HR 53

26LC 112 4335
     House Resolution 53EX
     By: Representatives Hugley of the 141st, Park of the 107th, Williams of the 168th, Jackson of
     the 68th, Sanchez of the 42nd, and others
                                A RESOLUTION
1 Honoring the life and memory of Reverend Robert Lee Abrams; and for other purposes.
2 WHEREAS, the State of Georgia mourns the loss of a distinguished and superlative husband,
3 father, minister, activist, and citizen with the passing of Reverend Robert Lee Abrams; and
4 WHEREAS, Reverend Robert Lee Abrams was born on February 1, 1949, in Hattiesburg,
5 Mississippi, a child of a segregated South who never accepted that obstacles placed on him
6 by either chance or law would define his station or his worth; and
7 WHEREAS, at just 14 years old, Reverend Robert Lee Abrams was arrested for registering
8 Black voters in Mississippi, only beginning a lifetime of standing up for the civil rights and
9 dignity of his family, his neighbors, and his countrymen; and
10 WHEREAS, despite struggling with undiagnosed dyslexia, Reverend Robert Lee Abrams
11 overcame that challenge, not only graduating high school but becoming the first man in his
12 family to attend university, where he earned a degree from Tougaloo College; and
                                   H. R. 53EX
                                      -1-
26LC 112 4335
13 WHEREAS, Reverend Robert Lee Abrams had the good fortune to meet and marry his wife,
14 Reverend Carolyn Abrams on February 28, 1969, and began a life together in Gulfport,
15 Mississippi, where they built a joyful home bound in love and service to others; and
16 WHEREAS, Reverend Robert Lee Abrams and Reverend Carolyn Abrams were blessed to
17 raise six children – Andrea, Stacey, Leslie, Richard, Walter, and Jeanine – in whom he
18 instilled the maxim that "having nothing is not an excuse for doing nothing," whom they
19 raised to place service to others at the forefront of their lives, and of whom he was
20 immeasurably proud; and
21 WHEREAS, in 1989, Reverend Robert Lee Abrams, after many years as a shipyard worker
22 in Mississippi, and Reverend Carolyn Abrams felt the call to serve as the pastor of Mt.
23 Pleasant UMC and Riley Chapel UMC in Gulfport, Mississippi, and St. Mark UMC in
24 Atlanta, Georgia, where he ministered to all those most in need of faith in God and the love
25 of their fellow man, dedicating himself to the homeless, troubled young youth, and the
26 incarcerated; and
27 WHEREAS, Reverend Robert Lee Abrams passed on Wednesday, June 17, 2026, surrounded
28 by his loving wife, children, grandchildren and siblings, who best exemplify and steward his
29 legacy of faith, courage, service, laughter, and love; and
30 WHEREAS, in 1 Corinthians 15:58, the Apostle Paul wrote: "Therefore my beloved brothers
31 and sisters, be steadfast, immovable, always excelling in the work of the Lord because you
32 know that in the Lord your labor is not in vain"; and
33 WHEREAS, Reverend Robert Lee Abrams, much as he knew that his faith and his family
34 would always come for him in his time of need, never failed – whether through his activism
                                   H. R. 53EX
                                      -2-
26LC 112 4335
35 or his ministry – to come for others in their own, and through his lifelong commitment and
36 service to the equal rights and dignity of all did not ever labor a day in vain.
37 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES that
38 the members of this body join in honoring the life and legacy of Reverend Robert Lee
39 Abrams and express their deepest and most sincere regret at his passing.
40 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Clerk of the House of Representatives is authorized
41 and directed to make an appropriate copy of this resolution available for distribution to the
42 family of Reverend Robert Lee Abrams.
                                    H. R. 53EX
                                       -3-