WHEREAS, for 35 years, the Reverend Brian M. Rafferty has served numerous communities in the Commonwealth as a trusted and inspirational faith leader; and

WHEREAS, a native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Brian Rafferty graduated from Bishop Canevin High School and earned a bachelor's degree from Allegheny College; he continued his education at George Mason University, the Notre Dame Pontifical Institute, and St. Mary's Seminary and University; and

WHEREAS, throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Brian Rafferty served the nation as an employee of the United States Food and Drug Administration; during that period, he also served with the Pennsylvania National Guard and the United States Army Reserves; and

WHEREAS, Brian Rafferty answered the call to the ministry in 1987 when he was ordained to the permanent diaconate of the Diocese of Arlington; he served at St. John Neumann Parish in Reston and was the chaplain of the Fairfax County Police Department; and

WHEREAS, from 1988 to 1989, Brian Rafferty conducted his postulancy at St. Agnes Our Lady of Fatima Parish in Cleveland, Ohio, during which time he also served as chaplain of Mount Sinai Hospital; and

WHEREAS, Brian Rafferty became a member of the Missionary Servants of the Most Holy Trinity and completed his novitiate period at the Trinitarian House in Silver Spring, Maryland; and

WHEREAS, Brian Rafferty was incardinated in the Diocese of Richmond in 1991 and served at St. Augustine Parish while working as chaplain for the Chesterfield County Police Department and Chippenham Hospital; and

WHEREAS, Brian Rafferty was ordained as a priest in 1994 and pastored St. Mary Mother of God Catholic Church in Wytheville and St. Edward Catholic Church in Pulaski until 1997; and

WHEREAS, Brian Rafferty served as pastor of Christ the King Catholic Church in Norfolk from 1997 to 2010, and he became the chaplain of the Norfolk Police Department in 2002; most recently, he served as priest of St. Stephen, Martyr Catholic Church in Chesapeake from 2010 until the present; and

WHEREAS, Brian Rafferty mentored and inspired countless young people through his long affiliation with the Boy Scouts of America, earning numerous awards and accolades for his leadership of Scouts in the Diocese of Richmond and in the Tidewater Council of the Boy Scouts of America; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the Senate of Virginia, That the Reverend Brian M. Rafferty hereby be commended for his legacy of service to communities throughout the Commonwealth as a spiritual leader; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the Senate prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to the Reverend Brian M. Rafferty as an expression of the Senate of Virginia's admiration for his achievements.