[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 4 (Wednesday, January 6, 2021)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E11]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              HONORING AUGUSTUS BENTON ``BEN'' CHAFIN, JR.

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. H. MORGAN GRIFFITH

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, January 6, 2021

  Mr. GRIFFITH. Madam Speaker, I rise in honor of Virginia state 
Senator Augustus Benton ``Ben'' Chafin, Jr. of Lebanon, Virginia, who 
died on January 1, 2021 at the age of 60. Ben was a dedicated and 
effective state legislator and a kind and decent man.
  Ben was a true son of Southwest Virginia. He was born on May 18, 1960 
in Abingdon, Virginia. He earned a bachelor's degree from East 
Tennessee State University and a law degree from the University of 
Richmond. Ben practiced law in Lebanon as a principal of the Chafin Law 
Firm. He also served as a board member of the First Bank and Trust, 
which his father had helped to found, and ran a beef cattle farm.
  In 2013, Ben won a seat in the Virginia House of Delegates. A year 
later, he won a special election to represent the 38th District in the 
Virginia Senate. The 38th District includes all of the Counties of 
Bland, Buchanan, Dickenson, Russell, Tazewell, and Pulaski, parts of 
the Counties of Smyth, Wise, and Montgomery, and the Cities of Norton 
and Radford. He was a great representative for the citizens of these 
jurisdictions, focused on listening to their concerns and addressing 
them with compassion and integrity. He was a voice in Richmond for the 
region he had long called home and the people he had known as his 
friends and neighbors.
  Ben was my friend and a good friend to all of us in Southwest 
Virginia. He and I knew each other well as we often campaigned together 
across our region. The wide respect and affection Ben earned is 
indicated by the statement of Virginia Governor Ralph Northam: ``With 
the passing of Senator Ben Chafin, Southwest Virginia has lost a strong 
advocate--and we have all lost a good man.'' A similar sentiment was 
expressed by Virginia Delegate Terry Kilgore, a close friend of Ben: 
``Ben was a fighter, both in the Virginia Senate and in the courtroom 
as an attorney. I am honored to have been able to know and work with 
him. Ben is one of the most honorable and genuine individuals I have 
ever known, and his passing is a tremendous loss for our region.''
  Ben is survived by his wife Lora and his children Audra, Sophie, and 
Gus. I offer my condolences on the loss of this good man and great 
legislator.

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