THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, June 17, 1996 TAG: 9606150009
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A6 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Letter
LENGTH: 50 lines
On June 8, Hampton Roads and Virginia lost a great treasure. U.S. District Judge Richard B. Kellam stood for all that one might be in our land.
Without the benefit of university and graduate-school training, Judge Kellam stood as one of the most learned, erudite and wise citizens of our region. Not only did he serve on the bench longer than many spend in a career, but he practiced law for three decades before that. No one in the commonwealth had a better appreciation for the laws of Virginia than this self-taught lawyer and jurist who devoted more than six decades to the law.
Many may not know of Judge Kellam's quiet spirit and guiding influence over countless lawyers and law clerks over the past 36 years. (One lawyer has so well stated, ``Judge Kellam is the one judge before whom you never minded losing a case because he never made you ill at ease and somehow always made you feel like you had won, just practicing in front of him - it was his own gracious way.'')
Many never saw the way Judge Kellam, without exception, after a trial stepped down from the bench, went to counsel table and shook hands with the attorneys, complimenting them on their cases.
But Judge Kellam's commitments did not stop with his career. He was loyal to his family heritage - steeped in the history of Princess Anne County. Many do not know that he served his country as a paratrooper during World War II. The list of his community activities and leadership is lengthy. His unmistakably genuine generosity can be attested to by scores of people who were touched by him and his thoughtfulness or his keen sense of humor.
The absence of the judge in the white linen suits and saddle oxfords this summer will be evident in the halls of the federal courthouse and throughout our region. The quintessential Southern gentleman, Judge Kellam embodied what Robert E. Lee described in his definition of a gentleman: ``The power which the strong have over the weak, the employer over the employed, the educated over the unlettered, the experienced over the confiding, even the clever over the silly - the forbearing or inoffensive use of all this power or authority, or a total abstinence from it when the case admits it, will show the gentleman in a plain light.'' In his modest and humble character, Richard Kellam was such a man - powerful and yet restrained and serving in his use of his position. He was a true public servant.
In saying farewell to one of our greatest native sons, I am reminded of something Judge Kellam often said: ``We're so blessed and we don't even know it.'' Hampton Roads and Virginia, we have been so very, very blessed, and some may not have known it; but many more shall not soon forget Richard Kellam's legacy of honor and public service.
RICHARD BARTON CAMPBELL
Virginia Beach, June 10, 1996 by CNB