Bill Text: VA HJR463 | 2016 | Regular Session | Enrolled
Bill Title: Celebrating the life of the Reverend John Samuel Westbrook, Jr.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)
Status: (Passed) 2016-03-10 - Bill text as passed House and Senate (HJ463ER) [HJR463 Detail]
Download: Virginia-2016-HJR463-Enrolled.html
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WHEREAS, the Reverend John Samuel Westbrook, Jr., of Richmond, a proud veteran of the United States Armed Forces who worked for IBM and the City of Richmond and was an ordained minister, community leader, and devoted husband and father, died on March 2, 2015; and WHEREAS, John Westbrook was born in Yale and was active in local and regional church activities throughout his youth; he graduated in 1961 from Southampton County Public Schools and was valedictorian of his high school class; and WHEREAS, John Westbrook was the first person in his family to attend college; he earned a bachelor's degree in 1965 from Hampton Institute, now known as Hampton University, and was a member of Gamma Epsilon chapter of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc., and the Pershing Rifles; and WHEREAS, after graduating from college, John Westbrook joined the United States Army; he served in Vietnam with the 9th Infantry Division, rising to the rank of first lieutenant, and earned a Bronze Star; and WHEREAS, John Westbrook was a valued employee of IBM and worked in numerous positions, including as an information technology consultant and programming education manager; he was selected for the IBM 100% Club, attended many IBM Systems Engineering Symposiums, and was selected for a two-year IBM faculty assignment to Virginia State University; and WHEREAS, after a 30-year career with IBM, John Westbrook retired, but six years later he reentered the workforce as an employee of the City of Richmond; he provided legislative and constituent support for eight years, working on behalf of the members of City Council who represented the Sixth and Ninth Districts; and WHEREAS, John Westbrook answered the call to ministry in 2007; he earned a master's degree from the Samuel DeWitt Proctor School of Theology at Virginia Union University and was an associate minister at Morning Star Baptist Church in his hometown of Capron and at Fifth Street Baptist Church; and WHEREAS, John Westbrook also contributed to the betterment of his community as a member of the board of Boaz and Ruth, Inc., the Highland Park Community Development Corporation, and the Chelsea Hill Family Life and Research Center; and WHEREAS, a devoted family man, John Westbrook treasured the lessons he learned from his parents and working with his father and brothers on a pulpwood truck, and he delighted in the special relationship he forged with his grandchildren; and WHEREAS, John Westbrook also was a talented performer; he was a self-taught pianist who played for his church choir and at area senior centers, an actor who appeared on stage and in films, and a member of several choruses; and WHEREAS, John Westbrook will be greatly missed and fondly remembered by his wife, Edwina; children, Amy and John III, and their families; and many other family members and 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 the Reverend John Samuel Westbrook, Jr., of Richmond, a decorated United States Army veteran who worked for IBM and the City of Richmond and was an ordained minister, community leader, and devoted husband and father; 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 the Reverend John Samuel Westbrook, Jr., as an expression of the General Assembly's respect for his memory. |
