CHARLESTON -- The Legal Aid of West Virginia Board of Directors welcomed new members during its Annual Meeting held May 11 in Charleston.
The new members were elected through a highly competitive election process involving peer-voting by members of the legal community.
Elected from Region Nine is Paul Roop. Region Nine includes Mercer, Monroe, Raleigh and Summers counties. Roop is the founder of Roop Law Office, which has offices in both Beckley and Charleston. Roop replaces Kevin Robinson who did not run for re-election.
Re-elected from Region Three -- which includes Berkeley, Grant, Hampshire, Hardy, Jefferson, Mineral, Morgan, Pendleton and Tucker counties -- is Tim Sirk. Sirk has served on the LAWV Board since 2011. Sirk is a solo-practitioner from Keyser.
Re-elected from Region 10 is Teresa McCune. Region 10 includes Logan, McDowell, and Mingo counties. McCune serves as the Chief Defender of the Public Defender Corporation in Williamson. McCune has served on the LAWV Board since 2006.
Also from Beckley is newly elected Client Board Member Jaqueline Scott Dawkins. Dawkins brings the experience of having served on the Board of Directors of Legal Aid of Iowa. Dawkins was appointed as a client board member by the NAACP Chapter of Beckley.
The Legal Aid of West Virginia Board of Directors is a diverse group of 19 volunteers from across the state who are led by Board President Andy Nason of Pepper & Nason.
LAWV Board Members include:
* Anita Casey (Charleston - WV State Bar)
* Robert Gaudio (Wheeling – Robert Gaudio Law)
* Harry Montoro (Morgantown – Law Office of Harry P Montoro)
* Diane Eagle (Masontown – appointed by RDVIC)
* Tina Faber (Kenna – Appointed by Direct Action Welfare Group)
* Loren Howley (Grantsville - Howley Law Office)
* Diane Jett (Hurricane – Appointed by Headstart)
* David Lockwood (Huntington - Lockwood & Lockwood)
* Professor Marjorie McDiarmid (Morgantown - WVU College of Law)
* Teresa McCune (Williamson - Public Defender Corporation)
* Brace Mullett (Charleston - City Holding Company and City National Bank)
* Meshea Poore (Charleston - Mountain State Bar)
* Helen Powell (Glen Jean – Member at Large)
* Misty Miller (Huntington – Appointed by Branches)
* William Saviers Jr. (Clarksburg)
* Timothy Sirk (Keyser – Sirk Law Office)
* Tom White (Lewisburg - The Law Offices of Thomas W. White PLLC)
* Cindy Thompson (Elkins – Appointed by WV Mental Health Planning Council)
* Paul Roop (Beckley – Roop Law Offices)
* Jacqueline Scott Dawkins (Beckley – Appointed by NAACP, Beckley Chapter)
"The Legal Aid of West Virginia Board of Directors is an incredibly dedicated group of people who understand the critical role that legal services play in our society," said Adrienne Worthy, Executive Director of Legal Aid of West Virginia. "I've no doubt that these new members, coupled with our long-standing members, will serve as enthusiastic ambassadors for the organization and our clients across the state."
Legal Aid of West Virginia is a statewide non-profit law firm which provides free civil legal services to West Virginia's most vulnerable citizens, including nursing home residents, domestic violence victims, abused and neglected children, families struggling with mental illness or single parents fighting to maintain housing and self-sufficiency.
In 2011, Legal Aid of West Virginia handled over 8,000 cases statewide.
For more information, visit www.lawv.net.
