Robert Hurt, Kathy,  his wife, and one of their two children take time out from campaigning for a quick picture.

Robert Hurt reading to his son.

     I would like to take a moment to reflect on my experience and qualifications as a candidate.  I grew up here in Pittsylvania County.  I attended schools here in the county.  My first job was selling the Star-Tribune along Main Street in Chatham at age ten for Mr. Preston Moses.  In the summer during high school, I worked for Lewis and Nancy Gregory on their tobacco farm down in Java.   I worked in the tobacco fields topping and pulling tobacco, and I never seemed to get to drive the tractor.  I also spent two summers working in construction for Fred Blair in Gretna.  Both of these jobs instilled in me the importance of hard work.  Indeed, I learned what it was like to make an honest living.  

     After finishing high school, I went to Hampden-Sydney College where I studied English and History and Political Science.  It was there that I developed a keen interest in our enduring U.S. Constitution and the history of our democracy.  During the summer of my final year in college, I worked for Bill Fuller in the Danville Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office.  It was during that summer with Mr. Fuller in his office and in the courtroom that I realized that I wanted to become a lawyer.  It was there that I realized the enormous responsibility of lawyers in seeing that justice is achieved on a day-to-day basis. 

     I went to law school.  There I obtained invaluable legal training.  But I also sought out that practical experience that can only be obtained in the field.  During my law school years, I worked in the criminal litigation section of the Mississippi Attorney General’s Office and in the U.S Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Mississippi.  During my first summer of law school, I worked in the Dekalb County District Attorney’s Office in Atlanta.  During my second summer of law school, I worked for the Virginia Attorney General’s office in Richmond.  During my final semester in law school, I attended the Cardozo School of Law in New York and worked for New York State Supreme Court Judge Leslie Crocker Snyder.  

     After law school I returned to Virginia to take the bar exam.  After six months in private practice in Chatham, David Grimes hired me to serve as an Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney for Pittsylvania County.   I was later promoted to Chief Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney.  It was a fantastic job.  One of the most important things I first realized in the practice of law is that there is no greater asset than your credibility – that is, your word is your bond.   Furthermore, I was thrown into the courtroom fray right off the bat.   In the courtroom I learned the art of advocacy. I learned to prepare and deliver persuasive arguments.  I learned to think on my feet.  Perhaps the most enjoyable part of my job was the opportunity to work with law enforcement agents from at all levels, men and women who courageously put on their uniforms every day and make our community safe.  

     After serving with Mr. Grimes for 3 1/2 years, I was given the opportunity to go into private practice with Vic Millner.  Mr. Millner has practiced law on Main Street in Chatham for nearly forty years. 

     I have dedicated much of my time to my community.  My family attends Chatham Presbyterian Church, where I have served as an elder for the past two years.  I am the President-Elect of the Chatham Rotary Club and have served as a director for the Chatham First, Inc., a group dedicated to the local revitalization of Chatham.  I also have been an active member of the Pittsylvania County Bar Association, having served as president of that organization. 

     Three years ago I was elected by lawyers of the Danville, Franklin County and Pittsylvania County Bars to serve on the Virginia State Bar Council, which is the quasi- state agency that regulates the profession of law in Virginia.   I also serve on the Virginia State Bar Budget and Finance Committee, which this year prepared an $8 million budget that must be approved Virginia Supreme Court and the General Assembly.  This experience has allowed me the opportunity to work with the finest lawyers across the Commonwealth and to become familiar with the workings of a state agency.  

     Last year I was appointed by a Joint Resolution of the General Assembly to serve with Senator Charles Hawkins, Delegate Allen Dudley, and Delegate Whitt Clement, among others, to serve as a member of the Rural Virginia Prosperity Commission.  Serving on this Commission has given me invaluable insight into the common problems that we all face in Rural Virginia and into some of the solutions that will move Rural Virginia forward.  Service on this Commission has also allowed me to gain exposure to the legislative process in the General Assembly. 

     Finally, last year, I was elected to serve on the Chatham Town Council.   I serve as Chair of the Police Committee and I also serve on the Finance Committee and Water and Sewer Committee, among others.   I have supported the overhaul of our outdated Comprehensive Plan and our dormant Planning Commission.  I have supported the revitalization of our town in the designation of the Town of Chatham by the Main Street Program and by the Virginia Department of Historic Resources as a Historic District.  This has been a great experience in learning how a local government works—an all too often forgotten perspective in Richmond.  

     The most important thing I’ve been given, of course, is my family.   My greatest assets are my devoted wife Kathryn and son Charles Hallam.  My wife, who grew up in Danville, is also active in the community.  In addition to her full time job taking care of the men in her life, she engages in her part-time passion for art in organizing local art exhibits through Shadetree Canvas Gallery.  She also serves on the boards of the Danville Concert Association, the Southern Piedmont Technology Council, and the Danville Museum.

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