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2005 SESSION

058565780
SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 509
Offered February 14, 2005
Celebrating the life of Hunter Booker Andrews.
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Patrons-- Norment, Bell, Blevins, Bolling, Chichester, Colgan, Cuccinelli, Deeds, Devolites Davis, Edwards, Hanger, Hawkins, Houck, Howell, Lambert, Locke, Lucas, Marsh, Martin, Miller, Mims, Newman, Obenshain, O'Brien, Potts, Puckett, Puller, Quayle, Rerras, Reynolds, Ruff, Saslaw, Stolle, Stosch, Ticer, Wagner, Wampler, Watkins, Whipple and Williams; Delegates: Abbitt, Albo, Alexander, Amundson, Armstrong, Athey, BaCote, Barlow, Baskerville, Bell, Black, Brink, Bryant, Byron, Callahan, Carrico, Cline, Cole, Cosgrove, Councill, Cox, Dillard, Dudley, Ebbin, Eisenberg, Fralin, Frederick, Gear, Griffith, Hall, Hamilton, Hargrove, Hogan, Howell, A.T., Howell, W.J., Hugo, Hull, Hurt, Ingram, Janis, Joannou, Johnson, Jones, D.C., Jones, S.C., Keister, Kilgore, Landes, Lewis, Lingamfelter, Louderback, Marrs, Marshall, D.W., Marshall, R.G., May, McDonnell, McDougle, McQuigg, Melvin, Miles, Miller, Moran, Morgan, Nixon, Nutter, O'Bannon, Oder, Orrock, Parrish, Petersen, Phillips, Plum, Pollard, Purkey, Putney, Rapp, Reese, Reid, Rust, Saxman, Scott, E.T., Scott, J.M., Shannon, Sherwood, Shuler, Sickles, Spruill, Stump, Suit, Tata, Van Landingham, Van Yahres, Ward, Wardrup, Ware, O., Ware, R.L., Watts, Weatherholtz, Welch and Wright
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WHEREAS, Hunter Booker Andrews of Hampton, a former member of the Senate of Virginia and one of the Commonwealth's most influential leaders of the latter half of the 20th century, died on January 13, 2005; and

WHEREAS, a native of Hampton, Hunter Andrews graduated from the College of William and Mary, earned his law degree from the University of Virginia, and served as an officer in the United States Navy for four years in the Pacific Theatre during World War II; and

WHEREAS, elected to the Senate of Virginia in 1963, Hunter Andrews served for 32 years and rose to a position of influence as majority leader and chairman of the Committee on Finance; and

WHEREAS, Hunter Andrews played an instrumental role in the redrafting of Virginia's Constitution in the early 1970s; and

WHEREAS, Hunter Andrews was a champion of public and higher education from his earliest days as chairman of the Hampton School Board, where he passionately led the integration of the city's public schools in the 1950s, and later opposed massive resistance as a legislator; and

WHEREAS, in the Senate, Hunter Andrews patroned legislation requiring compulsory school attendance until the age of 17, sponsored a bill that required all school systems in Virginia to offer kindergarten, and was instrumental in the establishment of Virginia's Standards of Quality; and

WHEREAS, Hunter Andrews was a consistent and effective advocate for greater funding for public and higher education, and he used his position as a budget negotiator to ensure that the Commonwealth's schools received adequate funding even when the hour grew late and the negotiations heated; and

WHEREAS, as Majority Leader and the unchallenged expert on the Rules of the Senate, Hunter Andrews led and often shaped Senate floor debate on a range of issues, using effectively his sharp wit and fierce intelligence to set and advance the Senate's legislative agenda; and

WHEREAS, perceived by many as acerbic and intimidating, Hunter Andrews combined his formidable reputation with a profound understanding of the workings of Virginia's legislature, a command of the facts, and an encyclopedic knowledge of state finances and the Code of Virginia to advance the issues he found important; and

WHEREAS, as chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, Hunter Andrews established many of the processes that the Senate relies on today to guide its fiscal decisions, including open participation by all Senate members in an extended annual meeting on fiscal issues, support of a professional staff, and a commitment to meeting the state's basic obligations; and

WHEREAS, Hunter Andrews was widely credited with reinvigorating and modernizing Virginia's education and transportation policies, was a leading advocate for the establishment of the Center for Innovative Technology, and worked closely with former Governor Baliles on the 1986 tax increases for transportation; and

WHEREAS, after leaving the Senate in 1995, Hunter Andrews continued to work for the good of the Commonwealth, serving recently on a commission studying the issue of two consecutive terms for Virginia's governors and serving as a member of the board of visitors of William and Mary; and

WHEREAS, Hunter Andrews showed his steadfast dedication to the Jamestown- Yorktown Foundation, an agency of the Commonwealth with a mission to educate and promote understanding and awareness of Virginia's role in the creation of the United States of America, by giving generously of his time, talents, and energy over his 29 years as a trustee, by serving as foundation chairman from 1986 to 1990, and by serving with distinction as chairman emeritus from 1996 to 2005; and

WHEREAS, believing unconditionally in the mission of the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation, while understanding the importance of quality museum programming that would appeal to a national tourism market, Hunter Andrews led with vigor and determination the charge to apply professional museum standards to the foundation's daily operations and worked diligently to obtain critical public and private support necessary to advance the foundation's programming and facilities to allow it to serve a larger and more diverse audience; and

WHEREAS, Hunter Andrews' influence on the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation and its museums will not only continue to be evident for years to come in all facets of the agency's operations, but also will serve as a legacy to the millions of students in the Commonwealth and from around the nation, young and old, who, by visiting Jamestown Settlement and Yorktown Victory Center or by participating in the foundation's structured education programs, have gained a greater understanding and appreciation of the history of our nation and the significant events that took place at Jamestown and Yorktown; and

WHEREAS, there are few people who worked at the Capitol over the last third of the 20th century who lack a good Hunter Andrews story, and some of the best he told on himself, but those who worked closely with him know well that behind the larger-than-life personality was an incredibly intelligent and hardworking legislator utterly dedicated to doing what was best for the citizens of this Commonwealth; 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 towering figure in Virginia's government, Hunter Booker Andrews; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the Senate prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to the family of Hunter Booker Andrews as an expression of the esteem in which his memory is held by the members of the General Assembly and the people of Virginia.