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1
SENATE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to
3learn of the death of Maya-Gabrielle Francesca Gary of Oak
4Park, who passed away on November 15, 2016; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Maya Gary was born in Melrose Park to Thomas S.
6Gary and Evette F. Little on November 3, 1998; her family moved
7from the far south side of Chicago to the south side of Oak
8Park when she was three, where she lived most of her life; and
 
9    WHEREAS, Maya Gary is the younger sister of her loving and
10very protective brother, Alexander T. Gary; a unique chemistry
11existed between them from early on, as she understood her
12brother as no other, being his counselor, collaborator, and
13emissary to the world; and
 
14    WHEREAS, Maya Gary attended the West Suburban Montessori
15School beginning in 2001; she demonstrated early on that she
16was a very skilled learner, reading by age four and possessing
17a strong mathematical mind; she also attended Whittier
18Elementary School, Julian Middle School, and Oak Park and River
19Forest High School, spending her junior year abroad at
20Stuttgart High School in Germany; she looked forward to
21attending college at either an east or west coast university;
22and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, Maya Gary was a talented performer, beginning as a
2singer in the Oak Park and River Forest Children's Choir; she
3participated in Julian Middle School's summer CAST
4(Communication Arts, Speech, and Theater) productions for four
5years; her first role was as a featured performer in the
6production "Smile"; these experiences instilled in her that
7when she entered middle school, she knew she wanted to be a
8part of the performing arts community year round, not just in
9the summers; and
 
10    WHEREAS, Maya Gary was always very proud and grateful for
11all opportunities to perform no matter how big or small, with
12roles at Julian Middle School's CAST productions such as,
13Juliet in "Romeo and Juliet", Sister Sarah in "Guys and Dolls",
14and Charlotte in "Charlotte's Web"; and
 
15    WHEREAS, Maya Gary later joined Oak Park and River Forest
16High School's show choir, Noteworthy; in the two years she was
17part of Noteworthy, they performed at Graceland in Memphis,
18Tennessee, and at a national competition at McKendree
19University in Lebanon near St. Louis, Missouri in 2015, winning
20many of the major awards; and
 
21    WHEREAS, Maya Gary showed an affinity for travel early on
22when she went with her family to Georgia, Florida, Virginia,

 

 

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1and Washington, D.C.; additionally, her father's military
2service took her to Europe, going from Amsterdam to Zurich,
3from the Austrian Alps to the Catalonian shore; her love of
4Europe's culture and history would leave a longing to visit
5again, even on a more permanent basis; and
 
6    WHEREAS, Maya Gary's political mindset began to blossom
7when she arrived at Stuttgart High School at the same time as
8the influx of refugee arrivals throughout Germany; she demanded
9that she and her father "do something" to help; she persuaded
10her father to rethink his candidate choice for the United
11States Presidential election of 2016, something no one had ever
12done before; ensuring she was registered to vote, and casting
13her ballot for the first time, she proudly and happily voted
14for women candidates running for several offices in the
15November 8, 2016 election; she departed this life on November
1615, 2016, two weeks after turning 18 and one week after voting
17in her first election; and
 
18    WHEREAS, Maya Gary was a prolific writer of short stories,
19poems, and song lyrics, with several hundred pieces archived;
20she dreamed of possibly becoming a journalist or combining her
21love of writing and music; and
 
22    WHEREAS, Maya Gary is remembered for her talent,
23intelligence, sass, beautiful spirit, and her infectious

 

 

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1smile; and
 
2    WHEREAS, Maya Gary was preceded in death by her
3grandparents, John Little, Lillian (Sharp) Reed, and Thomas
4Gary; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Maya Gary is survived by her parents, Evette
6Little and Thomas Gary; her brother, Alexander; her uncles and
7aunts, Keith, Michael, Stanley, Pat, and Sarah; her cousins,
8Neilson, Naomi, Ronnie, Donella, Monique, Jamal, Cheryl,
9Patricia, Danyell, and Yvette; and an innumerable amount of
10friends and family; therefore, be it
 
11    RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDREDTH GENERAL
12ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of
13Maya-Gabrielle Francesca Gary, and extend our sincere
14condolences to her family, friends, and all who knew and loved
15her; and be it further
 
16    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
17presented to the family of Maya Gary as an expression of our
18deepest sympathy.