Bill Text: VA SJR427 | 2019 | Regular Session | Enrolled
Bill Title: Celebrating the life of Barbara Beatrice Abernathy Ross.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Passed) 2019-02-22 - Bill text as passed Senate and House (SJ427ER) [SJR427 Detail]
Download: Virginia-2019-SJR427-Enrolled.html
WHEREAS, Barbara Beatrice Abernathy Ross, a passionate civic leader whose efforts to revitalize the Carver neighborhood strengthened the entire Richmond community, died on December 21, 2018; and
WHEREAS, Barbara Abernathy Ross, best known in the community as Barbara Abernathy, grew up in the Carver neighborhood and made her home there while working for Reynolds Metals Company for 23 years; and
WHEREAS, in the 1980s, Barbara Abernathy joined the West of Belvidere Civic Association to help preserve the single-family character of the Carver community; she formed the Carver Area Civic Improvement League in the 1990s in response to plans by Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) to expand its campus into the neighborhood; and
WHEREAS, Barbara Abernathy's tenacity resulted in the formation of the Carver-VCU Partnership, a groundbreaking collaboration that preserved the history and integrity of the community; she served as co-chair of the partnership for 11 years, overseeing efforts to improve health care, increase neighborhood safety, and offer youth programs; and
WHEREAS, Barbara Abernathy's leadership ultimately led to the creation of the VCU Division of Community Engagement and a council with representatives from all neighborhoods adjacent to the university; and
WHEREAS, Barbara Abernathy also worked with the Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority to redevelop several blighted blocks in Carver, and with city officials to create a park on Catherine Street named after civic leaders Madeline T. Peters and Helen M. Smith; and
WHEREAS, Barbara Abernathy was a mentor and role model for generations of local activists, and her legacy is closely entwined with the heritage, culture, and people of the now thriving Carver neighborhood; and
WHEREAS, Barbara Abernathy will be fondly remembered and greatly missed by her sisters, Shelia and Kathenia, and numerous other family members, friends, and Carver residents whose lives she changed for the better; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED by the Senate, the House of Delegates concurring, That the General Assembly hereby note with great sadness the loss of Barbara Beatrice Abernathy Ross, a passionate civic leader and a champion for the Carver community in Richmond; and, be it
RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the Senate prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to the family of Barbara Beatrice Abernathy Ross as an expression of the General Assembly's respect for her memory.
