HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 811 Offered January 25, 2007 Commending Ted Edlich. ---------- Patrons-- Ware, O., Fralin and Griffith ----------

WHEREAS, Ted Edlich is recognized for his outstanding service to the citizens of the Commonwealth as the president and CEO of Total Action Against Poverty, Inc., in Roanoke since 1975; and

WHEREAS, Ted Edlich is the driving force behind Total Action Against Poverty (TAP), a nonprofit community action agency that for 40 years has helped citizens in need in 11 cities and counties in Southwest Virginia escape poverty and become self-sufficient; and

WHEREAS, Ted Edlich grew up in Greenwich Village in New York City and graduated from New York City Public School's Stuyvesant High School, one of the premier math and science secondary schools in the nation; and

WHEREAS, Ted Edlich earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of North Carolina, a master’s degree in education from New York University, and a master’s in divinity degree from Union Theological Seminary in Richmond; he received a postgraduate degree in social and political ethics from Yale Divinity School, and holds an honorary doctorate from Washington and Lee University; and

WHEREAS, before joining TAP, Ted Edlich taught middle school in Orange, Texas; moved to Virginia and served as a Presbyterian minister in Buchanan County; and worked for the Montgomery Presbytery and a coalition of 11 Presbyterian Churches to develop an inner-city ministry, the Southeast Presbyterian Ministry, that still exists today; and

WHEREAS, as a licensed professional counselor, Ted Edlich was the first part-time counselor at Family Services of Roanoke Valley, and as a graduate of MATC group facilitation and organization development program, he served as a trainer for many Southwest Virginia organizations and groups; and

WHEREAS, Ted Edlich joined TAP as its second Head Start director, and subsequently served as its excellent director of community organization, and a period as director of training; and

WHEREAS, under Ted Edlich’s exemplary leadership as CEO and president, TAP has become the second largest community action agency in Virginia, providing numerous programs for citizens in need in the Roanoke Valley and the Alleghany Highlands, including Head Start, This Valley Works, Families in Transition, Community Development and Housing, and Business Seed that offer a multitude of services such as employment training and business startup assistance, shelters for the homeless and battered women, neighborhood and community development programs, and low-income housing resources; and

WHEREAS, as a hard working, compassionate, and articulate advocate for poor and low-income individuals and families, Ted Edlich has touched the lives and improved the quality of life of thousands of Virginians; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly commend Ted Edlich for his extraordinary achievement as the president and CEO of Total Action Against Poverty, Inc., in Roanoke; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to Ted Edlich as an expression of the General Assembly’s appreciation of his outstanding service and commitment to citizens in need in the Commonwealth.