HR1349 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR1349 LRB095 21568 GRL 51469 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives are pleased to congratulate the Smith family, the owners of Tempel Farms in Wadsworth/Old Mill Creek, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the first Tempel Lipizzans' arrival in the United States; and

WHEREAS, Lipizzans are a species of horse that are officially recognized as a "rare breed"; with only about 2,000 Lipizzans living in the world today; and

WHEREAS, After a year of sensitive negotiations with the Austrian government, the late Tempel Smith, owner of Chicago's Tempel Steel Company, and his wife, Esther, received clearance to import the first 20 Lipizzans from the breeding farms of the Spanish Riding School in August of 1958; over the past 50 years, nearly 900 Lipizzan horses have been born at Tempel Farms, with the current herd of 80 Lipizzans being the largest privately owned herd anywhere on Earth; and

WHEREAS, Tempel Farms in Wadsworth/Old Mill Creek is the only place in the United States where Lipizzan stallions regularly perform the breathtaking leaps and ballet-like precision of classical dressage in the tradition of the famed Spanish Riding School in Vienna, Austria; the farm is one of only a few places in the world where beautiful white "dancing" Lipizzans breed, train, and perform on the same property; every summer, visitors from around the world travel to Tempel Farms to enjoy Lipizzan "horse ballets," similar to those that entertained European royalty during the late Renaissance; and

WHEREAS, The Tempel Lipizzans have been a featured attraction in four presidential inaugurals, the 1976 Bicentennial Celebration in Washington, D.C., the Belmont Stakes, and the Oklahoma Mozart Music Festival; Tempel Lipizzans have pulled the casket of The Unknown Soldier of the Vietnam War at Arlington National Cemetery, been ridden by Ronald Reagan and Morocco's King Hassan II, and have been called to a command performance for the Carter family on the White House lawn; and

WHEREAS, Tempel Farms was recently selected as the site for equestrian events in the City of Chicago's 2016 Olympics bid; and

WHEREAS, The Tempel Lipizzans have been highly lauded for their cultural importance; in 1997, the President of Austria presented Tempel Smith's daughters with the Officers Cross, Grand Decoration of Honour for Service to the Republic of Austria, in recognition of the Smith family's "careful management of a cultural institution with such close ties to Austria"; in 2007, the Illinois Department of Tourism named The Tempel Lipizzans one of the State's "Top 25 Summer Fun Ideas"; and

WHEREAS, The owners and staff of Tempel Farms and their beautiful Tempel Lipizzans are invaluable to the rich cultural history of the State of Illinois; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate the Smith family, the owners of Tempel Farms, on their milestone anniversary and wish them continued success and happiness in the future; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the Smith family as a symbol of our esteem and respect.