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COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS, VETERANS AFFAIRS AND CONSUMER PROTECTION BILL NO. 36-0220 Thirty-Sixth Legislature of the Virgin Islands January 12, 2026 An act honoring and commending former Senator Lorraine L. Berry posthumously for her decades of outstanding public service by renaming Hull Bay Road located in North Side, St. Thomas, the “Lorraine L. Berry Drive” PROPOSED BY: Senator Avery L. Lewis Sponsor: Angel L. Bolques, Jr. WHEREAS, Lorraine Ledee Berry was born on the island of St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, 1 on November 15, 1949, to Joseph and Emelda Ledee; 2 WHEREAS, Lorraine L. Berry developed a strong interest in politics and social justice 3 as a teenager after being inspired by the oratory of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in his historic “I 4 Have a Dream” speech on August 8, 1963; 5 WHEREAS, Lorraine L. Berry was a Democrat all her adult life, having cast her first 6 vote as a Democrat in 1968 and subsequently founding the Virgin Islanders for Democratic 7 Action Club, in addition to serving innumerable terms as a member of the Territorial Committee 8 of the Virgin Islands Democratic Party; 9 WHEREAS, Lorraine L. Berry first became actively involved in politics as a result of 10 her work as PTA President of the Robert Merrick School (now Joseph Sibilly Elementary 11 2 School), prompting Earle B. Ottley and Roy Gottlieb to initiate a write-in campaign, without 1 her knowledge, to draft her to serve in the Democratic Territorial Committee; 2 WHEREAS, prior to her legislative service, Lorraine L. Berry served the people of the 3 Virgin Islands in various capacities, including the Office of Delegate to Congress Ron de Lugo, 4 the Bureau of Audit and Control (now the Office of the Inspector General), the Industrial 5 Incentive Board (now the Economic Development Authority), and the Neighborhood Youth 6 Corps In-School Program; 7 WHEREAS, Lorraine L. Berry won a seat in the 15th Legislature of the Virgin Islands 8 and began her term of office in January 1983, marking the commencement of a distinguished 9 24-year tenure in the Legislature, serving from the 15th through the 26th Legislatures; 10 WHEREAS, Senator Berry received numerous honors and awards throughout her career, 11 including the Legislator’s Award, the Holy Family Catholic Church Mother of the Year Award, 12 the Legislature’s Cup Award, the Beacon Schools Award, to name a few; 13 WHEREAS, Lorraine L. Berry, in addition to serving as President of the 22nd and 25th 14 Legislatures, served the body in a number of key leadership positions including Chair of the 15 Committee on Government Operations in the 15th Legislature, Chair of the Committee on 16 Finance in the 17th, 18th, and the 23rd legislatures, Majority leader of the 18th Legislature, 17 Chair of the Committee on Health in the 19th and 20th Legislatures, and Vice-President and 18 Chair of the Committee on Public Safety, the Judiciary, Homeland Security and Justice in the 19 25th Legislature; 20 WHEREAS, Lorraine L. Berry’s twelve consecutive terms in the Legislature of the 21 Virgin Islands distinguishes her as having the longest continuous tenure of any member in the 22 history of the Legislature of the Virgin Islands; 23 3 WHEREAS, in addition to Lorraine L. Berry’s legislative service, she served the people 1 of the Virgin Islands on numerous boards and commissions including Co-Chair of the 2 Commission on Status and Federal Relations; Ex-officio member of the Public Services 3 Commission; Governor Farrelly’s Task Force on Health Care Reform; the Judicial Council; the 4 Law Review Commission; the Law Enforcement Planning Commission; the Cruise Ship Task 5 Force; the Family Support 360 Advisory council of the University of the Virgin Islands Center 6 for Excellence in Development Disabilities; the VI EPSCOR Governing Board; Governor 7 Turnbull’s Interagency Council on Homelessness; the Virgin Islands Cultural Endowment for 8 the