SEARCH SITE

VIRGINIA LAW PORTAL

SEARCHABLE DATABASES

ACROSS SESSIONS

Developed and maintained by the Division of Legislative Automated Systems.

2006 SESSION


HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 264
Celebrating the life of Kavanaugh Yancey Thrift.

 

Agreed to by the House of Delegates, February 10, 2006
Agreed to by the Senate, February 16, 2006

 

WHEREAS, Kavanaugh Yancey Thrift, a native son of Culpeper County who lived most of his life in Norfolk, died on January 19, 2006; and

WHEREAS, throughout the 81 years of his very full life, Kavanaugh Yancey "Spike" Thrift devoted himself to the cheerful service of others; and

WHEREAS, Spike Thrift matriculated into the Ratline at the Virginia Military Institute where he studied engineering for two years before his education was abruptly halted by World War II; and

WHEREAS, in a time of deepest peril, Spike Thrift temporarily set aside his educational goals and enlisted in the United States Army, where he served for over three years with honor and distinction, including 22 months in the European Theatre, where he received a battlefield commission of second lieutenant and was awarded three campaign stars; and

WHEREAS, upon completion of his military service, Spike Thrift returned to VMI and received his civil engineering degree in 1949; and

WHEREAS, throughout his lifetime, Spike Thrift remained a loyal son of the Virginia Military Institute, supporting the mission of the Institute in a variety of capacities, most notably as a member of the VMI General Alumni Board, on which he served for 18 years; and

WHEREAS, in addition to a full career as a professional engineer, Spike Thrift served his community for 46 years as an active member of the Norfolk Kiwanis Club, serving as chapter president, chairman of the Kiwanis Bowl, lieutenant governor of the Norfolk-Virginia Beach area, and governor of the Capitol District; and

WHEREAS, a man of deep and abiding faith, Spike Thrift was a servant leader in the life, liturgy, and ministry of Saint Paul’s Episcopal Church, where he was elected three times to serve as senior warden, served as chairman of the parish endowment fund, and in all things sought to serve God by serving his fellow man with humility and humor; and

WHEREAS, the City of Norfolk, the Commonwealth, and the nation have lost a prominent citizen and true friend with a servant's soul in Spike Thrift; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly note with sadness the passing of an exceptional citizen of the Commonwealth, Kavanaugh Yancey Thrift; 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 Kavanaugh Yancey Thrift as an expression of the esteem in which his memory is held by the members of the General Assembly.