HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 257 Offered January 18, 2008 Celebrating the life of Robert W. Speight, Sr. ----------
Patrons-- Hall, Alexander, Dance, Jones, D.C., Loupassi, McClellan, Morrissey, O'Bannon, Shannon, Spruill, Tyler, Ward and Ware, O.; Senators: Deeds and McEachin
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WHEREAS, Robert W. Speight, Sr., of Richmond, a respected citizen and trucking industry leader, died on March 1, 2007; and

WHEREAS, Robert "Bob" Speight was born on October 7, 1930, and grew up in Raleigh, North Carolina; and

WHEREAS, Bob Speight received a bachelor's degree from North Carolina State University as a member of the Class of 1953 and was a member of the Reserve Officer Training Corps and an All-American basketball player for the Wolfpack; and

WHEREAS, following graduation, Bob Speight played basketball for the renowned Phillips 66ers of the Amateur Athletic Union; and

WHEREAS, Bob Speight proudly served his country in the United States Army as a First Lieutenant at Fort Bliss, Texas, and after his military duty lived in Staunton for a time before settling in Richmond in 1960; and

WHEREAS, along with his longtime business partner, Bob Speight founded a successful trucking company, E&S Contract Carrier, and served as its president for 35 years; and

WHEREAS, admired by his colleagues and his employees, Bob Speight was a highly respected business leader in the community, who was dedicated to the welfare of his employees and their families and to safety in the trucking industry; and

WHEREAS, Bob Speight was an avid member of the Wolfpack Club and a great supporter of sports in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC); and he was inducted into the Legends of the ACC in 2006, received North Carolina State University's Ronnie Shavlik Award of Merit in 2007, and his #80 jersey that was retired in 1999 hangs from the rafters of the RBC Center, the home of NC State basketball; and

WHEREAS, Bob Speight will be fondly remembered for his kind and generous nature and greatly missed by his wife, Mary Estes Speight; his loving children, Chris Brown, Elizabeth Cooley, and Bobby Speight, Jr., and their wonderful families that include his seven beloved grandchildren; and his numerous other family members and friends in the Richmond community; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly mourn the passing of an outstanding Virginian, Robert W. Speight, Sr.; 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 Robert W. Speight, Sr., as an expression of the General Assembly’s respect for his memory.