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2010 News Articles › Citizen Lawyer Profile: Lew Starling
Citizen Lawyer Profile: Lew Starling
Article Date: Tuesday, June 01, 2010
LUTHER D. STARLING JR.
Residence: Clinton
Education: Campbell University (B.A.), Wake Forest University School of Law (J.D.)
Firm: Daughtry, Woodard, Lawrence & Starling
Practice area: General practice with a concentration in civil litigation
On being a Citizen Lawyer: “It means to me that I’m also helping my fellow man in the community and trying to help those in need to make life better and to be a better human being.”
STORY
When he isn’t engaged in civil litigation practice and serving as the managing partner of his firm, Luther “Lew” Starling Jr. is busy proving that his hometown is an All-America City. The National Civic League honors 10 cities each year with the All-America City Award, which recognizes communities whose citizens work together to identify and tackle community-wide challenges and achieve uncommon results.
Since becoming the mayor of Clinton in 2001, Starling has rallied his community to strive toward winning one of those awards.
“It’s almost like a Nobel Peace Prize for a city,” said Starling, a 2010 recipient of the N.C. Bar Association’s Citizen Lawyer Award, “and we’ve been a finalist for it three times.”
A lifelong resident of Clinton, Starling said he was motivated to take on the challenge of being mayor by his desire to “improve the town and offer my services and ideas, and to help the place I live not only for me and my family, but for future families.”
Now in his fifth term in office, he spends countless hours each week attending community events and programs and listening to issues that are important to the city’s citizens at district meetings — all part of a goal, he said, to have a more open and “user-friendly” government.
However, his proudest accomplishment — and the project at the top of Clinton’s All-America City resume — has been a list of major renovations to the downtown area. Under Starling’s watch, the city has converted to underground wiring, replaced old light poles, torn down dilapidated buildings and partnered with Sampson Community College in the construction of new homes and buildings.
“I think the town was ready to be cleaned up and made into a more progressive town,” he said. “We’re making a lot of progress in cleaning it up.” Starling said the greatest reward for his civic work comes from “feeling the change” that’s taking place all around him. “What’s really wonderful, to me, is when somebody comes back to town after being gone for a while,” Starling said, “and they tell you, ‘You know, I love this town. I want to come back.’”
About the Citizen Lawyer Award
The NCBA Citizen Lawyer Award was established in 2007 to recognize lawyers who provide exemplary public service to their communities. Honorees include elected and appointed government officials, coaches, mentors and voluntary leaders of non-profit, civic and community organizations. Since 2007, there have 64 recipients of the award.
About the N.C. Bar Association
The North Carolina Bar Association, founded in 1899, is a voluntary organization of lawyers, paralegals and law students dedicated to serving the public and the legal profession. The N.C. Bar Center in Cary serves as headquarters for the NCBA and the NCBA Foundation, Inc. Though similar, the NCBA (www.ncbar.org) and the mandatory North Carolina State Bar (www.ncbar.gov) are not affiliated.