093_HR0341

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 1                          HOUSE RESOLUTION

 2        WHEREAS,  This  House  of  Representatives  of  the  93rd
 3    Illinois General Assembly has learned with much mixed emotion
 4    that Mark O'Brien has decided to complete his career after 32
 5    years of service to the Speaker of the House; and

 6        WHEREAS, Mr. O'Brien began his career  in  the  House  of
 7    Representatives  on  July  6,  1971  and  served under and/or
 8    outlasted six Governors, five Speakers,  three  redistricting
 9    plans,  issues  directors and chiefs of staff too numerous to
10    mention; and

11        WHEREAS, Mr.  O'Brien's  saw  an  estimated  55,000  bill
12    folders  slide  through  his  delicate fingers while avoiding
13    starvation and dehydration, juggling a  phone,  listening  to
14    the   Senate,   "orienting"   co-workers,  and  "encouraging"
15    lawmakers; and

16        WHEREAS,  Mr.  O'Brien  was  mentored  by  the  legendary
17    southern Illinois bon  vivant  and  retired  Majority  Leader
18    Clyde Choate; and

19        WHEREAS,  Mr.  O'Brien  parlayed  those  educational  and
20    diplomatic  experiences into an innate sense of poise, grace,
21    and style that defined the word Bill Box Man; and

22        WHEREAS,  Mr.  O'Brien  proved  to  be  something  of   a
23    renaissance  man  by  keeping  up with technological advances
24    ranging from the pencil to the laptop computer; and

25        WHEREAS, Mr. O'Brien also garnered the  reputation  as  a
26    "can do" guy who no matter how many times something had to be
27    retyped, recopied, or rewritten, he was always there until it
28    was done; and

29        WHEREAS, Mr. O'Brien cultivated an unparalleled knowledge
30    of  Illinois House Rules and parlimentary procedure that from
 
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 1    time to time reportedly led to parlimentarians asking him for
 2    a ruling; and

 3        WHEREAS, Mr. O'Brien's achievements are too  numerous  to
 4    recount, it must be noted for posterity that he is one of the
 5    creators and ultimate umpire of the "Ten Word Game"; and

 6        WHEREAS,  Mark  O'Brien is the loving husband of Paulette
 7    O'Brien, they are the proud parents of sons, Morgan and Kyle;
 8    he has gone through many Ford Pintos, taking his turn on  two
 9    wheels  before  settling on his Harley Davidson; there is not
10    one joke that he hasn't  heard,  and  he  is  known  for  his
11    variety of hairstyles and neck ties; therefore, be it

12        RESOLVED,   BY   THE  HOUSE  OF  REPRESENTATIVES  OF  THE
13    NINETY-THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS,  that
14    we  congratulate  Mark  O'Brien  on his retirement after many
15    years  of  dedicated  service  in  the  Illinois   House   of
16    Representatives and wish him good health and happiness in all
17    of his future endeavors; and be it further

18        RESOLVED,  That  a  suitable  copy  of this resolution be
19    presented to Mark O'Brien as an expression of our respect and
20    esteem.