My Vision and Why I am Running A History of Hard Work Deep Local Roots Family Man Proven Strong Voice and Effective Leadership Current and Past Leadership Roles My Vision and Why I am Running       Each of us has a responsibility to "give back", and I want to do my part to help our towns and communities thrive. We need a strong voice and effective leadership to accomplish this. For generations, my family has been part of Saluda County and Batesburg-Leesville and my home, family and business are here. I want to help create more opportunities to encourage our young people to return to our wonderful small towns to work and raise their families, too. To accomplish this, we must promote the many qualities that make us special. My skills and commitment to our area make me uniquely qualified to bring positive change and growth, while retaining the qualities that make this such a wonderful place to live and raise a family. Please join me as we work toward making this area an example of what can be done when committed people work toward the common goal of improving our communities. A History of Hard Work       At a young age, my family instilled within me a strong work ethic; it is what I rely on still today. My parents taught me the importance of earning a living through hard work and commitment; this has been the basis for any success I may have achieved. Rather than giving me an allowance, they encouraged me to earn my own money. At age 6, I had my first "job" and picked up pecans in my father's pecan grove. When I was 11 years old, I began my first small business, a morning paper route. That was the start of many early mornings, getting up at 4:30 am to deliver newspapers on my bicycle and then heading off to school. Growing up, I also worked at my father's clothing store, Kennedy's Men's Store, which has been serving customers in this area for 62 years. Following my father's example, I became a small business owner myself. I founded the Kennedy Law Firm in 1995 with one employee. We now have 12 full and part time dedicated staff and have expanded our business, all to better serve the people of this area. These and other life experiences have taught me the value of hard work, personal responsibility, and community service, characteristics that will make me an effective representative for you. Deep Local Roots       My family and I have been part of the local history in and around Saluda County and Batesburg-Leesville for generations. When Saluda County was first formed, my great, great, great uncle, James Butler Suddath, was her first Senator. My great, great-grandfather, Josiah Padgett III, was raised in the Richland Springs community of Saluda County. He was one of the founders of Richland Springs Baptist Church and served as one of the Church's first deacons. My grandmother, Martha Shealy Kennedy, was born and raised in Saluda County. My grandfather, Ralph 'Guy' Kennedy graduated from Clemson, Class of 1915, in engineering and built the bridge over the big Saluda River on the Newberry Highway. Later, he was appointed by Congress to the position of Postmaster and served until his retirement. During that time, he supervised the construction of what was then the new Batesburg Post Office, Lexington County's first Federal building. It would be my privilege to continue my family's service to this area as your House Representative in Columbia should you honor me with your vote. Family Man       I learned the importance of small town family values at an early age from my parents and my church, values that my wife and I have passed on to our children. After graduating from the Batesburg-Leesville public school system (where my father was Chairman of the Board of Trustees), I followed my grandfather's footsteps and attended Clemson University, graduating in 1981 with a Bachelor of Science in Accounting. While at Clemson, I was blessed to meet my wife, Lisa, and we were married in 1982. My wife and I are the proud parents of two children, Carlisle, 21, and Lauren, 19, both graduates of Batesburg-Leesville High School and current students at Clemson University. Lisa and I are lifelong active church members and have raised our children in a Christian home. I began my adult working life as a commercial banker and branch manager for the South Carolina National Bank, and then returned to school to earn my law degree. Upon graduation from USC Law School, I was fortunate to work as an attorney for the Honorable Julius H. Baggett, resident Circuit Court Judge of the Eleventh Judicial Circuit. After a one-year judicial clerkship, I became a criminal prosecutor for Saluda, Edgefield, McCormick and Lexington Counties under Solicitor Donald V. Myers. After prosecuting hundreds of criminal cases, I opened my own law firm in 1995, dedicated to helping the people and small businesses of this area. Honesty, integrity and hard work are the keys to any successful family or business. Should I be honored with your vote, I promise I will serve as your representative with honesty and integrity as the guiding principles in everything I do. Proven Strong Voice and Effective Leadership       I am proud to be a lifelong conservative, both