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Washington, DC -- Today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation sponsored by Congresswoman Jennifer Wexton (D-VA) to rename the post office along Winchester’s walking mall after country music icon Patsy Cline.

“I’m pleased that the House of Representatives has passed my legislation to honor country music legend and Winchester’s own Patsy Cline by renaming the post office on the city’s walking mall in her honor,” said Congresswoman Jennifer Wexton. “Patsy Cline always considered Winchester her home. It was where she was born, grew up, and discovered her dream of becoming a singer. Renaming this post office will serve as further acknowledgement of Patsy Cline’s lasting legacy on the Winchester community, and Winchester’s influence on Patsy Cline.”

“On behalf of the family, I would like to say how honored we are at the naming of the US Post Office in old town Winchester after my mother, Patsy Cline. Mom was always so proud to say she was from Winchester. I know she would be so proud and thrilled to be remembered in such a wonderful and thoughtful manner.  I'm sure she would want to thank you for all the work that went into this honor. We sincerely thank you,” said Julie Fudge, daughter of Patsy Cline.

“Tapping the U.S. Postal Service facility on the Loudoun Street Pedestrian Mall in downtown Winchester in honor of Patsy Cline is an ideal way to acknowledge the importance of her presence in her hometown. In January 1957, CBS’s Arthur Godfrey’s Talent Scouts introduced our local celebrity as ‘Patsy Cline from Winchester Virginia’ on live television just before her winning performance of ‘Walkin’ After Midnight’, and launched her as a national celebrity. This U.S. Postal Service facility is near the Patsy Cline Historic House, a National Historic Landmark, where Patsy lived the longest of anywhere in her life. Even when dreams took her to Nashville, she always called Winchester her home,” said Karen Helm, President of Celebrating Patsy Cline, Inc., a Virginia-based 501c3 whose mission is to preserve and perpetuate the legacy of Patsy Cline and her music and which owns and operates the Patsy Cline Historic House as a museum.

Virginia Patterson Hensley, or "Patsy Cline," was born in Winchester, Virginia, in 1932. Despite her untimely and tragic death in a plane crash at the age of 30, her career stands out as one of the most impressive in country music history. Patsy Cline was the first female solo artist to become a member of the Grand Ole Opry in 1960 and the first female solo artist to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1973. CMT has ranked her #1 in their Countdown of the Greatest Women in Country Music, and generations of future artists from Reba McEntire to Cyndi Lauper have cited her as an influence on their careers.

The Patsy Cline Historic House in Winchester, where she lived from 1948 to 1953, is in the National Register of Historic Places and the Virginia Landmarks Register and remains a popular tourist attraction. Patsy Cline's final resting place is just a few miles south of the house, in Shenandoah Memorial Park, where a bell tower was built in her memory in the 1980s.

Earlier today, Wexton spoke on the House floor about honoring Patsy Cline through renaming the Winchester post office. Her remarks can be viewed here.

The full text of the bill can be found here.

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