death, SpeakerPete Laney ofHale Center, said that he was "shocked and saddened by the sudden death of our friend and colleague. We have lost a good friend and the people of Texas have lost an outstanding legislator who worked tirelessly on behalf of his constituents to improve public education and to ensure that state tax dollars were spent wisely and efficiently."[6][unreliable source?]State SenatorCarlos Truan, aCorpus Christi Democrat and the dean of the Senate, described Kubiak as "a very, very dedicated legislator, particularly in the field of education."[6][unreliable source?]
In 1967, while he was still in the field of professional education, Kubiak publishedTen Tall Texans, biographical sketches designed for juveniles and young adults taken from the period in Texas history from 1821 to 1845.[8] Among those featured in the book areSam Houston,Lorenzo de Zavala,Stephen F. Austin,Jose Antonio Navarro,Ben Milam,Andrea Candelaria (a nurse who survived the siege ofThe Alamo),Davy Crockett,Jim Bowie,Juan Seguin, andWilliam B. Travis.[9] An exhibit entitledTen Tall Texans was established in 2008 at the Brenham Heritage Museum. It was loaned during 2009 to the Rockdale Depot Museum.[9] In 1984, Kubiak's book was republished by Eakin Publishers under the titleTitans of Texas.[10]
In 1972, he published a second book,A Monument to a Black Man: The Biography of William Goyens, a study of the African American who served as an aide to Sam Houston and was a negotiator forIndiantreaties.[11]
A divorced father of three children, Kubiak died on August 30, 1998, and is interred at theTexas State Cemetery inAustin, as is the prerogative of all state lawmakers. His epitaph reads: "God's gift to us is life. What we do with that life is our gift back to Him."[12]
| Preceded by Milton J. Schiller | State Representative from Rockdale, Texas (Districts 27 and then 36) 1969–1983 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | State Representative from Rockdale, Texas (District 13) 1991–1998 | Succeeded by Charles B. Jones |
