[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 63 (Wednesday, April 30, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E643-E644]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
REMEMBERING JACK HARDESTY
______
HON. FRANK R. WOLF
of virginia
in the house of representatives
Wednesday, April 30, 2014
Mr. WOLF. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize and remember Jack
Hardesty, a longstanding community leader in Clarke County, Virginia,
who passed away April 15, 2014 at the age of 82.
John Douglas ``Jack'' Hardesty's family has long standing ties to
Clarke County dating back to the 1780s. He chose to continue this
legacy as an entrepreneur who worked to further his community.
Jack may be best known for his work on the Board of Supervisors,
serving 17 years as chairman. He also served on the Board of Directors
for the Bank of Clarke County, was a trustee for his church and member
of the Berryville-Clarke Chamber of Commerce. Jack was named ``Citizen
of the Year'' this year by the Top of Virginia Regional Chamber for his
lifetime of service.
Jack had an incredible impact on Clarke County, organizing the
county's first Comprehensive Plan, as well as his efforts to preserve
historic farmland and open space in the county. Through his work he has
left an indelible mark on the look and feel of his community.
Jack's accomplishments in agriculture were also well known. He was
recognized as the Outstanding Young Farmer for Virginia in 1955, and
later as Distinguished Dairyman of the Year in 1986.
Jack is survived by his two sons, John and David, who are both part
of his family dairy business. I know he will be missed dearly by both
his family and the community as a whole.
I submit the following article from The Winchester Star of Mr.
Hardesty's story.
[From the Winchester Star, Apr. 17, 2014]
Community Leader Jack Hardesty Dies
(By Val Van Meter)
Berryville.--A man who is credited for shaping the way
Clarke County looks today died Tuesday after a life of
service.
John Douglas ``Jack'' Hardesty, 82, was an entrepreneur
before that word was the height of compliment. But, while
building his family's fortunes, he also aimed to do what was
best for his community.
``He has had a tremendous influence on how the county looks
and feels,'' said Michael Hobert, current chairman of the
Board of Supervisors, a post Hardesty held for the better
part of two decades.
``He was responsible for the county's first Comprehensive
Plan,'' Hobert noted. That plan is the community's vision on
how it wants to develop into the future.
``He helped to establish our identity, and we'll have that
identity for a long time into the future.''
His support to institute sliding-scale zoning helped
preserve farmland and open space in the county and set a tone
that has continued today.
Hardesty's family roots in Clarke County go back to the
1780s, and farming was all he wanted to do.
In high school, his senior classmates predicted that,
within 10 years of their 1950 graduation, he would be milking
100 head of Holsteins. They weren't far off the mark.
He formed a partnership with his father and began building
Harvue Dairy, which grew from a 25-head, hand-milked herd to
a diary producing millions of pounds of milk a year and
shipping the genetics of its registered Holsteins all over
the world.
His importance to agriculture was recognized in 1955, when
he was named the Outstanding Young Farmer for Virginia, and
it only continued to grow. In 1986 the Virginia State
Dairyman's Association named him Distinguished Dairyman of
the Year.
As a member of the Clarke County Ruritan Club, Hardesty was
``very instrumental'' in purchasing the land for the Clarke
County Ruritan fairgrounds.
The purchase was arranged in 1960, said Billy Milleson, who
chairs the annual Clarke County Fair for the Ruritan Club.
``He and his dad ran the dairy department at the fair for
years,'' Milleson said.
He said Hardesty was one of the people who saved the
fairgrounds when the Virginia Department of Transportation
planned to put the Harry Byrd Highway bypass around
Berryville. Their preferred route took it right through the
fairgrounds, demolishing the grove of huge oak trees that
give it so much of its character.
Hardesty, Milleson said, ``went to Richmond and got it
changed.''
``He was an authentic man,'' Hobert added. He was genuine.
He had integrity and good judgment.''
Former state Sen. Russell Potts Jr. called Hardesty the
consummate gentleman.
``He was Mr. Clarke County,'' Potts said, adding that
Hardesty got into political life ``for all the right
reasons.''
In 1965, Hardesty was appointed to fill the unexpired term
of the Russell Voting District representative Bob Withers on
the Board of Supervisors.
A year later, he ran for election and won. He remained on
the board for the next 29 years, serving 17 as chairman.
``The quality of life in Clarke County is a direct result
of him insisting on high standards,'' Potts said. ``He loved
preservation,'' and the beauty of Clarke County.
Milleson said one of Hardesty's greatest characteristics
was that he was a good listener.
``He could see the other side,'' he added.
In 1963, the stockholders of the Bank of Clarke County
selected him to serve on the board of directors. In 1986, he
stepped into the chairmanship, replacing the late Eustace
Jackson, who had also preceded Hardesty as chairman of the
Clarke supervisors.
Johnny Milleson, president of the Bank of Clarke, recalled
Hardesty was always proud of his county and the bank, which
grew from two branches, one in Berryville and one in Boyce,
to 11 branches, including nine in Winchester and Frederick
County.
He said when the two attended a seminar in North Carolina
one year, people in the room were announcing their names and
how long they had been directors of their respective banks.
Most were less than five years, but one man was cheered for
serving 21.
He said Hardesty winked at him before announcing he'd been
on the board of the ``best little bank in the state of
Virginia'' for 41 years at that time.
The bank president said Hardesty was ``a part of the bank
family until his passing.''
At Christmas, Hardesty would circulate through all the bank
branches. ``He had a kind word for everyone,'' and knew
everyone.
He added that he had gone to school with Hardesty's older
son, Johnny, and had known the elder Hardesty ``since I can
remember. He always had time for you, no matter how busy he
was.
And, he was a hard worker. Meetings of the Bank of Clarke's
board still begin at 6:50 a.m., a custom started by Hardesty,
to make sure he got a full day's work in, despite taking time
out for meetings.
Running a farm, a bank and a county didn't take up all of
Hardesty's time.
He was a trustee for his church, Crum's Church, a post also
held by his father.
He helped direct the dairy industry through positions on
several organizations, including past president of the
Maryland & Virginia Milk Producers Cooperative, the Virginia
Holstein Association and the Virginia State Dairyman's
Association.
Three Virginia governors appointed him to committees to
advise them on the concerns of local governments.
He promoted the larger county economy through membership in
the Berryville-Clarke County Chamber of Commerce. This year,
the Top of Virginia Regional Chamber, which now represents
Clarke County, named Hardesty its ``Citizen of the Year'' for
his lifetime of service to the county.
He was married to Carter Conley Hardesty, who died in 2003,
for 50 years. The couple have two sons, John E. and David M.,
who are both part of the family dairy business.
A funeral service is planned for 11 a.m. Tuesday at Duncan
Memorial United Methodist Church in Berryville.
Potts recalled Hardesty protesting when he introduced a
bill in the Virginia General Assembly to name a bridge for
Jack and Carter Hardesty in the district he represented for
so many years.
``I told him, `You don't have any say in it,' '' Potts
recalled.
Then-Gov. Mark Warner and Sen. Charles ``Chuck'' Robb,
along with former Sen. Harry F. Byrd Jr., all came for the
ceremony, Potts recalled.
Both Democrats and Republicans respected Hardesty.
Said Potts, ``If you couldn't get along with Jack Hardesty,
you couldn't get along with anyone.''
Contact Val Van Meter at [email protected]
[[Page E644]]
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