[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 2] [Extensions of Remarks] [Pages 2560-2561] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]REMEMBERING CALVIN RICHIE OF FAUQUIER COUNTY, VIRGINIA ______ HON. FRANK R. WOLF of virginia in the house of representatives Thursday, March 2, 2006 Mr. WOLF. Mr. Speaker, it is an honor for Mrs. Jo Ann Davis of Virginia and me to remember Calvin L. ``Boots'' Richie, a farmer and activist deeply committed to agriculture and his fellow farmers in Fauquier County, Virginia, who passed away on February 26. Selected by the Fauquier Times-Democrat as ``Citizen of the Year'' in 1994, Boots will be remembered for his countless accomplishments, including co-founding People Helping People of Fauquier County, Inc., a local charity offering immediate help to residents of Fauquier struggling against natural disaster, illness, or sudden financial hardship. We insert for the Record a Fauquier Times-Democrat obituary from February 28. A Fauquier native, Boots will be deeply missed by the people of the county, and at home by his family. [From the Fauquier Times-Democrat, Feb. 28, 2006] ``Boots'' Succumbs to Cancer; Southern Fauquier Farmer Was Outspoken Advocate for Agriculture, Education Calvin L. ``Boots'' Ritchie, of Bealeton, one of Fauquier County's leading citizens for the past two decades and an active force behind a home-grown charitable organization, died at home on Feb. 27 after a long and valiant fight against cancer. He was 78. A native son of Fauquier, Mr. Ritchie was born June 17, 1927 at Inglewood Farm, where he died. He earned his unique nickname as a child, when he did his chores around the farm ``wearing an adult-sized pair of gumboots that reached to his hips,'' recalled his sister, Hazel Bell, in a 1994 interview. ``He was about 5 or 6 years old, and the name stuck.'' He spent his entire life working in agriculture, first on the family farm and later, while engaged in custom farming. In the mid-1970s, he founded the Fauquier Grain Company. Mr. Ritchie came to the general public's attention in 1978, when he was involved in the American Agriculture Movement. The AAM sought 100 percent parity for farm products, and made their point by staging a memorable ``Tractorcade'' demonstration that passed through Fauquier into Washington, D.C. ``Our main agricultural export is grain, which is priced lower now than it was five years ago,'' wrote Mr. Ritchie in a 1979 column in the Democrat. ``No other industry could stay in business under these circumstances, and farmers cannot be expected to, either.'' In later years, Mr. Ritchie became a driving force behind Fauquier County's purchase of development rights program. However, it was a different crisis, far from Fauquier, that put Mr. Ritchie on a new path that would make a lasting difference for hundreds of people. In the wake of the disaster in South Carolina caused by Hurricane Hugo in 1989, Mr. Ritchie and several of his friends founded People Helping People of Fauquier County, Inc., a nonprofit corporation for the sole purpose of helping people struggling against natural disasters, illness or sudden financial hardship. Education advocate In the early 1990s--after a school bond referendum held to provide funding for a second high school failed--Mr. Ritchie became active in yet another arena. Determined to see a second high school in southern Fauquier, Mr. Ritchie persistently lobbied the School Board and pushed for the needed school bond referendum. When Liberty High School at Bealeton opened in 1994--without the funding for a football stadium--he was at the forefront of the campaign, soliciting donations and selling raffle tickets to raise the money to get the stadium built. After Mr. Ritchie and his friends on the Principal's Advisory Committee at Liberty raised $100,000 for the stadium lights, the Board of Supervisors, then under the late Dave Mangum (Lee District), came up with the remaining $250,000 to build it. Due to Mr. Ritchie's efforts and his growing, positive influence in Fauquier County, he was recognized as the Fauquier Times-Democrat's Citizen of the Year for 1994. His influence continued throughout his final years, and he often spoke out on issues that were important to him. A frequent contributor to the Democrat's opinion pages, [[Page 2561]] Mr. Ritchie's last letter was published here on Jan. 25, 2006. In it, he urged the Board of Supervisors to consider giving tax money to parents who wished to opt-out of the public schools and send their children to private or Christian schools. ``The movement would be so great that I doubt that we would have to build any more new public schools,'' he said. ``The good news is that everyone wins.'' Mr. Ritchie was a longtime, active member of Mount Carmel Baptist Church near Morrisville, where he served on the Building and Grounds Committee, as well as videographer for worship services. According to his family, one of the highlights of Boots' life was being chosen to carry the Olympic Torch. Mr. Ritchie is survived by his wife, Gail R. Ritchie; his sons, and Glenn C. Ritchie, all of Bealeton; and his daughters, Jennifer R. Krick of Bealeton and Helen R. Ritchie of Strasburg. Also surviving are his step-sons, Edward C. Lynskey of Annandale and William E. Lynskey of Midland; and his stepdaughters, Linda L. Ashby and Karen L. Hughes, both of Bealeton; and his sisters, Hazel R. Bell of Drayden, Md., Jennalee R. McNally, Marie R. Lee and Peggy R. Dahany, all of Fredericksburg; 11 grandchildren and four greatgrandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents, Wilbur Early Ritchie and Ethel Barker Ritchie; a son, Jeff A. Ritchie; and his brothers, C. Hunter Ritchie, Claude Ritchie, and Charles Dwight Ritchie. Funeral services and interment will be private. A public memorial service will be held on Saturday, March 4 at 2 p.m. at the Liberty High School auditorium. Memorial contributions may be made to the American Cancer Society, Relay for Life, P.O. Box 1095, Warrenton VA 20188; People Helping People, PO Box 3108, Warrenton VA 20188; or to Mount Carmel Baptist Church, 12714 Elk Run Road, Midland VA 22728. ____________________