TE Support Ltr Chief Justice Beasley

May 21, 2020

North Carolina Awards Selection Committee
N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources
109 East Jones Street, Suite 315
Raleigh, NC 27601

Dear North Carolina Awards Selection Committee:

I am pleased to support the nomination of Tom Earnhardt for the North Carolina Public Service Award. Tom is widely known and respected throughout North Carolina as a lawyer and historian.

I have observed Tom and his work in connection with his dedication to preserving and sharing our North Carolina Supreme Court history. Tom produced a documentary film for UNC-TV commemorating the Supreme Court’s 200^th Anniversary. The film was a fitting tribute to the institution and to the people who contributed to its evolution over the last two centuries, and I found Tom to be an indispensable historian and expert on all things in North Carolina.

It is helpful that Tom has long cared about the history of North Carolina and, long before he wrote and produced the documentary, he was a well-versed student of North Carolina institutions. Tom’s presentation of the notable history of the Supreme Court was both eloquent and contextual; he appreciates the people, the commerce, and the cultures of North Carolina while acknowledging our state’s errors with regard to discrimination and inequality. He understands that in order to celebrate the goodness of North Carolina and her courts, and to collectively work toward the state’s greatest possibilities, it is important to recognize wrongs.

Tom has contributed greatly to educating generations of lawyers. As I’ve come across his former students, each overwhelmingly remarks about how Tom’s investment in their learning and their development as a lawyer and community member indelibly remains a part of their ethos. What a gift to our state!!

Tom’s dedication and leadership during our Court’s bicentennial festivities were truly admirable. Tom is extremely kind, thoughtful and generous, and he truly enjoys his work and relationships. In recognition of his tireless efforts and enthusiastic spirit, I was pleased to present him the Friend of the Court Award in October 2019.

In short, Tom’s service to North Carolina is beyond extraordinary. I enthusiastically support his nomination for the North Carolina Public Service Award.

Sincerely,

Cheri Beasley
Chief Justice