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2023 SESSION

23106705D
HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 365
Offered February 20, 2023
Celebrating the life of Samuel Irving Blake.
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Patrons-- Clark, Guzman, Hope, Lopez, Maldonado, Rasoul, Seibold, Shin, Simonds, Ware and Watts
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WHEREAS, Samuel Irving Blake, an esteemed coach and youth mentor and an active and beloved member of the Portsmouth community, died on October 18, 2022; and

WHEREAS, Samuel Blake graduated in 2000 from Deep Creek High School in Chesapeake, where he was a standout on both the football team and in the marching band, and later attended Virginia State University and Tidewater Community College; and

WHEREAS, Samuel Blake’s love for music led him to work as a disc jockey, providing quality entertainment at various local events, and to become a radio announcer at WPCE Peace 1400 AM in Portsmouth; and

WHEREAS, with a servant’s heart, Samuel Blake took great pride in caring for his grandfather, Bishop Samuel Carruth, while serving as his armorbearer and driver; and

WHEREAS, Samuel Blake’s activism made him a regular presence at local school board and city council meetings and a reliable volunteer for political campaigns and initiatives to improve area youth centers; and

WHEREAS, Samuel Blake notably served the City of Portsmouth as a member of the former Youth Advisory Commission, where his hard work, influence, and commitment were instrumental to the development of the long-awaited Portsmouth Sportsplex community center; and

WHEREAS, in recent years, Samuel Blake had served as a security officer at Park View Elementary School in Portsmouth, leveraging his talent for working with youth to benefit and support the school’s students; and

WHEREAS, Samuel Blake coached both the junior varsity football team and the varsity girls’ basketball team at I.C. Norcom High School in Portsmouth, mentoring and inspiring his student-athletes to overcome adversity and achieve success; and

WHEREAS, guided throughout his life by his faith, Samuel Blake enjoyed worship and fellowship with the community of Holy Light Church of Deliverance in Portsmouth, where he sang with several of the church’s choirs and served as a youth leader; and

WHEREAS, Samuel Blake will be fondly remembered and dearly missed by his father, Thomas; his brother, Roderick; and numerous other family members and friends; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, That the House of Delegates hereby note with great sadness the loss of Samuel Irving Blake, a cherished member of the Portsmouth community whose kindness and generosity touched countless lives; 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 Samuel Irving Blake as an expression of the House of Delegates’ respect for his memory.