A concurrent RESOLUTION

 

To request the Department of Transportation name the portion of Santee Road in Williamsburg County from June Branch Creek to its intersection with Charleston Road "Tyrone A. Burroughs Road" and erect appropriate signs or markers at this location containing these words.

 

Whereas, born in the small Town of Lane in Williamsburg County, Tyrone A. Burroughs didn't let his small-town roots stymie his ambitions, graduating from college at age nineteen and becoming an international entrepreneur with global success; and

 

Whereas, Burroughs always valued education, graduating from high school at age sixteen and earning a Bachelor of Arts in history and political science from Benedict College. Following in his father's footsteps, he joined the military, but a medical diagnosis of retinitis pigmentosa thwarted his dreams. He made the decision to return to college at the University of South Carolina where he earned a master's degree in teaching. This fateful decision also led to him meeting his wife, Nelda, whom he married in 1981. The couple moved to Memphis, Tennessee in 1985 where they raised their family of three children; and

 

Whereas, Burroughs founded First Choice Global Sales and Merchandising Group in 1987, the first of his diverse business ventures. As president of First Choice Global, he leads a diversified portfolio of companies spanning consumer goods, real estate, finance, hospitality, and community impact initiatives. Headquartered in Memphis, First Choice is a leader in the $1.7 trillion multicultural personal care market, employing more than one hundred professionals and has received numerous industry awards and recognition; and

 

Whereas, other holdings include First Choice Opportunity Fund, South City L.P., MG Capital Holdings Inc., 115 Union Avenue, L.L.C., The Pocket Bistro, and R.S. Lewis and Sons Funeral Home, which prepared the body of Reverend Dr. Martin L. King Jr. for public viewing. In 2019, he launched Burroughs Restaurant Group Inc., which now owns the U.S. Mid-South franchise rights of Guthrie's Chicken Restaurants; and

 

Whereas, in 2010, believing it his duty to give back to the community, Tyrone and Nelda Burroughs established the Burroughs Foundation, a philanthropic organization focused on financial literacy, workforce development, and higher education access, providing scholarships, mentorships, and funding for students nationwide. He has sponsored mission work in China, fed the needy in Memphis, provided support to churches, and spends time visiting patients in nursing homes and hospitals; and

 

Whereas, Burroughs supports the community by mentoring, advising other entrepreneurs, and serving as a board member. He currently serves as a board member for the St. Jude Memphis African American Engagement Council, WKNO Board of Trustees, Faith-Based & Community Initiative Foundation, Tennessee Lottery Commission, Greater Memphis Chamber-Chairman's Circle, Memphis Theological Seminary, and Board of Directors of the Federal Reserve Bank-Memphis Branch; and

 

Whereas, he is a member of the Benedict College Board of Trustees, Board of Directors of Guaranty Bank and Trust Company, chairman of The Burroughs Foundation Inc., chairman of the Trustee Board for the historic Metropolitan Baptist Church, Memphis NAACP Branch of Directors, and Global Beauty Alliance Board. In 2017, in recognition of his philanthropic achievements in the education of America's youth, Benedict College renamed its business school the Tyrone Adam Burroughs School of Business and Entrepreneurship. He also received an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Benedict College. A 2021 inductee to the Society of Entrepreneurs, he recently received the Distinguished Citizen Award from the Boys Scouts of America for his charitable work; and

 

Whereas, his most significant accomplishment was seeing his three children not only graduate from high school but also graduate from college, receive post-graduate degrees, and ultimately start families of their own; and

 

Whereas, it is only fitting and proper that Mr. Tyrone A. Burroughs, a South Carolina native and a man of unwavering faith, who has dedicated his life in service to others is paid tribute with a road in Williamsburg County named in his honor. Now, therefore,

 

Be it resolved by the Senate, the House of Representatives concurring:

 

That the members of the South Carolina General Assembly, by this resolution, request the Department of Transportation name the portion of Santee Road in Williamsburg County from June Branch Creek to its intersection with Charleston Road "Tyrone A. Burroughs Road" and erect appropriate signs or markers at this location containing these words.

 

Be it further resolved that a copy of this resolution be forwarded to the Department of Transportation.

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