NEWBERRY — Robert Lake IV is following in his father’s shoes, taking on the position of Whitmire Town Attorney when his father retires at the end of June.

Lake, who was born and raised in Prosperity, is a 2007 graduate of Mid-Carolina High School. After graduating high school Lake attended Winthrop University, graduating in 2011 with a degree in political science. Lake played baseball at Winthrop, and after graduating he was picked up by the New York Mets to play in the minor league.

Lake played for the Mets for a year before being released. He said playing minor league ball was an experience he will always be thankful for.

“It was great and I wouldn’t trade it for the world, I’m very thankful for the opportunity. It was fun to watch some of my friends going on to the big level and just to know them on a personal level,” he said.

After hanging up his cleats, Lake attended the University of South Carolina School of Law where he graduated in 2015 with a law degree.

Being an attorney runs in the family, Lake’s granddad and father Robert Lake III served as attorneys. He said his father’s best piece of advice when taking on the role as attorney is that integrity is everything, advice that he will continue to take as he serves as Whitmire Town Attorney.

“I was exposed to it for as long as I can remember, didn’t know if that was something I wanted to get into until I was a little bit older and saw where a good lawyer can make a really good or really bad difference in somebody’s life, I want to be able to help those people,” Lake said.

Lake is also looking forward to getting to know more of the Whitmire community.

“I know a good many folks in Whitmire, I’ve spent half, probably most of my life there so I’ve spent a great deal of time there and I’ve lived there for about two years now,” he said.

Lake added that the most difficult part of his job is not being able to help everybody.

“They come to you because they have a problem they can’t solve on their own and truthfully there are some problems you just can’t fix whatever the case may be, and that’s probably the hardest part is telling someone that they’re stuck and there’s nothing we can do about it, especially when someone gets taken advantage of,” he said.

As his father’s retirement gets closer, Lake knows that he has big shoes to fill and he wants to take what he’s learned from both his father and granddad to help the Town of Whitmire grow and develop.

“There is definitely a feeling like I’m at the bottom of a hill looking up, he’s (Lake III) done a very good job, is a man of integrity and so I definitely have some big shoes to fill,” Lake said. “I just want to do my best to maintain the status of Whitmire and hopefully see it grow and get better.”

Robert Lake IV will serve as Whitmire Town Attorney upon his father’s retirement at the end of June.
https://www.newberryobserver.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/web1_LakePIC.jpgRobert Lake IV will serve as Whitmire Town Attorney upon his father’s retirement at the end of June. Kelly Duncan | The Newberry Observer

By Kelly Duncan

kduncan@newberryobserver.com

Reach Kelly Duncan at 803-768-3123 ext. 1868 or on Twitter @TheNBOnews.