×
×
homepage logo

From Rodney A. McWilliams

By Staff | Apr 27, 2011

Dear Editor,

I want to express my deep thanks and sincere excitement concerning the naming of the federal building in Martinsburg, WV for Judge W. Craig Broadwater. I want to thank our Representative Shelley Moore Capito and Senator Jay Rockefeller for pursuing the legislation and guiding it. It is a fitting tribute to an honorable and worthy man. Craig’s career in law and the military were amazing. Craig is a 1968 graduate of Paden City High School. He serves as a shining example of what dedication, hard work, a good education and drive can produce. I did not attend school with Craig but I always knew who he was and where he was excelling while watching his career spiral upward through the years. When I speak to some of his classmates, I see the most overwhelming sense of pride and admiration each of them has for Craig and what he accomplished in his life. I was fortunate to formally meet Craig when he assisted in opening the 1993 PC Labor Day Celebration. He felt completely undeserving of any honor and was humbled the festival committee and the town thought so highly of him.

A few years ago, some of Craig’s former classmates held a benefit 5K race in order to start a scholarship fund in his name. They were so excited to get this project started. The Paden City Foundation is continuing that effort this year and, in keeping with desires of the Class of 1968, will award the first W. Craig Broadwater Memorial Scholarship to a graduating senior of the Paden City High School Class of 2011. The race is schedule for Saturday, June 4 at 9 a.m. on Main Street in Paden City.

Craig was a true Wildcat and is considered one of the most accomplished and revered graduates of our school. The students, faculty, and administration of PCHS and our entire town and even others should look to him as a role model. Sadly, Craig passed on a very young age. We can only imagine what would have been accomplished had he lived longer. I am thankful for his presence in this town and world for the time he was given. Aspiring to match Craig’s high standard will help us all make this part of our world the most positive place to live. Again, thanks to our government officials for making this honor possible and THANK YOU, Craig Broadwater. You are the pride of Paden City.

Most sincerely,

Rodney A. McWilliams

Paden City Foundation