HR1514 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR1514 LRB095 22469 KXB 52837 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives are pleased to congratulate Reverend Doctor Lena J. McLin of Chicago on her 80th birthday; and

WHEREAS, Prompted by a calling from God on August 9, 1981, Lena McLin started a bible class in a small meeting room in the Conrad Hilton Hotel in downtown Chicago; during the next several months, Dr. McLin fervently studied the Holy Bible and attended divinity training classes and on February 26, 1982, Dr. McLin was officially ordained as a minister; the bible classes became services as Holy Vessel Baptist Church, and Dr. McLin was the pastor and the Minister of Music; and

WHEREAS, Once established at a permanent address, Dr. McLin implemented outreach programs to help the Hyde Park community; the church began providing food, clothing, bus and train fares, temporary shelter, and Christian counseling to distressed men, women, and children; in 2008, Holy Vessel celebrated its 27th anniversary, and Dr. McLin celebrated her 26th anniversary as an ordained minister of God; and

WHEREAS, When she was five-years-old, Dr. Lena J. McLin (nee Johnson) was sent from her home in Atlanta, Georgia to Chicago to live with her "Uncle Ted", otherwise known as Thomas A. Dorsey, the father of Gospel music, and attended McCosh Elementary School; after moving back to Atlanta, she graduated from Booker T. Washington High School in 1947; she earned a Bachelor of Music degree in piano and violin in 1951 at Spelman College; she earned her Master of Music degree at the American Conservatory of Music in Chicago; she also studied at Roosevelt University and Chicago State University; and

WHEREAS, She started her teaching career at Julius H. Hess Upper Grade Center in 1959, moving to Hubbard High School in 1960; and

WHEREAS, As a founder of the McLin Ensemble and the McLin Opera Company, she created performance opportunities for African-American musicians; she taught at John Marshall Harlan High School from 1963 to 1970, leaving to teach at the new Kenwood Academy in Hyde Park; though Dr. McLin officially retired from Kenwood in the mid-1990s, she has not stopped educating and continues to teach vocal students at her South Shore home every week; and

WHEREAS, Dr. McLin was born to be a musician; her mother played the piano in their church in Atlanta, Georgia and when Dr. McLin moved to Chicago to live with her uncle, Thomas A. Dorsey, he had her serve as an accompanist for his famous Pilgrim Baptist Church choir; and

WHEREAS, She has penned more than 400 published compositions including cantatas, masses, solo and choral arrangements of spirituals, anthems, art songs, Gospel songs, rock operas, soul and pop songs, works for piano and orchestra, and electronic music; one of her most famous compositions is the cantata Free At Last: A Portrait Of Martin Luther King Jr., which she composed the night following the death of her childhood friend Dr. King; she had already titled the cantata before it was revealed that those same words would be engraved on King's headstone; and

WHEREAS, She composed Gwendolyn Brooks: A Musical Portrait, written for Illinois' official poet laureate; Dr. McLin, along with her choirs and singers from schools and churches, has performed at dozens of events for the City of Chicago; and

WHEREAS, She performed at the very first Chicago Gospelfest in 1985, which originally was named in honor of her uncle, Thomas A. Dorsey; she returned to the Gospelfest for its 10th anniversary, and performed on-stage with Gospel music legends Andre Crouch and Jesse Dixon; and

WHEREAS, For her many achievements as a master musician, Dr. McLin was featured in the acclaimed P.B.S. television series "The History Makers", which chronicles significant contributions that Blacks have made to America's culture; and

WHEREAS, Her 80th birthday celebration was held on September 5, 2008 at Harambee House in Chicago; she was surprised by many friends, family, her countless famous former students, colleagues, and others whose lives she has touched; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate Reverend Doctor Lena J. McLin on this momentous occasion and wish her continued health, happiness, and music in her life; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to Reverend Doctor Lena J. McLin as a symbol of our respect and esteem.