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2017 SESSION


HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 855
Celebrating the life of James A. Lewis, Jr.

 

Agreed to by the House of Delegates, February 3, 2017
Agreed to by the Senate, February 9, 2017

 

WHEREAS, James A. Lewis, Jr., a noted Roanoke-area musician and a retired employee of Verizon Communications, Inc., died on April 2, 2016; and

WHEREAS, James “Jimmy” A. Lewis, Jr., was born in Roanoke to the late James and Virginia Lewis, and he graduated from Lucy Addison High School in Roanoke, where he was inspired musically by band director Joe Finley; and

WHEREAS, for 35 years, Jimmy Lewis was a faithful employee of Verizon Communications, Inc., formerly Bell Atlantic and C&P Telephone; and

WHEREAS, Jimmy Lewis was best known as a star drummer in Roanoke and his passion for playing the drums made him a legend and mentor to many aspiring musicians in the Roanoke area; and

WHEREAS, Jimmy Lewis was one of the founders of The Chevys and The Premiers, bands that performed up and down the East Coast in the 1960s; he had the opportunity to perform with artists such as Marvin Gaye, Smokey Robinson, Otis Redding, Al Green, Curtis Mayfield, and other R&B groups at the time; and

WHEREAS, Jimmy Lewis later helped found the Communicators Band of Roanoke, which was active from the mid-1970s until 1990; and

WHEREAS, Jimmy Lewis was baptized at First Baptist Church of Vinton and he realized his true calling in life when he joined the New Directions Gospel Group; and

WHEREAS, Jimmy Lewis carried out his gospel musical ministry at Jerusalem Baptist Church, where he also served as a trustee, and then at Greater Mount Zion Baptist Church, where he played drums with the gospel choirs and was a faithful member until his death; and

WHEREAS, Jimmy Lewis will be fondly remembered and greatly missed by his wife, Lucille; children, James, Thomas, Lynette, Shelton, and Steven, and their families; and many other relatives and good friends; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly hereby note with great sadness the loss of James A. Lewis, Jr., a noted Roanoke-area musician and retired Verizon Communications, Inc., employee; 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 James A. Lewis, Jr., as an expression of the General Assembly’s respect for his memory.