Vernie D. McGaha (born September 13, 1947) is an

American politician The politics of the United States function within a framework of a constitutional federal republic and presidential system, with three distinct branches that share powers. These are: the U.S. Congress which forms the legislative branch, a bic ...

and former

state senator A state senator is a member of a state's senate in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a member of the unicameral Nebraska Legislature. Description A state senator is a member of an upper house in the bicameral legislatures of 49 U ...

for

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

's south central 15th district, which includes the

counties A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

of Adair, Casey, Pulaski, and Russell.

Biography

McGaha is the son of Schyler and Barbara McGaha of Columbia in Adair County. He graduated in 1965 from Adair County High School. He studied

music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspect ...

and in 1969 received a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

degree from

Campbellsville University Campbellsville University (CU) is a private Christian university in Campbellsville, Kentucky. It was founded as Russell Creek Academy and enrolls more than 12,000 students. The university offers associate, bachelor's, and master's degrees. In 2 ...

in Campbellsville in Taylor County in central Kentucky. In 1971, he received a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

from

Western Kentucky University Western Kentucky University is a public university in Bowling Green, Kentucky. It was founded by the Commonwealth of Kentucky in 1906, though its roots reach back a quarter-century earlier. It operates regional campuses in Glasgow, Elizabethtow ...

Bowling Green A bowling green is a finely laid, close-mown and rolled stretch of turf for playing the game of bowls. Before 1830, when Edwin Beard Budding of Thrupp, near Stroud, UK, invented the lawnmower, lawns were often kept cropped by grazing sheep on ...

. From 1969 to 1986, McGaha was band director at Russell County High School in Russell Springs. He was appointed principal of Union Chapel Elementary School from 1986 to 1987 and Russell County Middle School from 1988 to 1995. After he retired from professional education, McGaha said he felt the call of

God In monotheism, monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator deity, creator, and principal object of Faith#Religious views, faith.Richard Swinburne, Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Ted Honderich, Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Ox ...

that he enter politics, adding that he delights in helping constituents "stuck in the red tape of government."Hillary C. Wright, "Vernie McGaha, '69, finds success in public office, ''The Campbellsvillian: The Magazine for Alumni and Friends of Campbellsville University'', February 2009, p. 7 McGaha is a member of the New Hope

Separate Baptist The Separate Baptists were an 18th-century group of Baptists in the United States, primarily in the South, that grew out of the Great Awakening. The Great Awakening was a religious revival and revitalization of piety among the Christian churc ...

Church in Russell Springs, where he serves as senior deacon, adult

Sunday school A Sunday school is an educational institution, usually (but not always) Christian in character. Other religions including Buddhism, Islam, and Judaism have also organised Sunday schools in their temples and mosques, particularly in the West. Su ...

teacher, and

pianist A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, ja ...

. He is the lead singer and pianist of the Crossroads Quartet, a

gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words an ...

singing group in Russell Springs, which began in 1960 and performs mostly in Kentucky,

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

, and

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

. McGaha's father, a

baritone A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the r ...

, has also been a member of the group, which should not be confused with a

barbershop quartet A barbershop quartet is a group of four singers who sing music in the barbershop style, characterized by four-part harmony without instrumental accompaniment, or a cappella. The four voices are: the lead, the vocal part which typically carries t ...

also called

Crossroads Crossroads, crossroad, cross road or similar may refer to: * Crossroads (junction), where four roads meet Film and television Films * ''Crossroads'' (1928 film), a 1928 Japanese film by Teinosuke Kinugasa * ''Cross Roads'' (film), a 1930 Brit ...

. In an interview with the alumni

magazine A magazine is a periodical publication, generally published on a regular schedule (often weekly or monthly), containing a variety of content. They are generally financed by advertising, purchase price, prepaid subscriptions, or by a combinatio ...

, ''The Campbellsvillian'', the Reverend John Chowning, a Campbellsville University administrator who has known McGaha since the late 1960s, describes the senator as committed to "a life of service very much in line with then many

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

servant leaders among the more than 10,000 CU alumni around the world. . . . He has deep roots in the Christian faith and church, community, and family -- those things that are at the foundation of what has made our nation great. . . . He is a person of strong convictions and is known as an elected official who is accessible to the people and who has maintained close ties to his constituents." McGaha and his wife, the former Connie Sue Smith, are the parents of two children.

Committees

McGaha served on these committees: (1)

Agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...

and Natural Resources ice Chair (2) Veterans, Military Affairs, and Public Protection, (3) Appropriations and Revenue, and (4)

Education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty. Va ...

ice Chair The chairman of the Education Committee is Kenneth W. Winters, a Republican from

Murray Murray may refer to: Businesses * Murray (bicycle company), an American manufacturer of low-cost bicycles * Murrays, an Australian bus company * Murray International Trust, a Scottish investment trust * D. & W. Murray Limited, an Australian who ...

, who is also a former president of McGaha's ''alma mater'', Campbellsville University. On February 22, 2012, McGaha received the "Kids First Advocacy Award" from the Kentucky School Boards Association. The award is presented annually to a lawmaker from each of the two houses of the Kentucky Legislature."Tiger Tracks: Sen. Vernie McGaha", ''The Campbellsvillian: The Magazine for Alumni and Friends of Campbellsville University'', Vol. 10, No. 2 (Summer 2012), p. 26

Senate departure

McGaha did not seek reelection to the Senate in 2012 and endorsed Mark Polston as his successor. However, Republican primary voters nominated Chris Girdler, who then won the seat in the November general election.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McGaha, Vernie 1947 births Living people People from Russell County, Kentucky Western Kentucky University alumni Campbellsville University alumni Republican Party Kentucky state senators American school principals Baptists from Kentucky