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J. T. Davis Tapped ED-1 Supervisor
Submitted by the Gazette-Virginian
Tuesday, August 19, 2008 1:38 PM EDT
J. T. Davis of Nathalie has been named the new ED-1 supervisor to fill the unexpired seat left vacant by the July 14 death of Richard E. "Dickie" Abbott.
Supervisors interviewed seven candidates who applied for the ED-1 supervisor seat during a special called meeting held Monday afternoon in the school board conference room at the Mary Bethune Complex in Halifax.
In addition to Davis, applicants included Devin Hardy Snead, David Randall Abbott, Lisa Fennimore, Lowell Thomas Ferguson Sr., Ronnie S. Pannell and Joseph Thomas Carr Jr.
After interviewing the candidates individually in closed session from 4 to 6 p.m., board members returned to open session at 6:40 p.m. and announced Davis' appointment.
Supervisors had 45 day to make the interim appointment, according to state law.
Davis, owner of J. T. Davis Insurance Inc. and president of Friends of the Staunton River, will serve as the ED-1 supervisor until a special election is held in November 2009.
The winner of the special election will serve the remainder of Abbott's term that expires December 31, 2011.
In tapping Davis for the position Monday night, Chairman William Fitzgerald described the task of identifying one individual out of a group of seven qualified applicants as "difficult."
"We appreciate the interest that all of you have in election district 1 and in the county itself," Fitzgerald said. "Because we did not pick the other six, do not get discouraged. Keep the faith because there's always an opportunity to get elected next year."
ED-7 Supervisor Lottie Nunn encouraged the six applicants who were not appointed to the seat to fill out volunteer applications in the county office.
"I hope each of you will go fill out a volunteer form because I was so impressed by the caring of the candidates and the activeness of each person in their community. We need you as volunteers," she said.
ED-8 Supervisor Bryant Claiborne pointed out Davis' appointment was an "interim appointment," and in November 2009 the applicants who were not selected will have another opportunity to run for the seat "and let the citizens decide."
ED-6 Supervisor Wayne Conner offered the motion to appoint Davis to the ED-1 post receiving a second from ED-2 Supervisor Tom West which was unanimously approved.
Davis is required to be sworn in and file disclosure forms before joining the board as a voting member.
However, Monday night supervisors invited him to participate in discussion of other county business included on the agenda.
Davis expressed appreciation to board members for their votes of confidence.
"The good Lord gave me two ears and one mouth for one reason, I need to do more listening and less talking. Coming into this process is going to be a learning curve for me," he told fellow supervisors. "I look forward to working with each and everyone of you and learning more about the county, and hopefully I can contribute in a positive manner," he said.
In closing, Davis pledged to work "not just for election district 1 but for the entire county."
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