Bill Text: VA SR1 | 2016 | Regular Session | Enrolled
Bill Title: Commending Poole's Funeral Home.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2016-01-14 - Bill text as passed Senate (SR1ER) [SR1 Detail]
Download: Virginia-2016-SR1-Enrolled.html
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WHEREAS, Poole's Funeral Home in Poolesville has provided compassionate, dignified, and devoted service to the residents of Surry County for 125 years, making it the oldest business in continuous operation in Surry County; and WHEREAS, Poole's Funeral Home was founded in 1890 by Merritt Bains Poole; located on old Route 10, the funeral home primarily served the African American community in the area; and WHEREAS, in its early days, Poole's Funeral Home transported coffins in a horse-drawn cart; in 1893, the funeral home upgraded to a horse-drawn hearse, which is still in the Poole family's possession and is used for special events; and WHEREAS, in the 1920s, Poole's Funeral Home moved to a two-story building at the corner of Moonlight Road; Merritt Poole's children, Artis and Olandis, inherited ownership of the business in 1949; and WHEREAS, Artis Poole and Olandis Poole, along with his son Earnest, sought new ways to better serve the Surry County community and began using the funeral home's hearse as an ambulance for local residents in need, often free of charge; and WHEREAS, in 1968, Poole's Funeral Home relocated to a more accessible, single-story ranch house with a 75-person chapel; Joan Ellen Williams Hardy, Artis Poole's daughter, led the business from 1970 to 1995, when her own daughter, Sabrina Hardy-Newby, took over; and WHEREAS, in 2015, Poole's Funeral Home remains one of the most respected funeral homes in the region; Earnest Poole still serves as gravedigger, and under Sabrina Hardy-Newby's leadership the funeral home began offering notary services and preneed programs; and WHEREAS, the Surry County African American Heritage Society hosted a banquet at the Surry County Community Center on August 23, 2015, to celebrate Poole's Funeral Home's contributions to the community; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED by the Senate of Virginia, That Poole's Funeral Home, a valued family-operated business in Surry County, hereby be commended on the occasion of its 125th anniversary; and, be it RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the Senate prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to Sabrina Hardy-Newby, manager and director of Poole's Funeral Home, as an expression of the Senate of Virginia's admiration for Poole's Funeral Home's dedicated service to the residents of Surry County. |
