SEARCH SITE
VIRGINIA LAW PORTAL
- Code of Virginia
- Virginia Administrative Code
- Constitution of Virginia
- Charters
- Authorities
- Compacts
- Uncodified Acts
- RIS Users (account required)
SEARCHABLE DATABASES
- Bills & Resolutions
session legislation - Bill Summaries
session summaries - Reports to the General Assembly
House and Senate documents - Legislative Liaisons
State agency contacts
ACROSS SESSIONS
- Subject Index: Since 1995
- Bills & Resolutions: Since 1994
- Summaries: Since 1994
Developed and maintained by the Division of Legislative Automated Systems.
2009 SESSION
094213624WHEREAS, Willie Saunders Watkins III of Richmond, a respected citizen and an outstanding community supporter and businessman, died on January 23, 2009; and
WHEREAS, Willie Saunders “Bill” Watkins III was a graduate and valedictorian of the Class of 1958 at Maggie Walker High School and received a bachelor's degree and a master's degree in biology from Howard University; and
WHEREAS, after college, Bill Watkins served as an associate professor at his alma mater, Howard University, and taught at the Clark Atlanta University Center; and
WHEREAS, Bill Watkins loved teaching and continued to teach young people and adult professionals throughout his life, and he was equally committed to helping his family in the operation of the Watkins’ mortuary business founded in Richmond by his grandfather and father; and
WHEREAS, Bill Watkins completed mortuary training at John Tyler Community College so he could carry on his family’s legacy, and he eventually became the president, manager, and owner, along with his sister Valorie Patrice Watkins, of W. S. Watkins & Son Funeral Home; and
WHEREAS, Bill Watkins was a consultant for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, helping to develop guidelines for the prevention of the transmission of AIDS in the workplace and teaching funeral directors how to protect themselves; and
WHEREAS, Bill Watkins also worked with the Environmental Protection Agency on a study of the effects of formaldehyde in funeral homes; and
WHEREAS, a lifelong learner, Bill Watkins attended American University and the Medical College of Virginia and became certified in the history and philosophy of science and postmortem eye donor procedures; and
WHEREAS, Bill Watkins wrote textbooks, laboratory manuals, and published articles to educate and train funeral directors in the latest scientific methods, and he was the editor of the Virginia Mortician Association Bulletin for seven years; and
WHEREAS, over the years, Bill Watkins generously gave his time and talents to many professional organizations, serving as president of the Virginia Morticians Association and as chair of the Education Commission of the National Funeral Directors and Morticians Association; and
WHEREAS, Bill Watkins was a faithful member of Ebenezer Baptist Church in Richmond, where he served on the board of trustees and sang as tenor and soloist in the Sanctuary, Men's, and Mass choirs; and
WHEREAS, Bill Watkins loved spectator sports and was a skilled ballroom dancer, and he will be fondly remembered for his “infectious laugh and razor-sharp wit”; and
WHEREAS, Bill Watkins will be greatly missed by his wife of 39 years, Elizabeth Dianne Nelson Watkins; his son, Willie S. Watkins IV; his two daughters, Karen Watkins-Westebbe and Lauren Watkins; his sister, Valorie Patrice Watkins; his grandson; and many friends and colleagues; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly note with great sadness the passing of an outstanding Virginian, Willie Saunders Watkins III; 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 Willie Saunders Watkins III as an expression of the General Assembly’s respect for his memory.