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2007 SESSION


HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 962
Commending David J. Skewes.

 

Agreed to by the House of Delegates, February 21, 2007
Agreed to by the Senate, February 22, 2007

 

WHEREAS, David J. Skewes is a passionate advocate and exemplary role model for conservation and game management endeavors; and

WHEREAS, born in Ohio, David Skewes grew up in the Town of Pocahontas, Virginia, and his interest in nature and local habitats was evident at a young age as he started a wildflower garden at age 7, and at age 16, he worked to enhance the wildlife habitat of wood ducks in an area of Bland County; and

WHEREAS, David Skewes attended Bluefield College before heading to Richmond where he earned a bachelor's degree at the University of Richmond in 1951 and a medical degree from the Medical College of Virginia in 1956; and

WHEREAS, David Skewes served as a captain in the United States Air Force from 1957 to 1959 and, in addition to his medical duties, he was appointed game warden at Fort Stewart Air Force Base in Georgia; and

WHEREAS, Dr. Skewes set up his first medical practice in 1959 in Coalwood, West Virginia, and in 1965 he moved to Dublin, Virginia, where he opened a medical clinic that would be his professional home until he retired in 1999; and

WHEREAS, in the early 1960s, Dr. Skewes bought his first farm in Virginia, located in Giles County, dedicated to conservation and game management purposes, and over the past 40 years, some 25,000 trees have been planted there and 11 ponds have been created, and in 1994 he obtained 100 acres in Pulaski County, planting switchgrass, trees, and food plots to aid in protecting wildlife habitats; and

WHEREAS, always seeking more outlets for his conservation goals, in 1986 Dr. Skewes purchased a 2,000-acre farm in South Dakota, where he has fulfilled a dream of having a productive, working farm that is not detrimental to the native habitat, and in 2002 he acquired a 1,000-acre wetland area in South Dakota that is dedicated to waterfowl conservation; and

WHEREAS, in 1991 Dr. Skewes received the Izaak Walton League Wildlife Habitat award in recognition of the outstanding conservation efforts of Hollybrook Farms, the name under which his various properties are managed; and

WHEREAS, after years of coaching by his wife, Sherry Skewes, Dr. Skewes has been recognized nationally as an expert marksman in both skeet, trap, and sporting clay competition and has facilitated the construction and operation of shooting ranges in Virginia and South Dakota; and

WHEREAS, in addition to his tremendous dedication to establishing and preserving wildlife habitats, Dr. Skewes, through Hollybrook Farms, is a devoted supporter of Sugarbugs—Children with Diabetes, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, and the Wildlife Foundation of Virginia; and

WHEREAS, throughout his life, David Skewes has been an active participant in numerous conservation organizations including Pheasants Forever, the National Wild Turkey Federation, and Ducks Unlimited, and he currently is vice president of the Virginia chapter of the American Chestnut Foundation; and

WHEREAS, Dr. Skewes has dedicated much of his life to teaching proper hunting safety, sportsmanship, and advanced conservation techniques to countless Virginians and people in West Virginia, Tennessee, and South Dakota; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly hereby commend David J. Skewes on his exceptional efforts to preserve priceless natural resources and native habitats in the Commonwealth and elsewhere; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to David J. Skewes as an expression of the General Assembly's admiration for his dedication to conservation and game management.