Local mother continues fight for justice for her son, commemorates with highway dedication

THE WOODLANDS, TX – The weekend in the Willis area saw a newly dedicated highway as a portion of FM 1097 from Interstate 45 North to Lake Conroe was unveiled as the SPC Joey Lenz Memorial Highway. This commemoration was revealed at a ceremony in Willis at the Lewis Creek Reservoir, and is the latest victory in a long series of battle that has been waged between Lenz’ mother, community icon Margie Taylor, and the forces of both the Senate and the military of The United States.

Lenz passed away on the first day of February in 2022 at the age of 32. He was on duty and on base at Fort Hood Army Base in Killeen; the specialist was an integral part of the base’s motor pool. With what began as Margie attempting to find as the cause of his death turned into a three-year (and counting) crusade to protect other servicemen and women from suffering his fate, of dying from an undiagnosed heart condition that was exacerbated by medications allegedly given to him by doctors ignorant of his malady.

From the beginning, Margie was stymied by the might of the military apparatus. At every turn in the beginning, she encountered the Green Wall of Silence. According to her, it took months to get her son’s autopsy report when it should have taken only days. Several of his squad mates informed her they were warned to never speak to her under penalty of severe punishment. Determined to be more than just a ‘normal’ Gold Star Mother – a bittersweet honor bestowed upon those whose children have passed while serving – she and her husband Jeff Taylor commenced a journey that, while enjoying some tactical victories, has yet to come to a strategic resolution.

The highway dedication ceremony was a chance for Margie and the numerous elected officials – including State Representative Will Metcalf, Montgomery County Precinct 1 County Commissioner Robert Walker, and officials of the Texas Department of Transportation – and members of the community involved in her quest to learn of Joey’s history and of Margie’s efforts to ensure no other mother has to go through what she did.

Montgomery County Judge Mark Keough served as the master of commemoration during the event, introducing elected officials and other distinguished guests in the crowd that had assembled on the shores of the reservoir less than a mile from Lake Conroe. A color guard presentation and posting of colors was given a colonial feel with members of Revolutionary Education. Conroe businesswoman Debbie Glenn sang the national anthem, followed by bugler Cory Strouth playing ‘Taps’ and an invocation given by Senior Pastor Chris lake of Tree of Life Lutheran Church in Conroe.

Keough spoke of Margie’s mission – and her frequent phone calls to him – as did Metcalf. Texas Senator Brandon Creighton was scheduled to attend to speak, but was otherwise engaged at another function. Holly Arbuckle, the district director for the office of Congressman Morgan Luttrell, spoke on his behalf. Margie has worked ceaselessly with Luttrell on the Specialist Joey Lenz Act of 2025, otherwise known as House Resolution (HR) 1014, the bill for which was filed by Luttrell in February.

After Arbuckle, R.W. Bray from Senator Ted Cruz’ office spoke, and brought several moments of levity to the otherwise solemn occasion, evoking laughs out of Margie Taylor and the crowd alike. After, Keough then turned the microphone to the Gold Star Mother herself, whose son all were there to honor.

Unflinchingly, Margie spoke of her issues in dealing with the military and political power blocs alike. She reiterated her fierce determination to pass the bill which can’t seem to get past the Senate stage, a bill that only serves to benefit the health and wellbeing of all military personnel by establishing a baseline medical condition dossier on each service member to compare with over time as maladies and injuries increase. In this way, anyone with undiagnosed conditions has a better chance of survival.

A special ‘Honor and Remember’ flag was then presented to both Margie and Jeff by a representative of The Combat Veterans Motorcycle Association out of Tomball. The flag is designed to be an apt, proper, and relevant presentation to a grieving family regardless of the service the deceased was a part of. Unlike the US flags that are presented in military funerals, this one is to never be tri-folded again, but only flown or otherwise displayed.

Once the giant highway sign was unveiled, a ribbon-cutting ceremony took place courtesy of the Conroe-Lake Conroe Chamber of Commerce. With a final song by Debbie Glenn, the crowd was able to mill about, sign a memorial portrait, express their support for Margie and Joey, and listen to the live cover tunes provided by a band of Joey’s friends who knew his favorite band was Blink-182.

With a highway dedicated to her son who left this earth too early, Margie and her husband continue to set their sights on the hopeful adoption, passing, signing, and enacting of the Lenz Act.

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