HOUSE RESOLUTION 4

(By Delegates Swartzmiller and Diserio and on Behalf of All Members of the House)

[Introduced on January 14, 2020]

Memorializing the life of the Honorable Roy Givens, proud father, grandfather, great grandfather, veteran, businessman, public servant and West Virginian.

Whereas, Roy Givens was born on April 27, 1929, in Wellsburg, West Virginia, son of the late George and Annabelle Givens. In addition to his parents, Roy was preceded in death by his brothers and sister, and is survived by his children, son Jeff Givens and his wife Laurie Givens, daughter Susi Givens Melican and her husband Patrick Melican, and eight grandchildren and ten great-grandchildren; and

Whereas, Roy began his public service in 1951, when he joined the United States Army, serving as a combat medic for the 13^th Combat Engineers during the Korean War, and in 1953, was honorably discharged from his military service; and

Whereas, as an active member of his community, Roy volunteered his service throughout his life and as a member of the American Legion, Korean War Veterans Association, The Elks Club, Rotary Club, and as President of the Wellsburg Lions Club, continuing his lifelong commitment to helping others, Roy first ran for public office when he was elected to the Brooke County Board of Education, serving two terms, one of which was as the board’s president; and

Whereas, Roy was first elected to the House of Delegates in 1978 where he served for 12 years.  He was again elected to this House in 1994 and served an additional 8 years.  In 2008, he was elected and served another 4 years.  During his distinguished legislative career, his appointments including serving as Chairman of the Committee on Veterans Affairs, the Committee on Health and Human Services, the Committee on Government Organization, and the Commission on Juvenile Law; and

Whereas, during his time in the House of Delegates, serving under five Speakers and seven governors, and throughout his career, he tirelessly advocated for the needs of Brooke County and the northern panhandle in a kind and respectful manner, and always took time to listen to anyone who had a problem or concern, and was without equivocation, known to all as a gentleman and for his kindness and compassion for everyone; and

Whereas, Roy’s military service inspired much of his work in the House of Delegates, as he diligently championed securing funding for the state’s first veterans nursing home, establishing the West Virginia Woman Veterans Memorial and providing free license plates for veterans who were prisoners of war; and

Whereas, Roy’s legislative service also reflected his passion for his community, where he helped to secure millions of dollars for projects in his county, including the Brooke County Public Library, the creation of the Brooke Pioneer Trail, providing assistance to the Brooke County 4-H and Brooke County Senior Center and one for which we was most proud, the expansion of state Route 2; and

Whereas, Roy was committed not only to public service and his family, he was also committed to his faith, as he and his family devotedly attended The Community of Christ Church, where he was an ordained deacon; and

Whereas, outside of his public service, Roy had a distinguished business career, working in sales for 40 years at Standard Slag Company; and

Whereas, Roy was recognized for his significant contributions to Brooke County and West Virginia through his recipience of numerous awards, including being presented with the Distinguished West Virginian Award in 2013 by then-Governor Earl Ray Tomblin; and

            Whereas, sadly West Virginia lost a fine citizen, public servant, team player, a kind, giving and a dedicated friend to many. The Honorable Roy Givens, passed away on January 3, 2019; therefore, be it

Resolved by the House of Delegates:

That the House of Delegates hereby memorializes the life of the Honorable Roy Givens, father, grandfather, great grandfather, proud veteran, businessman, public servant and distinguished West Virginian; and be it

Further Resolved, That the House of Delegates hereby extends its sincere sympathy to his family at the passing of the Honorable Roy Givens; and be it

Further Resolved, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates forward a copy of this resolution to the family of the Honorable Roy Givens.