2026 SESSION
ENROLLED
SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 55
Commending the Smithfield Ruritan Club.
Agreed to by the Senate, February 26, 2026
WHEREAS, the Smithfield Ruritan Club, one of the oldest chapters of Ruritan National in the United States, has enhanced local life in Smithfield and throughout Isle of Wight County by promoting fellowship and goodwill, and providing opportunities for service and outreach for 90 years; and
WHEREAS, the Smithfield Ruritan Club was established in 1935 when 29 local residents met at what is now the Smithfield Inn to petition for a charter sponsored by the Smithfield Rotary Club; and
WHEREAS, the charter members of the Smithfield Ruritan Club included numerous farmers and several prominent members of the community, such as Jesse J. Scott, publisher of The Smithfield Times , Carl M. Beale, who later donated the land for Beale Park, and P.D. Gwaltney III, whose grandfather established the meat-packing firm Gwaltney Incorporated; and
WHEREAS, Hugh Minga, a mail carrier from Carrollton, served as the first president of the Smithfield Ruritan Club and guided the organization to address the most pressing needs of the community; and
WHEREAS, the Smithfield Ruritan Club has served multiple generations of the same families in the community, and its longest-serving member, Herb Jones, joined the club in 1964; and
WHEREAS, the Smithfield Ruritan Club is unique among Ruritan chapters in that it has never had an official clubhouse; the chapter has often met in churches and other community spaces and currently gathers at Smithfield Station; and