SR0006 99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR0006 LRB099 03740 MST 23752 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to learn of the death of John P. McHugh, M.D. of Rockford, who passed away on December 6, 2014; and

WHEREAS, Dr. John McHugh was born in Brooklyn, New York on May 19, 1923 to John P. and Theresa (nee McDonagh) McHugh; he graduated from St. Michael's High School in Brooklyn in 1942 and attended St. John's University until 1943; he then joined the United States Navy's V-12 College Training Program and was sent to the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts in 1944; he was later sent to St. Albans Naval Hospital in New York as a Navy Hospital Corpsman for 6 months; he married Ellen L. McNeil on April 23, 1949 in Belvidere; and

WHEREAS, Dr. John McHugh began attending the University of Illinois College of Medicine in Chicago in January of 1945 and graduated in June of 1948; he completed his internship at St. Francis Hospital in Evanston in 1949; following his internship, he served for a year as a Lt. Junior Grade Officer (Medical Corps) in pulmonary medicine at St. Albans Naval Hospital; he was a general practitioner and family medicine physician in Rockford from 1950 until 1984; he then became vice-president of medical affairs at Rockford Memorial Hospital for 6 years; and

WHEREAS, Dr. John McHugh served as president of the Winnebago County Tuberculosis Association in 1962; he was president of the Rockford Memorial Hospital medical staff in 1963 and of the Winnebago County Medical Society in 1970; he served on the Winnebago County Health Board for 25 years, serving as president of the board in 1973; in the 1970s, he was instrumental in the founding of the Crusader Community Health clinic; he became concerned with the deaths of alcoholics in the city jail and, along with 3 other doctors, served on a jail committee and helped establish the Detox Unit at Rockford Memorial Hospital, which then became the alcohol treatment program, ATEP; he was a Clinical Assistant Professor at the University Of Illinois College of Medicine at Rockford from 1975 to 1996; he was a founding board member of the Northern Illinois AIDS Resource Center and helped organize the Black Health Organization to improve the health of Rockford's black population; and

WHEREAS, One of Dr. John McHugh's passions was Rockford Promise, an organization committed to providing scholarships for college education to all Rockford-area public school students; he has received various honors and awards for his commitment to improving the health of infants, the homeless, and low-income people in Winnebago County; in 1992, he was presented the Rockford Register Star's "Excalibur" award, honoring those who have made a difference in their community; in 1963, he participated in Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s March on Washington; and

WHEREAS, Dr. John McHugh was preceded in death by his parents; his grandson, Brian Thomas Lane; and his sisters, Marguerite Mattson and Eileen Gallagher; and

WHEREAS, Dr. John McHugh is survived by his wife, Ellen; his daughters, Theresa (Lawrence) Palmersheim, Mary Ellen Lane, Eileen (Alan) Huston, and Kathleen Gladys (Gregory) Reese; his sons, John (Charlene) McHugh and Hugh (Lydia) McHugh; his 11 grandchildren, Joseph (Karla), John Thomas, John Michael, Erin, Ellen, Patrick, Joshua, Alyssa, Anna, Amara, and Jacob; and his great-grandchildren, Evelyn and Elise; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of John P. McHugh, M.D., and extend our sincere condolences to his family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the family of Dr. John McHugh as an expression of our deepest sympathy.