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A JOINT RESOLUTION designating the Jim and Mary Jo Sharpe Memorial 1
Bridge in Pulaski County. 2
WHEREAS, James Edgar "Jim" Sharpe was born on January 21, 1930, in Somerset, 3
Kentucky, to Rector "Rex" and Agnes Amanda Gregory Sharpe; and 4
WHEREAS, Mary Jo Murphy Sharpe was born on August 1, 1931, in Somerset, 5
Kentucky, to Charlie and Edna Phelps Murphy; and 6
WHEREAS, in high school, Jim Sharpe was an All-State linebacker for the 7
Somerset Briar Jumpers, excelling in such a manner that he would later be inducted into 8
the Somerset High School Briar Jumper Hall of Fame; and 9
WHEREAS, as a young adult, Jim Sharpe enlisted in the United States Navy to 10
serve his nation during World War II; and 11
WHEREAS, following his return home after serving overseas, Jim Sharpe opened 12
Sharpe Marine in 1949, where he sold boats, motors, and trailers to boaters visiting the 13
newly-created Lake Cumberland; and 14
WHEREAS, Jim and Mary Jo Sharpe married at First Baptist Church of Somerset 15
on April 4, 1950, and they would go on to have four children together, Sherry (Frankie) 16
Girdler, Chip (Connie) Sharpe, Joe (Debbie) Sharpe, and Jami (Brent) Fothergill; and 17
WHEREAS, following North Korea's invasion of South Korea and the United 18
States' pledged involvement, Jim Sharpe once again enlisted to serve the United States 19
Navy; and 20
WHEREAS, while serving in Korea, Jim Sharpe took note of the design of the M-21
Boats used for naval transit, pinpointing its design as a potential starting point for a new 22
type of boat to be used for leisure on lakes such as Lake Cumberland; and 23
WHEREAS, after returning to Somerset from Korea, Jim Sharpe began drafting his 24
own design for the first-ever houseboat, a 10-foot by 24-foot steel hull flat-bottom boat 25
with a scow bow, which he finished building in 1953; and 26
WHEREAS, following his invention of the houseboat and the subsequent 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 24 RS BR 2035
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nationwide attention, Jim Sharpe expanded his business in 1959; and 1
WHEREAS, Jim Sharpe founded Somerset's first youth football program and, along 2
with his brother, Bill, built and helped open Somerset's first public swimming pool, The 3
Hillcrest; and 4
WHEREAS, Jim and Mary Jo Sharpe would then decide in 1974 to jointly purchase 5
Burnside Marina, which they would manage until they sold the property in the early 6
1980s; and 7
WHEREAS, Jim and Mary Jo Sharpe's next business venture was the purchase of 8
Sumerset Houseboats, which they successfully operated until they sold it in 1996; and 9
WHEREAS, as a public recognition of his contributions to the local area, in 2000 10
the Pulaski County Chamber of Commerce presented Jim Sharpe with the Distinguished 11
Community Service Award; and 12
WHEREAS, in 2005, Houseboat Magazine recognized Jim Sharpe as "Mr. 13
Houseboat," marking the 50-year anniversary of his invention; and 14
WHEREAS, following the sale of Sumerset Houseboats, Jim and Mary Jo Sharpe 15
heavily supported and invested in the founding of Sharpe Houseboats, which would later 16
be operated by Jim's sons, sons-in-law, and grandson until its closure in 2012; and 17
WHEREAS, Jim and Mary Jo Sharpe were lifelong members of First Baptist 18
Church of Somerset, where Jim was instrumental in the building of the church's sanctuary 19
and Mary Jo taught girls' Sunday School classes; and 20
WHEREAS, despite Jim and Mary Jo Sharpe's bountiful business successes, their 21
true sense of pride came from the love shared between them and their caring family, 22
especially their grandchildren, who affectionately referred to them as "Pop" and "Mim"; 23
and 24
WHEREAS, Mary Jo Murphy Sharpe passed away on July 8, 2008, and is buried in 25
the Somerset City Cemetery; and 26
WHEREAS, James Edgar "Jim" Sharpe passed away on October 14, 2021, and is 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 24 RS BR 2035
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buried in the Somerset City Cemetery alongside his late wife; and 1
WHEREAS, in recognition of Jim and Mary Jo's contributions to the flourishing of 2
their family and the local Somerset community, it is appropriate that their lives be 3
memorialized in some tangible way; 4
NOW, THEREFORE, 5
Be it resolved by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Kentucky: 6
ď˘Section 1. The Transportation Cabinet shall designate the bridge on United 7
States Route 27 in Pulaski County, crossing Pitman Creek (Bridge ID #100B00107L and 8
#100B00032R), as the "Jim and Mary Jo Sharpe Memorial Bridge" and shall, within 30 9
days of the effective date of this Resolution, erect signs denoting this designation. 10