HR0029 96TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0029 LRB096 03778 KXB 13808 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives are pleased to recognize former Crestwood Mayor Chester Stranczek for his hard work and dedication to his community while serving in office; and

WHEREAS, Elected mayor in 1969, he served as trustee for 12 years before his election; he is credited with improving the business community, changing the look of the community, and leading the campaign for the south suburbs to get a riverboat casino; and

WHEREAS, In 2006 he gave residents who own their homes 48 percent of their property taxes back, a total of $4 million; he also returned his $6,000 mayor's salary to the village every year; and

WHEREAS, He was born and raised in Crestwood but did not speak English until he was 8 years old and later helped his siblings learn the language; he attended St. Christopher grammar school in Midlothian, Blue Island High School, and Canisius College in western New York; and

WHEREAS, After serving in the United States Army and pitching in the minor leagues, Chester Stranczek returned to Crestwood, where he and his wife, Diane, raised their two children; it was during this time that they started a trucking business, Cresco Lines, Incorporated, that today operates in 48 states and parts of Canada; and

WHEREAS, Chester Stranczek was a minor league pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies in the 1950s before an injury forced him to leave baseball; he also lent his talents to the United States Army baseball team, when he served for seventeen months in the Far East; his great love of baseball led him to bring minor league baseball to Crestwood, where he secured funds to build a multimillion dollar, state-of-the-art field; and

WHEREAS, He was a member of the executive boards of the Illinois Transportation Association and Highway Users Federation and director of the Suburban Bus Line "PACE;" he also served the trucking industry as a director of the Interstate Truckload Carriers Conference, the Illinois Trucking Associations, and the Chicago Regional Transportation Authority, was secretary of the Highway Users Federation as well as that group's Automobile Safety Foundation affiliate; he is also a past chairman of the American Trucking Association and the Truckload Carriers Association; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-SIXTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate Chester Stranczek on his retirement and commend him for his hard work and dedication to the City of Crestwood; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to Chester Stranczek as a symbol of our respect.