Humanities; and the Salt River Task Group; 9 WHEREAS, Lorraine L. Berry, over the course of her tenure, improved the lives of 10 thousands of Virgin Islands residents by spearheading a number of important legislative 11 initiatives including the Government Financial Accountability Act, The Virgin Islands 12 Economic Development Program, the creation of the Enterprise Zone Program, the enactment 13 of the Hospital and Health Facilities Corporation Act which led to the semi-autonomy and 14 accreditation of hospitals on St. Thomas and St. Croix, the Child Protection Act of 2002, the 15 Justifiable Use of Force Policy, the Comprehensive Omnibus Justice Act of 2005, and the 16 Donated Leave Program; 17 WHEREAS, Lorraine L. Berry throughout her tenure as a public servant, was a tireless 18 advocate on behalf of women, children, and families in the territory and not only enacted 19 legislation but sponsored programs, annual women’s conferences, essay contests and other 20 programs to empower women and families and to heighten awareness of the challenges they 21 face; 22 4 WHEREAS, Lorraine L. Berry was a staunch advocate of fiscal responsibility and 1 accountability, often waging war against what she termed the “four horsemen of the 2 Apocalypse” fiscal irresponsibility, corruption, cronyism and rampant waste; 3 WHEREAS, Lorraine L. Berry’s service to the community has been recognized by 4 numerous community, professional and business organizations, thus earning her hundreds of 5 awards including: 1997 Rotary Person of the Year Award, the St. Thomas- St. John Chamber 6 of Commerce Wilbur “Bill” La Motta Public Service Award, the Project Hope Award, the 7 Virgin Islands Commission on the Status of Women Award, induction into the Women’s Hall 8 of Fame in 2007, the Orde National du Merite Award from Jacques Chirac, former President 9 of France, the AFT Feddy Award, COAST outstanding Legislature’s Cup Award honoring her 10 service from the 15th to the 26th Legislatures, the Beacon Schools Award; 11 WHEREAS, Lorraine L. Berry retired from the Legislature in 2007 after twenty-four 12 uninterrupted years of service, leaving behind a legacy of leadership, advocacy, and civic 13 responsibility; 14 WHEREAS, Lorraine L. Berry passed away on July 19, 2010, after a year-long battle 15 with colon cancer, to the sorrow of thousands of Virgin Islanders; 16 WHEREAS, Lorraine L. Berry is and will forever remain an iconic figure in Virgin 17 Islands politics, symbolizing civic responsibility, government accountability, public service, 18 and the empowerment of women in leadership; Now, Therefore, 19 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the Virgin Islands: 20 SECTION 1. The Legislature of the Virgin Islands, on behalf of the people of the Virgin 21 Islands, hereby posthumously honors and commends the late Senator Lorraine L. Berry for her 22 decades of outstanding public service as a legislator and community leader. 23 5 SECTION 2. In recognition and appreciation of her contributions, the President of the 1 Legislature, or the President’s designee, shall present perma plaque copy of this act to the 2 family of the late Senator Lorraine L. Berry at an appropriate ceremony, at which time the 3 signage authorized in section 3 shall be unveiled. 4 SECTION 3. The public road currently known as Hull Bay Road, located on the North 5 Side of St. Thomas is hereby renamed the “Lorraine L. Berry Drive.” The Department of Public 6 Works shall erect and maintain appropriate signage to reflect this designation. 7 SECTION 4. The sum of $10,000 is appropriated in the fiscal year ending September 8 30, 2026, from the St. Thomas Capital Improvement Fund to the Department of Public Works 9 to erect and maintain the signage mandated in section 3. 10 BILL SUMMARY 11 This act posthumously honors and commends former Senator Lorraine L. Berry for her 12 decades of outstanding public service by renaming the Hull Bay Road located on North Side 13 St. Thomas, the “Lorriane L. Berry Drive.” 14 BR25-0859/November 20, 2025/PFA 15