Committee Substitute

for

SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 11

(By Senators Roberts, Baldwin, Stollings, Maynard, and Jeffries)

[Originating in the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure; Reported January 26, 2022]

Requesting the West Virginia Department of Veterans’ Assistance to name the new veterans’ nursing home, to be built in Beckley, the “Dennis E. Davis Veterans Nursing Home”.

Whereas, Dennis E. Davis began his association with the United States military in 1959 when he entered the Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) program at West Virginia State College, now known as West Virginia State University; and

Whereas, Dennis E. Davis served stints with the U.S. Army at Fort Knox in Kentucky and Fort Sill in Oklahoma. In 1965, he graduated from the Army’s Non-Commissioned Officer Academy and received an honorable discharge in 1970; and

Whereas, In 1968, Dennis E. Davis received a Bachelor of Science degree in the field of education from West Virginia State College and subsequently began a career with the Kanawha County schools as a teacher, counselor, and administrator. In 1970, he received a Master of Science degree from Marshall University; and

Whereas, Dennis E. Davis ultimately took on the role of Assistant Superintendent of Kanawha County Schools for vocational, technical, and adult education; and

Whereas, In 1996, Governor Cecil Underwood appointed Dennis E. Davis as Executive Director of Workforce Development for West Virginia, in which position he served for four years; and

Whereas, Dennis E. Davis briefly returned to Kanawha County schools in 2013 as a member of the Kanawha County Board of Education, serving out the unexpired term of a previous member; and

Whereas, In January 2017, Governor Jim Justice appointed Dennis E. Davis as Cabinet Secretary for the West Virginia Department of Veterans Assistance. He was responsible for the administration of claims for assistance across the state, as well as the WV Veterans Nursing Facility, the West Virginia Veterans Home, and the Donel C. Kinnard Memorial State Veterans Cemetery, where he was also a member of the honor guard; and

Whereas, Dennis E. Davis passed away on January 18, 2021, at his home in Institute, West Virginia, in the presence of his loving wife and son. Dennis E. Davis was subsequently interred in the Donel C. Kinnard Memorial State Veterans Cemetery; and

Whereas, It is fitting that an enduring memorial be established to commemorate the achievements and contributions of Dennis E. Davis to our state and country; therefore, be it

Resolved by the Legislature of West Virginia:

That the West Virginia Department of Veterans Assistance name the new veterans’ nursing home, to be built in Beckley, the “Dennis E. Davis Veterans Nursing Home”; and, be it

Further Resolved, That the Department of Veterans’ Assistance is hereby requested to have made and be placed signs identifying the facility as the “Dennis E. Davis Veterans Nursing Home”; and, be it

Further Resolved, That the Clerk of the Senate is hereby directed to forward a copy of this resolution to the acting Secretary of the West Virginia Department of Veterans Assistance and the Commissioner of the Division of Highways.