G. Michael Pace
G. Michael Pace, Jr. graduated from Andrew Lewis High School in 1975. He was president of the Key Club, a recipient of the B’nai Brith Award, and voted “Most Versatile” by his senior class. He lettered three years in football and all four years in golf, leading as captain of the golf team and making it to the All-District team.
Michael went on to receive a B.A. from Hampden-Sydney College in 1979, and then a J.D. from the Washington and Lee University School of Law in 1984. He is now a managing partner and business lawyer for Gentry Locke Rakes & Moore, LLP. Michael has served as Chairman of the Board of Governors for the Virginia State Bar Real Property Section. He was named to the “2007 Super Lawyers” listing in the area of real estate, and designated one of the “Legal Elite” in the fields of business and real estate/construction by Virginia Business magazine. He is recommended in The Best Lawyers in America in the areas of banking law, corporate law, land use and zoning law, real estate law, financial institutions and transactions law, mergers and acquisitions, and securities law. Michael is the author of Strategies in Negotiating, Drafting and Closing on Contracts for the Purchase and Sale of Commercial Real Estate in Virginia, which was published in 2001 and revised in 2007. In 2008, he became President of the Virginia Bar Association.
Michael has served as Chairman of the Roanoke Regional Chamber of Commerce. He is a former President and current Executive Committee Member of the Roanoke Valley Economic Development Partnership, Chairman of The Business Leadership Fund, and Chair-elect of The Business Council. He was formerly President of the Hampden-Sydney College Alumni Association and is now a Trustee of Hampden-Sydney. Michael serves as a board member of the Virginia Western Community College Foundation and the SunTrust Roanoke Advisory Board.
In 2006, Michael received the Roanoke Bar Association President’s Silver Volunteer Service Award for having given 249-500 hours in community service. One year later, the Virginia Bar Association recognized him for having done more than 100 hours of certified pro bono legal and nonlegal work.
Michael and his wife, Nancy, live in Salem. They have two daughters, Maggi and Cate.
In recognition of his outstanding career achievements, G. Michael Pace, Jr. is inducted into the 2008 Salem Alumni Hall of Fame established by the Salem Educational Foundation and Alumni Association.
