SR0315 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR0315 LRB097 13268 KXB 57777 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to learn of the death of Marjorie Ruth Gieser of Wheaton, who passed away on August 12, 2011; and

WHEREAS, Marjorie Ruth Nystrom was born May 14, 1938 in Asyut, Egypt; her parents, Dr. Sigurd Nystrom and Dr. Harriet Skemp, were medical missionaries to Ethiopia; she graduated from Wheaton College, where she met her husband Richard G. Gieser; and

WHEREAS, In 1976, Mrs. Gieser received her Masters of Fine Arts from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago; an artist of various media, she found her calling in the creation of art used to augment worship in churches; Mrs. Gieser produced banners, pulpit cloths, and vestments of dramatic beauty; and

WHEREAS, She typically created three-dimensional pieces, combining painting with sculptured fabric; churches throughout the Chicago region and numerous churches around the world use her work, including the Fourth Presbyterian Church of Chicago, Moody Church, Edman Chapel of Wheaton College, and in church sanctuaries in several states; international locations include Coventry Cathedral of England, St. George Church of Bagdad, Iraq, and Khartoum Evangelical Church of Sudan; and

WHEREAS, While accompanying her ophthalmologist husband on frequent medical mission trips, Mrs. Gieser found ways to brighten hospital wards by painting colorful murals in Schell Eye Hospital of Vellore, India; Dutch Hospital of El Alto, Boliva; and Eye Hospital of Ulan Bator, Mongolia; and

WHEREAS, Mrs. Gieser is survived by her husband of 51 years; their son, Dr. Stephen Gieser; their daughters, Wendy Partain and Susan Cassel; her sister, Nardos Shuler; and 12 grandchildren; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn, along with her family and friends, the passing of Marjorie Ruth Gieser; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the family of Marjorie Ruth Gieser as a symbol of our sincere sympathy.