Long-time Dare County Commissioner Warren Judge died on Saturday, Nov. 5, just days after he was rushed to Sentara Heart Hospital in Norfolk and just days before an election in which he might have been elected to the N.C. House of Representatives District 6 seat.
He wasn’t, although his wife, Tess, who shared his passion for service and community, was asked by the District 6 Democratic Executive Committee to accept his votes and to serve should he be elected on Nov. 8 and she had agreed that she would.
That didn’t happen — but more about that later.
I would like to add my voice to all of those who have paid tribute to Judge in the days since his death.
He and his wife lived in Dare County for almost 30 years, and Warren, a Democrat, had served on the Dare County Tourism Board and Airport Authority before he was elected to the Board of Commissioners in 2000. He was chairman of the board for 11 years, from shortly after his election until December 2014 when Republicans won control of the board in the November general election.
During the years he served Dare County, Warren served on countless boards and commissions and spent countless hours helping the folks in Dare County — rich and poor. He really was a man for all the people.
His list of achievements for the people he served is very long, but today I want to focus on just the pages of that list that especially involved Hatteras Island and its residents.
“He was a very good man, a good friend, and a very good friend to Hatteras Island, he will be missed,” said Allen Burrus, of Hatteras village, his colleague on the Board of Commissioners.
Burrus and many others used the same word to describe Judge — “a gentleman.”
If you approached him when he was sitting down, Burrus said, Warren “got to his feet, shook your hand, and made you feel special.”
“I don’t know if Dare County will ever see the likes of him again,” said Danny Couch of Buxton, who was elected this week to fill the District 4 seat, representing Hatteras Island, on the Board of Commissioners — a seat that Burrus did not seek again for health reasons.
“He loved Hatteras Island. He was a champion for this island…He really knew how to connect with the people,” Couch continued.
“That guy was everywhere,” he said.
And, indeed, that is one of the things that I will remember most about Warren Judge.
I first became aware of the fact that he was everywhere on Hatteras was after Hurricane Isabel in 2003. That storm cut an inlet between Frisco and Hatteras village, and for two months, Hatteras village — or “little Hatteras” as it became known was cut off from the rest of the world.
But not from Warren. He was down in Little Hatteras all the time — or so it seemed — with fellow commissioners Renee Cahoon or John Robert Hooper of Buxton, who, at the time, represented Hatteras Island on the board.
I would often see him go by my house on a boat that belonged to his friend Tim Midgett or to Ed Daggers, who, at the time, was chef and owner of Austin Creek Grill in Hatteras village. Warren would park down the street where Daggers lived and either Ed or Tim would run him down to the village.
Judge was very involved, along with other local leaders, with getting the job of filling the inlet and repairing Highway 12 done quickly and helping the village recover.
Through the years, Judge did indeed seem to be everywhere on Hatteras Island and wherever at least three people got together for a meeting, it seemed like he showed u up.
I got to know him better — as a news source and a friend — when he fought passionately for Hatteras Island on a negotiated rulemaking committee, set up by the federal government to settle a lawsuit against the National Park Service by environmental groups that were out to limit — or some say stop — the use of ORVs on the Cape Hatteras National Seashore.
During and after the formulation of the Park Service’s ORV plan and final rule in 2012, Judge made many trips with local advocates for more reasonable public access to Washington, D.C., to talk to the state’s Congressional delegation and to testify before various Congressional committees.
Next he went up against some of the same environmental groups who also filed a lawsuit to stop the state Department of Transportation’s plan to replace the Herbert C. Bonner bridge over Oregon Inlet with a parallel span.
He fought for years to get the new bridge built and created and empowered a group of Hatteras islanders — the Citizens’ Committee to Replace the Bonner Bridge, led by Beth Midgett of Hatteras village — who also joined the fight.
The lawsuit was finally settled last year, and ground was broken in March for the new Bonner Bridge.
Judge and Burrus also led the charge to have the county nourish the beach in north Buxton when it became apparent that the state wasn’t going to do it unless an inlet opened in the area.
When the Board of Commissioners announced that it would seek the Park Service’s permission to nourish the beaches, no one thought it would ever happen.
While some property owners in north Buxton are still unhappy with Judge and other board members that nourishment didn’t happen immediately, others are still impressed that it will happen next year — lightning speed when you consider all the federal and state agencies that had to be involved.
And those are just a few of the examples of Hatteras Island issues in which Judge led the way.
He was on the island for countless other meetings and hearings and for festivals and celebrations, including Day at the Docks, one of his favorites. However, he also was on the island for smaller but very important ceremonies, such as graduation at Cape Hatteras Secondary School of Coastal Studies.
Shortly after Republican Wally Overman was appointed to the board to replace the late Richard Johnson, Judge started showing up at all kinds of events and meetings on Hatteras with Overman in tow.
Some folks wondered what the Democratic chairman was doing dragging the Republican newcomer around the island. They found them a curious duo, to say the least.
However, Warren also had a penchant for working with officials from “across the aisle,” as they say. I never asked, but I am sure he would have said that doing this was what was best for Dare County.
And, actually, it was Wally Overman who gave one of the more touching tributes to Warren Judge at the Board of Commissioners meeting last Monday.
In his commissioners comments, Overman mentioned several housekeeping details, and saved his comments about Judge for last.
First, Overman almost choked up as he gathered himself to begin speaking. After a short pause, he continued.
“I want to say “thank you’ for his years of service to Dare County,” Overman said, “for Warren loved Dare County with a servant’s heart.
“When I joined the board, I asked a lot of questions. Warren was chairman at the time, and he answered me patiently and thoroughly. Though we differed politically, I never found an instance where Warren gave me an incorrect or politically motivated response. I will always remember that. I think that is a good measure of the man.”
