WHEREAS, Steve W. Edwards, deputy attorney for the Commonwealth in Isle of Wight County and executive director of the Gwaltney Frontier Farm Educational Foundation, Inc., was named Smithfield Citizen of the Year by the Smithfield Ruritan Club and the Smithfield Rotary Club in 2022; and

WHEREAS, a graduate of The College of William & Mary and The William & Mary Law School, Steve Edwards has practiced law in and around Isle of Wight County for more than 30 years; and

WHEREAS, as a prosecutor, first in Southampton County and then in Isle of Wight County since 2009, Steve Edwards has worked tirelessly to bring justice to victims of child abuse or molestation, taking great care to attend to the particular needs and sensitivities of those he serves; and

WHEREAS, Steve Edwards' early forays into public service included an appointment to the former Isle of Wight Parks and Public Recreational Facilities Authority when he was 21 years of age and his election to the Isle of Wight County Board of Supervisors six years later, which he went on to chair; and

WHEREAS, Steve Edwards is a founding member and executive director of the Gwaltney Frontier Farm Educational Foundation, Inc., a nonprofit organization that administers the Mill Swamp Indian Horses program; and

WHEREAS, through the Mill Swamp Indian Horses program, Steve Edwards seeks to promote conservation efforts to prevent the extinction of the Spanish Corolla Mustang horse breed and to instruct others in the techniques of natural horsemanship as a means to demonstrate how to assist and communicate with those who have experienced trauma; and

WHEREAS, Steve Edwards has conducted a number of trauma-informed horse programs designed to comfort different populations in need, including adolescents suffering from depression, anxiety, or suicidal ideation; Hampton Veterans Affairs Medical Center patients with post-traumatic stress disorder; and emergency first responders emotionally impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic; and

WHEREAS, Steve Edwards has had an outsized impact on his community in many ways, serving as a founding board member of what is now the Family Assessment and Planning Team for Isle of Wight County, as a founding member and past president of the Moonlight Ruritan Club in Smithfield, and as a coach for youth soccer and girls softball teams; and

WHEREAS, Steve Edwards is an accomplished musician who takes great joy in sharing his talents with others, both by teaching folk, blues, and other American forms of music to local children and adults and by performing at open mic nights and with his group, Pasture #3; and

WHEREAS, in recognition of his service, Steve Edwards has garnered awards from many notable organizations and offices over the years, including the Virginia Foster Parent Association, the Southampton County Commonwealth's Attorney Office, the Office of the Attorney General of the Commonwealth, and the Horse of the Americas Registry; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, That Steve W. Edwards hereby be commended for being named the 2022 Smithfield Citizen of the Year by the Smithfield Ruritan Club and the Smithfield Rotary Club; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to Steve W. Edwards as an expression of the House of Delegates' admiration for his contributions to the Commonwealth.