on fiscal and social issues. For the past 14 years, I have served the children and people of Lexington County School District Three on their Board of Trustees. I am currently serving as Board Chairman, honored to have served the District as chairman for four consecutive terms. Several years ago when the ACLU began threatening to take prayer from our students at school events, I successfully led our board to stand up and fight for what was right. As a result, we still open our ballgames in Batesburg-Leesville with a student led prayer. I believe in the importance of prayer to our children's spiritual growth and development. As chairman of our school board, I led our board to pass a policy allowing student led prayer in our schools and at school events. As a result of this policy, the South Carolina Legislature later drafted and passed the 'Student-Led Message Act' which sanctions school boards adopting a policy permitting student led messages, including prayers, at school sponsored events. I fought hard, in spite of ACLU threats to sue our school district, and arranged for a legal defense to any lawsuit at absolutely no cost to our school district. Keeping prayer in our schools for our students was important to our community, and I fought hard for what I knew was right. In the same manner, I will fight hard for you as your representative to make your voices heard. It takes a strong voice and effective leadership to promote positive change and achieve visible success. Please honor me with the opportunity to be your strong voice and effective leader in the House of Representatives, and together we will ensure that our communities prosper. Current and Past Leadership Roles Community Leaders Chairman of the Board of Trustees (Batesburg-Leesville School District) (4 terms) President of the Batesburg-Leesville Rotary Club Rotary International Paul Harris Fellow Clemson University Parents’ Council Advisory Board Batesburg-Leesville Chamber of Commerce and Past Chamber Board of Directors Executive Committee Member of the Lexington County Republican Party Lexington County Sheriff’s Advisory Board member Past President of the Batesburg-Leesville Lions Club Featured on ESPN’s Outside the Lines: HS Football and Prayer Professional Roles Former Circuit Court Judicial Law Clerk Former Criminal Prosecutor/Assistant Solicitor 1987-1995 Attorney for B-L Rescue Squad Represented the Department of Social Services for 10 years, protecting children Businessman – former commercial/consumer banker Rock solid conservative Republican Community Activities Batesburg-Leesville Band Booster Club Past President Batesburg-Leesville Athletic Booster Club Coached Girls’ Softball for many years for B-L girls and also Saluda and RSM girls in All-Stars and traveling ball teams Former Youth Soccer Coach Coached Little League Baseball for many years Past Scorekeeper & Announcer for B-L Varsity Softball Teams Property owner and taxpayer in both Saluda and Lexington Counties

Ralph Shealy Kennedy Announced his Candidacy for South Carolina House of Representatives
Ralph Shealy Kennedy Jr. officially announced his candidacy for South Carolina House of Representatives Seat 39 Wednesday, March 24.        "I am running for this elected position to contribute all that I can to ensure the future success of our communities and our state, primarily because the area that encompasses House Seat 39 has been home to my family for generations. Being raised in this area is a major factor in the quality of life that I and my family enjoy today. I have been blessed by these communities throughout my childhood and now in my adult life. I am running for office because I want to give back to the communities that have given so much to me."        Kennedy's platform is primarily based on his desire to improve the opportunities in Saluda County and Batesburg-Leesville. "I want to increase the opportunities available to the people of our communities. Our schools should be growing in enrollment. Instead, the enrollment numbers are decreasing. We must work together to ensure we create and build the opportunities in employment, education and quality of life, that will entice our young people to stay here and raise their families." Kennedy further states; "Batesburg-Leesville and the communities that comprise Saluda County can build a partnership that will make these things happen. Together, we can build on the tremendous characteristics that make this area a great place to work, live and grow."        Ralph S. Kennedy Jr. was raised in Batesburg-Leesville and has family in both Saluda County and Batesburg-Leesville, He graduated Batesburg-Leesville High School, Clemson University and the University of South Carolina School of Law. Ralph is married to wife, Lisa, and they have two children, Lauren and Carlisle, both attending Clemson University. He began his law career in 1986 as a judicial aid to the Honorable Julius Baggett, then as an assistant solicitor for Saluda, Lexington, Edgefield and McCormick counties, and is now in private practice in Batesburg-Leesville. The Kennedy Law Firm employs 12 people, including four attorneys.	Ralph Shealy Kennedy, Jr.