HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 18 Offered February 22, 2006 Commending Barbara Lucas Regen. ----------
Patrons-- Putney, Abbitt, Albo, Alexander, Amundson, Armstrong, Athey, BaCote, Barlow, Bell, Bowling, Brink, Bulova, Byron, Callahan, Caputo, Carrico, Cline, Cole, Cosgrove, Cox, Crockett-Stark, Dance, Dudley, Ebbin, Eisenberg, Englin, Fralin, Frederick, Gear, Gilbert, Griffith, Hall, Hamilton, Hargrove, Hogan, Howell, A.T., Howell, W.J., Hugo, Hull, Hurt, Iaquinto, Ingram, Janis, Joannou, Johnson, Jones, D.C., Jones, S.C., Kilgore, Landes, Lewis, Lingamfelter, Lohr, Marsden, Marshall, D.W., Marshall, R.G., May, McClellan, McEachin, McQuigg, Melvin, Miller, Moran, Morgan, Nixon, Nutter, O'Bannon, Oder, Orrock, Parrish, Peace, Phillips, Plum, Poisson, Purkey, Rapp, Reid, Rust, Saxman, Scott, E.T., Scott, J.M., Shannon, Sherwood, Shuler, Sickles, Spruill, Suit, Tata, Toscano, Tyler, Valentine, Waddell, Ward, Wardrup, Ware, O., Ware, R.L., Watts, Welch, Wittman and Wright
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WHEREAS, Barbara Lucas Regen, senior committee coordinator in the House Committee Operations Office, retires on April 1, 2006, thus ending an outstanding career of service to the House of Delegates; and

WHEREAS, a native of Illinois, Barbara Regen graduated from Wells College in 1962 with a degree in philosophy, having spent her junior year attending Sweet Briar College and the Sorbonne in Paris; and

WHEREAS, Barbara Regen subsequently earned a master of arts in teaching, with an emphasis in French, from Duke University in 1965, and began a sporadic career as a public school teacher in North Carolina and Virginia spanning more than two decades; and

WHEREAS, Barbara Regen’s editing skills, honed grading countless English and French papers at Patrick Henry Community College in Martinsville, made her a natural fit for the Enrolling Room when first hired by the House of Delegates Clerk’s Office, prior to the 1984 Session of the General Assembly; and

WHEREAS, “a discerning reader-with-a-pencil,” Barbara Regen spent the next 12 years, and a couple of nights sleeping on the floor, in the Enrolling Room translating hastily scribbled amendments into recognizable English; and

WHEREAS, in 1995 Barbara Regen moved from the Enrolling Room to a position as a committee clerk for the House Committee on Education, as well as Privileges and Elections, the latter during the 2000 redistricting process; and

WHEREAS, as a committee clerk, Barbara Regen has provided outstanding service and support to all the members of the Education and Privileges and Elections Committees, but most especially to her Chairmen J. Paul Councill, Jr.; James H. Dillard II; Lacey E. Putney; and Marian Van Landingham; and

WHEREAS, during her sterling career, Barbara Regen was promoted to senior committee coordinator responsible for supervising, training, and assisting the House committee clerks and managing the office; and

WHEREAS, Barbara Regen served under House Clerks Joseph H. Holleman, Jr., and Bruce F. Jamerson and under Speakers A. L. Philpott; Thomas W. Moss, Jr.; S. Vance Wilkins, Jr.; and William J. Howell; and

WHEREAS, in addition to her duties with House Committee Operations, Barbara Regen was a member of the American Society of Legislative Clerks and Secretaries, where from 2003 to 2005 she provided invaluable service as a member of the editorial board for the Society’s Professional Journal; and

WHEREAS, Barbara Regen’s love of people, knowledge of the legislative process, and French language fluency led her to represent the House of Delegates of Virginia, the National Conference of State Legislatures, and the American Society of Legislative Clerks and Secretaries on legislative programs to French-speaking West Africa and Beirut, Lebanon; and

WHEREAS, throughout her 23 years of service to the House of Delegates and even longer service to the people of Virginia, Barbara Lucas Regen has established an enviable record of achievement, characterized by her efficiency and effectiveness, her devotion to duty and her family, her professionalism and her candor, and her love for and dedication to the members of the House of Delegates; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, That Barbara Lucas Regen be hereby commended on her meritorious service to the House of Delegates, the General Assembly, and the citizens of Virginia; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to Barbara Lucas Regen as an expression of the House of Delegates’ gratitude for her contributions to Virginia and best wishes for a long and fulfilling retirement.