Each year during the January Board of Supervisors meeting, board members discuss reorganization of leadership. On January 25, board members voted unanimously to elect Dr. Richard Bailey as the new chair. Dr. Mac Scothorn was unanimously voted to assume the vice-chair role. Dr. Scothorn had held the position of chair in 2015 and 2021.
“I am honored to take on the role of chair of the Botetourt County Board of Supervisors. All of us on the board take our jobs very seriously and we will continue to work diligently together to serve the citizens of Botetourt County. I am so happy to serve alongside my fellow board members,” Bailey said.
Bailey grew up in Botetourt County on his family farm. He is a Lord Botetourt graduate, and he is also a proud Hokie. He pursued higher education at Virginia Tech where he achieved a bachelor’s degree in Animal Science in 1979. After graduation, he farmed and worked for the Virginia Department of Agriculture until entering veterinary school in 1983. He graduated from the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine in 1987. He then began his practice of caring for animals in the county. He started working at Botetourt Veterinary Hospital in 1988 and from 1992 until 2014 he owned the vet hospital. Today, you will find him working part time at Botetourt Veterinary Hospital or at his beef cattle farm that he owns and operates. He is also serving as vice chair for the Community Foundation Serving Western Virginia. He has been a member of the Botetourt County Board of Supervisors since 2019 and was previously vice chair in 2021.