HR1195 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR1195 LRB097 22486 GRL 71246 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of James M. Bailey Sr. of Alton, who passed away on August 10, 2012; and

WHEREAS, James Bailey Sr. was born on May 5, 1915, in Trenton, Tennessee; his family later moved to St. Louis, where he graduated from Vashon High School; he subsequently earned his bachelor's degree in education from Lincoln University in 1939 and his master's degree in education from the University of Illinois-Champaign in 1948; and

WHEREAS, After college, James Bailey Sr. went to Alton to work as a teacher and basketball coach at Lovejoy School; he later became principal at Central Junior High School and then assistant principal at Alton Senior High School; he was also the first black administrative assistant to the superintendent in the district; and

WHEREAS, James Bailey Sr. was the first black citizen to be elected to the Alton City Council and the first to be named as comptroller for the City of Alton; and

WHEREAS, James Bailey Sr. was instrumental in the creation of numerous local organizations that still exist today, including the Elijah P. Lovejoy Memorial Society and the Madison County Urban League; and

WHEREAS, James Bailey Sr. was the recipient of numerous awards and honors, including the Alton Community Citizens Award, the Lovejoy Human Rights Award, and the NAACP's Outstanding Citizen Award; in September of 2011, he was honored by the Ministry of Greater St. James Baptist Church as its fifth distinguished elder; the date of September 25 was designated "James M. Bailey Day in the City of Alton" by Mayor Tom Hoechst and the library at the new Alton High School was named the James M. Bailey Library in November 2006 in honor of his great work in the city; and

WHEREAS, James Bailey Sr. and his loving wife of 74 years, the former Mary Louise Simmons, had 2 sons, the Honorable Duane Bailey and Dr. James M. Bailey Jr.; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn, along with his family and friends, the passing of James M. Bailey Sr.; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the family of James Bailey Sr. as an expression of our sympathy.