I am sorry that Warren did not live to serve the people of Dare, Hyde, Washington, and part of Beaufort counties as our representative to the state House.
And I voted for him even after his death because I knew his wife, Tess, shared his values and his commitment to service.
Might he have won, if he had not died just days before the election and before the voters had a chance to hear from Tess about what she hoped to accomplish in his place?
It’s certainly possible. He lost by only 1,659 votes to Republican Beverly Boswell, who was his colleague on the Board of Commissioners. Boswell took 51.85 percent — 21,805 votes — to Judge’s 48.15 — 20,246 votes.
Judge prevailed in Washington, Hyde, and Dare counties and lost by a large margin in Beaufort County.
He might have done better in that county — or all of them — if his opponent and some of her supporters had not posted really scary messages in social media, like this one:
“If Warren Judge were to prevail in this election in spite of his passing, radical leftists who run local Democratic machines will pick an ultra-liberal extremist to ‘represent’ our district for the next two years.
Stop them with your vote for BEVERLY BOSWELL for NC HOUSE on Tuesday. And get all your friends to do the same.”
I hardly think folks who knew Warren and Tess Judge considered her “an ultra-liberal extremist.”
SOME OF THE TRIBUTES TO WARREN JUDGE
Fountain Odom, chairman of the Dare County Democratic Party:
“Warren has left us much too soon. There were so many things that he still wanted to do, including providing North Carolina House District 6 with representation that could work on filling the many critical needs of the region.
But the truth is that Warren had already accomplished more than just about any public servant anywhere. He did so with strength, determination and wonderful leadership skills.
He worked to find ways to replace crumbling schools and add new ones, while also supporting education in the classroom and the dedicated teachers who provide it. His idea for the Five-on-Five concept of interacting with school administrators and school board members improved relations between the two boards so efforts could be concentrated on ensuring the best possible education for students in Dare County.
Warren didn’t care whether someone was a janitor or a bank president ? he was equally interested in what they had to say and how he could help them by making this a better place to live.
Big steps in diversifying the county’s economy were achieved when he helped cut the ribbons on the Coastal Studies Institute and the Outer Banks Hospital.
Warren worked tirelessly with his friend and fellow commissioner Alan Burrus to find a way to provide drug treatment in Dare County after the failure of the state to adequately address the issue. The result was New Horizons where counseling and help was available.
He refused to allow anyone to forget the need for a bridge to replace Herbert C. Bonner Bridge. Year after year, he pushed for a resolution to the stalemate that left the issue unresolved. Lawmakers both at the state and federal level knew that they would have no peace until there was a plan, funding and construction.
?Warren was a never-ending advocate for growing our economy and protecting our beaches and worked for over a decade to bring beach nourishment to Dare County.
He led the Visitors Bureau and served on many board during his 16 years on the board of commissioners.
When beach access was denied on Hatteras Island, he rolled up his sleeves and took on whomever got in the way of achieving a more balanced approach. If there was a meeting ? didn’t matter if it was in Raleigh or the nation’s capitol ? Warren was there.
The recession hit the county hard and our economic boat was leaking. But with Warren at the helm, we weathered that storm much better than many other counties in the state.
His commitment to his community had no boundaries. He attended every meeting, event or gathering possible so that he could ensure that he knew what the issues were that were most important important to his constituents. He never took them for granted, ever.
Partisanship never played a roll in any of his actions. He and his friend, the late Richard Johnson were fellow commissioners who never let the differences in their party politics dictate their commitment to their community.
The Dare County Democratic Party now mourns his loss but also celebrates his life that he dedicated to his family, church and community. “
North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory:
“I was saddened to learn today of the passing of Dare County Commissioner Warren Judge. In his 16 years as a commissioner, he worked tirelessly for his community, including working with me to help make the replacement of the Bonner Bridge a reality. Ann and I offer our prayers to his family during this difficult time.”
Robert Woodard, chairman of the Dare County Board of Commissioners:
Woodard remembered Judge as ?someone who dedicated his life to public service. Whether serving on one of the many committees that benefitted from his wisdom and experience, or assisting someone in the community who needed his help, you could always count on Warren Judge.
?Warren truly loved Dare County and demonstrated it every day in the passionate way that he worked to make a difference as a Dare County Commissioner. He will long be remembered as a community leader and cherished for his legacy of public service. We are united in prayer for Warren?s wife Tess and all of his family.?
Dare County Board of Education Chair Bea Basnight:
“As we share a moment of silence, please remember a true friend of Dare County and of education, Commissioner Warren Judge. With the passing of Commissioner Judge, Dare County and the state of North Carolina have lost a dedicated, honorable and passionate advocate for the education of all students. Under Warren?s leadership, Dare County embarked on a multi-million dollar school building project to provide students and teachers safe and well-planned schools because Warren listened to the needs of our students and acted. Always wanting to work together to benefit our students and teachers, Warren was the architect of the 5 on 5 Committee, a joint task force, which has improved the communication and relationship between the Board of Commissioners and the Board of Education. Warren never missed an opportunity to ask what he could do for our schools. Warren truly cared about every student, every teacher, and every person in Dare County. Warren was, indeed, a visionary who led a life of public service and was deeply committed to education. He will be missed. “
North Carolina Democratic Party Chairwoman Patsy Keever:
?We at the North Carolina Democratic Party were tremendously saddened to learn that Warren Judge has passed away. Mr. Judge was a good person, a well-respected public official and a true champion for his constituents in Dare County. The state of North Carolina is poorer without Mr. Judge and his contributions to public service. We will miss him deeply, and our thoughts and prayers are with his family in this difficult time.?
