WHEREAS, Russell Baker, newspaperman, novelist, humorist, two-time Pulitzer Prize winner, and Leesburg resident, died January 21, 2019; and

WHEREAS, born in the western Loudoun County hamlet of Morrisonville, Russell Baker was a columnist for The New York Times from 1962 to 1998 and hosted Masterpiece Theatre on PBS from 1992 to 2004; he won his first Pulitzer Prize for distinguished commentary in 1979 for his Observer columns; and

WHEREAS, Russell Baker's second Pulitzer Prize came in 1982 for his autobiography, Growing Up, in which he included descriptions of his childhood years in Morrisonville; and

WHEREAS, Russell Baker, to the residents of Loudoun County who knew him, was a personal friend, conversationalist, and member of a weekly lunch group; he lived on West Loudoun Street in downtown Leesburg; and

WHEREAS, Russell Baker will be fondly remembered and greatly missed by numerous family members and friends and the entire Leesburg community; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, That the House of Delegates hereby note with great sadness the loss of Russell Baker, newspaperman, novelist, humorist, two-time Pulitzer Prize winner, and Leesburg resident; 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 Russell Baker as an expression of the House of Delegates' respect for his memory.