Virginia 2025 Regular Session

Virginia House Bill HJR493 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1	1		2025 SESSION
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3		-	ENROLLED
	3	+	INTRODUCED
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	5	+	25101185D
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5	7		HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 493
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	9	+	Offered January 15, 2025
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7	11		Commending Blackwater Baptist Church.
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9		-	Agreed to by the House of Delegates, January 20, 2025
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11		-	Agreed to by the Senate, January 23, 2025
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	15	+	PatronKnight; Senator: Craig
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15	19		WHEREAS, for more than 250 years, Blackwater Baptist Church has provided opportunities for joyful worship, wise spiritual leadership, and generous outreach to the residents of Virginia Beach; and
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17	21		WHEREAS, Blackwater Baptist Church traces its roots to the early 1700s, when members of the Lynnhaven Parish Church living in what was then the Blackwater area of Princess Anne County began hosting prayer readings in their homes; and
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19	23		WHEREAS, George Plummer and Thomas Armistead established Blackwater Baptist Church in approximately 1774 to better serve the members of the Blackwater community, who were forced to travel great distances to attend worship services or rely on traveling preachers; and
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21	25		WHEREAS, by 1791, Blackwater Baptist Church had begun to flourish and sent delegates to the newly formed Virginia Portsmouth Association; and
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23	27		WHEREAS, the current Blackwater Baptist Church building was constructed in 1860, and while the church had no regular pastor during the Civil War, the congregation endured and continued to grow in the post-war years; and
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25	29		WHEREAS, in the 1920s, Blackwater Baptist Church organized the Women's Missionary Union, which led to the creation of several other ministries for women and girls in the region; and
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27	31		WHEREAS, in the following decades, Blackwater Baptist Church underwent extensive renovations, organized its first choir, hosted its first vacation Bible school, expanded Sunday school programs, opened a library, established a music program and purchased the current church organ, opened a social hall, and completed additional renovations to bring the church into the modern era; and
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29	33		WHEREAS, more recently, Blackwater Baptist Church planted a prayer garden, installed a new bell in the church steeple, expanded mission programs, and created new social ministries, all as the congregation continued to grow in both faith and number; and
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31	35		WHEREAS, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Blackwater Baptist Church offered drive-in services, as well as live broadcasts on the radio and Internet, to provide hope and fellowship to local residents; and
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33	37		WHEREAS, over the course of its history, Blackwater Baptist Church benefited from the able leadership of numerous ministers, including William Sorey, Samuel Brown, George Norris, Evan Forbes, Pritchard Jordan, Lemuel Sanderlin, Abner Perry, Thomas W. Rayfield, Richard H. Baylor, William D. Pritchard, Nathan Morris Munden, C.W. Matthews, J.M. Dunaway, and J.D. Berry; and
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35		-	WHEREAS, Blackwater Baptist Church has also been led by L.C. Brickhouse, Ambrose W. Burfoot, William E. Lankford, the Reverend L.F. Paulette, Samuel N. Hurst, George W. Cox, George Washington Sawyer, Henry B. Cole, Mott A. Cumby, Ralph W. Mapp, Wade G. Harding, David G. Costas, Gary B. Thompson, Ralph L. Horn, Melvin Hughes, Steven E. Wiseman, Dr. Roscoe Musselwhite, R. Otis Colston, Michael C. Jones, Gregory Hammer, and the Reverend Dr. Lynn Hardaway; and
	39	+	WHEREAS, Blackwater Baptist Church has also been led by L.C. Brickhouse, Ambrose W. Burfoot, William E. Lankford, the Reverend L.F. Paulette, Samuel N. Hurst, George W. Cox, George Washington Sawyer, Henry B. Cole, Mott A. Cumby, Ralph W. Mapp, Wade G. Harding, David G. Costas, Gary B. Thompson, Ralph L. Horn, Melvin Hughes, and Steven E. Wiseman, Dr. Roscoe Musselwhite, R. Otis Colston, Michael C. Jones, Gregory Hammer, and the Reverend Dr. Lynn Hardaway; and
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37	41		WHEREAS, located in what is now the rural southern section of Virginia Beach, Blackwater Baptist Church is a gathering place where people from across the region have found a spiritual home and built a strong sense of community; now, therefore, be it
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39	43		RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly hereby commend Blackwater Baptist Church on the occasion of its 250th anniversary; and, be it
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41	45		RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to Blackwater Baptist Church as an expression of the General Assembly's admiration for the church's long history and legacy of contributions to the Virginia Beach community.