SJ110: Celebrating the life of the Honorable George M. Warren, Jr.

WHEREAS, George M. Warren, Jr., of Bristol, a highly regarded attorney and respected member of the Senate of Virginia for 12 years, died on January 12, 2010; and

WHEREAS, George Warren graduated from Emory & Henry College, proudly served his country in the United States Navy during World War II, and received a law degree from the University of Virginia School of Law; and

WHEREAS, upon graduation, George Warren went into practice in Bristol with his father and then served as the United States Commissioner for the Western District of Virginia from 1951 to 1963; and

WHEREAS, desiring to make a difference in Virginia, George Warren was elected to the Senate of Virginia in 1963 and served through 1975, representing the Counties of Lee, Scott, Washington, Smyth, and a portion of Russell and the City of Bristol; he was a member of the Courts of Justice, Finance, Privileges and Elections, and Roads and Internal Navigation committees; and

WHEREAS, an able and knowledgeable lawmaker, Senator Warren was chief patron of the legislation and chairman of the study commission that created the School of Veterinary Medicine at Virginia Tech; he also introduced legislation that designated Natural Tunnel a Virginia State Park and that created the Bristol-Washington County Industrial Park; and

WHEREAS, serving on the staff of three Virginia governors, Senator Warren was a member of the State Crime Commission for 12 years and the Election Laws Study Commission, and was appointed to more than a dozen blue ribbon commissions; and

WHEREAS, Senator Warren served for eight years on the Virginia State Council for Higher Education; he was instrumental in the conception, establishment, and funding of the Children?s Advocacy Center for the City of Bristol and Washington County and was a cochair of the task force creating the new Bristol Public Library; and

WHEREAS, Senator Warren was elected commonwealth?s attorney for the City of Bristol in 1976 and served until his retirement in 2002; he gave outstanding service in a total of 37 years in elected constitutional offices; and

WHEREAS, in 2002, Senator Warren was appointed as judge pro tempore of the General District Court of the Twenty-eighth Judicial District for the Counties of Smyth and Washington and the City of Bristol; and

WHEREAS, recognized by his peers for his remarkable career, Judge Warren received the prestigious Tradition of Excellence Award in 1998 from the Virginia State Bar for his many years of distinguished service and devotion to justice; and

WHEREAS, Judge Warren was actively involved in the community throughout his life in numerous civic, fraternal, and social organizations and received numerous tributes of merit for his dedication and devotion to the community; and

WHEREAS, George Warren will be greatly missed by his loving wife of more than 50 years, Merle; their children, George M. Warren III, James Watkins Warren, and Merle Warren Dickert, and their families; his friends and colleagues on both sides of the aisle; and the citizens of Virginia; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the Senate, the House of Delegates concurring, That the General Assembly hereby note with great sadness the loss of a revered statesman of the Commonwealth, the Honorable George M. Warren, Jr.; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the Senate prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to the family of the Honorable George M. Warren, Jr., as an expression of the General Assembly?s respect for his memory.