HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 90
(By Delegates Kominar and H. White)
[Introduced March 6, 2003; referred to the
Committee on Rules.]
Naming the portion of U.S. 52 from Taylorville Bridge to the
intersection of State Route 44 in Mingo County the "R. A. West
Memorial Highway."
Whereas, R. A. West was born on March 12, 1947, in the town of
Varney in Mingo County, West Virginia; and
Whereas, R. A. West married Marsha Lowe of Williamson, West
Virginia and took a position as Fireman with the Norfolk and
Western Railroad and soon thereafter became the youngest person to
be promoted to the position of Engineer; and
Whereas, At the age of twenty-two, and in spite of the fact
that his first born son was paralyzed, due to injury at birth, and
was confined to a wheelchair, R. A. West, driven by his religious
convictions, heeded the call to the evangelical ministry and
resigned his job with the railroad, forfeiting his job-related
medical benefits while large medical bills associated with the
condition of his son continued to mount, thereby evidencing his
unshakable religious faith; and
Whereas, Once he began proselytizing and due to his
unquestioning faith and religious fervor, R. A. West was never content with evangelizing solely on Sundays, but, instead,
evangelized an average of three hundred times each year continuing
this amazingly torrid pace for the first fifteen years of his
ministry; and
Whereas, As a result of the zeal and dedication of its
progenitor, the R. A. West Ministry expanded into radio and
television throughout the United States and into eighty foreign
countries, spreading a constructive and positive message to
millions of human beings throughout the planet; and
Whereas, In spite of his national and world acclaim, R. A. West
never abandoned nor distanced himself from his humble origins, nor
from his beloved Varney, West Virginia, nor from his family,
friends and parishioners; and
Whereas, R. A. West, as a direct result of his good and
fruitful works, became one of the most respected unofficial
ambassadors of this State, a fact which was commemorated by former
Governor Jay Rockefeller, among other prominent notables; and
Whereas, R. A. West was suddenly and unexpectedly taken to his
reward on July 6, 2002, when his earthly existence was terminated
as the result of a motorcycle accident; this event resulted in the
largest funeral ever conducted in southern West Virginia, drawing
approximately two thousand persons from all over the United States
who gathered to pay their last respects; and
Whereas, The residents of Varney in Mingo County, as well as people from all over the United States and in the foreign countries
where Reverend West's message of peace, love and faith was
broadcast, shall never forget his towering spirit and his dedicated
fervor in sharing his religious faith; therefore, be it
Resolved by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That the Reverend R. A. West is hereby honored and
memorialized by naming the portion of U.S. 52 from the Taylorville
Bridge to the intersection of State Route 44 in Mingo County the
"R. A. West Memorial Highway"; and, be it
Further Resolved, That the Legislature hereby requests the
West Virginia Division of Highways to name the portion of U.S. 52
from the Taylorville Bridge to the intersection of State Route 44
in Mingo County the "R. A. West Memorial Highway" by placing signs
at each end of that portion of highway bearing that inscription;
and, be it
Further Resolved, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates is
hereby directed to forward a copy of this Resolution to the
Commissioner of the Division of Highways, the County Commission of
Mingo County, and to the surviving family members of the Reverend
R. A. West, in care of Charles Stanford West, Attorney at Law (the
brother of R. A. West), at 67 West Fourth Avenue, Williamson, West
Virginia, 25661.