HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 943 Offered February 16, 2007 Commending Wilbert D. Talley. ----------
Patrons-- BaCote, Albo, Alexander, Amundson, Armstrong, Barlow, Brink, Bulova, Byron, Caputo, Dance, Ebbin, Eisenberg, Englin, Fralin, Hall, Hamilton, Howell, A.T., Hull, Joannou, Johnson, Jones, D.C., Lewis, Marsden, McClellan, McEachin, Melvin, Miller, P.J., Moran, Oder, Phillips, Poisson, Rapp, Reid, Scott, J.M., Shannon, Shuler, Sickles, Spruill, Tata, Toscano, Tyler, Valentine, Waddell, Ward, Ware, O., Ware, R.L. and Watts; Senators: Deeds, Locke, Marsh, Miller and Ticer
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WHEREAS, Reverend Wilbert D. Talley has had a tremendous impact on statewide efforts to find suitable adoptive homes for minority children; and

WHEREAS, Wilbert Talley grew up in Arlington County and attended Virginia Union University, where he earned a bachelor's degree in sociology in 1966, and then went on to obtain a Master of Divinity Degree from Howard University in 1969; and

WHEREAS, after serving as the pastor of Woodlawn United Methodist Church in Alexandria from 1967 to 1969, Reverend Talley returned to his alma mater, accepting an appointment as the Dean of Student Affairs at Virginia Union University; and

WHEREAS, in April 1972, Reverend Talley was called to be the pastor of Third Union Baptist Church in King William County, and April 2007 will mark his 35th anniversary with the congregation; and

WHEREAS, during his tenure as pastor of Third Union Baptist Church, Reverend Talley has continued his professional relationship with Virginia Union University, serving in a number of different administrative positions as well as on the sociology faculty; and

WHEREAS, while Reverend Talley has devoted his time and wisdom to addressing a wide array of social problems and concerns throughout his life, he has been particularly committed to the issue of adoption and how to better identify and recruit families to adopt minority children; and

WHEREAS, in pursuing concrete ways to improve minority adoption, Reverend Talley became the driving force behind the establishment of Virginia One Church, One Child (VAOCOC) in 1985 and served as the organization's first president; and

WHEREAS, under Reverend Talley's leadership, the VAOCOC board of directors and staff developed a multifaceted adoption recruitment program involving more than 300 churches statewide and collaborative partnerships with both private and public agencies that helped find homes for hundreds of African American children in the Commonwealth; and

WHEREAS, Reverend Talley has also been a dedicated member of the North American Council on Adoptable Children (NACAC) and served as president of the organization's board of directors from 1997–2001; and

WHEREAS, in 2005, Reverend Talley was honored by both organizations for his work in support of their missions; he received the National One Church, One Child "Humanitarian of the Millennium" award and was named Adoptive Advocate of the Year by the NACAC during its annual conference; and

WHEREAS, Reverend Talley currently serves as project director for the National Network of Adoption Advocacy Programs, a collaborative partnership including One Church, One Child programs in Virginia, Oklahoma, and Illinois that is striving to establish a national network of faith-based adoption advocacy programs; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly hereby commend Wilbert D. Talley for his unflagging devotion to finding loving and nurturing homes for minority children; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to Wilbert D. Talley as an expression of the General Assembly's admiration and gratitude for his exceptional efforts on behalf of children of the Commonwealth.