WHEREAS, the Reverend Owen C. Cardwell, Jr., Ph.D., an accomplished civil rights activist, esteemed faith leader, and the University of Lynchburg's Rosel H. Schewel Distinguished Chair in Education, has greatly served the communities of Lynchburg and the Greater Richmond area over many years; and

WHEREAS, Owen Cardwell made history in January 1962 as one of the first two Black students to desegregate E.C. Glass High School in Lynchburg, and he played a significant role in the civil rights movement of the 1960s by heading his local chapter of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee and by participating in a number of demonstrations to help desegregate public places in the Commonwealth; and

WHEREAS, Owen Cardwell previously served as pastor of New Canaan International Church in Henrico County and currently leads the congregation at Diamond Hill Baptist Church in Lynchburg, providing his congregants with uplifting spiritual guidance and abundant opportunities for fellowship and outreach; and

WHEREAS, as the founder and executive director of the Heroes and Dreams Academy in Richmond, Owen Cardwell has mentored an untold number of at-risk youth, helping them to fulfill their potential and achieve their dreams; and

WHEREAS, Owen Cardwell was the co-founder of the Family Restoration Network in Ashland, an organization dedicated to bringing families together by reconnecting incarcerated fathers with their children; and

WHEREAS, Owen Cardwell holds a master's degree in theology from Boston University, a master's degree in adult education from Cambridge College, and a doctoral degree in interdisciplinary studies with a concentration in creative and ethical leadership from Union Institute and University; and

WHEREAS, Owen Cardwell currently serves as the Rosel H. Schewel Distinguished Chair in Education and as the director of the Center for Leadership at the University of Lynchburg, where he teaches in the leadership studies program and assists the university's dean with the development of leadership opportunities for young people throughout Central Virginia and the Commonwealth; and

WHEREAS, Owen Cardwell was recently appointed to the Virginia African American Advisory Board and will bring valuable experience and leadership to the board's efforts to foster economic, professional, cultural, educational, and governmental links between the Commonwealth and its African American community, making Virginia a better place for everyone to live, work, and raise a family; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, That the Reverend Owen C. Cardwell, Jr., Ph.D., hereby be commended for his legacy of service in Lynchburg and the Greater Richmond area; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to the Reverend Owen C. Cardwell, Jr., Ph.D., as an expression of the House of Delegates' admiration for his contributions to the Commonwealth.