HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 407 Offered February 28, 2006 Celebrating the life of John F. Herrity. ----------
Patrons-- Callahan, Albo, Amundson, Brink, Bulova, Caputo, Ebbin, Englin, Hugo, Hull, Marsden, McQuigg, Moran, Parrish, Plum, Rust, Scott, J.M., Shannon, Sickles and Watts; Senators: Colgan, Cuccinelli, Devolites Davis, Howell, O'Brien, Puller, Saslaw, Ticer and Whipple
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WHEREAS, John F. Herrity, visionary leader and former chairman of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, died on February 1, 2006; and

WHEREAS, John F. “Jack” Herrity was born in Arlington, the son of a working-class Irish Catholic family, grew up in Prince George’s County, Maryland, and graduated from Saint Anthony’s High School; and

WHEREAS, Jack Herrity served his country in the United States Coast Guard and earned undergraduate and law degrees from Georgetown University; and

WHEREAS, Jack Herrity worked as a pension and insurance consultant for several years before he became involved in local civic affairs; and

WHEREAS, in 1971 Jack Herrity was elected to the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, representing the Springfield District; and

WHEREAS, Jack Herrity served on the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors for 16 years from 1971 to 1988, including 12 years as chairman; and

WHEREAS, during his tenure in office, Jack Herrity spearheaded growth, development, and highway improvement, including the widening of Interstate 66 and the Fairfax County Parkway, which the General Assembly named in his honor in 1995; and

WHEREAS, Jack Herrity was instrumental in bringing business, retail, and many Fortune 500 companies to Fairfax and transforming the dairy farmland of Tysons Corner into a booming commercial center; and

WHEREAS, in 1994 the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors dedicated the county planning and development building as The Herrity Building in honor of Jack Herrity’s many contributions to the county; and

WHEREAS, Jack Herrity was honored by countless civic organizations for his extraordinary service to the community, including Mothers Against Drunk Driving, Students Against Drunk Driving, the Arlington-Fairfax Elks Lodge, the Metropolitan Subcontractors Association, the Fairfax County Chamber of Commerce, the Fraternal Order of Police, the Northern Virginia American Heart Association, the Committee for Dulles, and the Northern Virginia Training Center for the Mentally Retarded; and

WHEREAS, Washingtonian magazine named Jack Herrity Washingtonian of the Year in 1980; and

WHEREAS, Jack Herrity will be remembered for his great influence in shaping Fairfax County during a period of rapid growth and extraordinary change, and will be missed by his family, his numerous friends and admirers, and the citizens of Northern Virginia; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly mourn the passing of an outstanding public servant and fine Virginian, John F. Herrity; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to the family of John F. Herrity as an expression of the General Assembly’s respect for his memory.