Bill Text: SC H5482 | 2021-2022 | 124th General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Mickinley Washington, Jr.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)
Status: (Passed) 2022-08-31 - Introduced and adopted [H5482 Detail]
Download: South_Carolina-2021-H5482-Introduced.html
A HOUSE RESOLUTION
TO EXPRESS THE PROFOUND SORROW OF THE SOUTH CAROLINA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES UPON THE PASSING OF THE HONORABLE MCKINLEY WASHINGTON, JR., OF RAVENEL, TO CELEBRATE HIS LIFE AND ACHIEVEMENTS, AND TO EXTEND THE DEEPEST SYMPATHY TO HIS FAMILY AND MANY FRIENDS.
Whereas, many were deeply saddened by the passing of the Honorable McKinley Washington, Jr., of Ravenel, former member of the South Carolina House of Representatives, as well as of this great state's Senate, on July 24, 2022, at the venerable age of eighty-five; and
Whereas, born on August 8, 1936, McKinley was the third of eight children born to his father, a sharecropper, and his mother, a schoolteacher, in rural South Carolina. While attending school, he also helped his father with farming, planting cotton, corn, and tobacco. He graduated from Eastern High School in Sumter and went on to attend Johnson C. Smith University where he double majored in economics and religious education; and
Whereas, McKinley Washington, Jr., served from 1991 to 1999 as a state senator for District 45, for which he represented Allendale, Beaufort, Charleston, Colleton, Hampton, and Jasper counties. Prior to that time, he served House District 116, Charleston County, from 1975 to 1990; and
Whereas, as a pioneering African American statesman in the Palmetto State, McKinley Washington was among a new generation of Black legislators who gained access to the levers of power soon after desegregation. He served in elected office for a quarter century; and
Whereas, while in office, he served as chairman of the South Carolina Legislative Black Caucus and as vice chair of the Charleston County Legislative Delegation. Further, he served on numerous legislative committees, including the House Ways and Means Committee and the Joint Committee on Tourism and Trade; and
Whereas, following his legislative career, Reverend Washington served as a member of the South Carolina Employment Security Commission for eight years; and
Whereas, in addition, he was pastor of Edisto Presbyterian Church on Edisto Island for fifty years, retiring from that honored post in 2012; and
Whereas, he also was founder of the Edisto Branch of the NAACP and the St. Paul Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance; and
Whereas, at his passing, this highly respected public servant and minister concluded a life that has been called a "living sermon"; and
Whereas, McKinley Washington leaves to cherish his memory and carry on his legacy his wife, Beulah; his son, Michael; his daughter, Katrina; and two grandchildren. He will be remembered as a humble public servant and beloved South Carolina leader, one who will be greatly missed. Now, therefore,
Be it resolved by the House of Representatives:
That the members of the South Carolina House of Representatives, by this resolution, express the profound sorrow of the South Carolina House of Representatives upon the passing of the Honorable McKinley Washington, Jr., of Ravenel, celebrate his life and achievements, and extend the deepest sympathy to his family and many friends.
Be it further resolved that a copy of this resolution be presented to Mrs. Beulah Washington for the family.
