State of Illinois
91st General Assembly
Legislation

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91_HR0300

 
                                              LRB9106584CBcbC

 1                          HOUSE RESOLUTION

 2        WHEREAS, Felix J. Kirkpatrick, Jr., of  Chicago  died  on
 3    February  28,  1999  at  Christ  Hospital  in Oak Lawn due to
 4    injuries received in an automobile accident; and

 5        WHEREAS, He was born in Fort Worth, Texas,  on  July  18,
 6    1915,  the  son of Felix and Maudell Kirkpatrick; he moved to
 7    Chicago with his family at an early age; and

 8        WHEREAS, He graduated  from  Englewood  High  School  and
 9    enrolled  at the Armour Institute of Technology, where he was
10    one of  only  three  African-American  students,  to  receive
11    training  in  electrical  engineering;  he entered West Point
12    Academy and always ranked in the upper third of his class; he
13    left the Academy when his sponsor left office; and

14        WHEREAS,  He  returned  to  Chicago   where   he   became
15    interested  in  flying;  he was licensed as a pilot under the
16    Civilian Pilot Training  Program  and  worked  as  an  airway
17    traffic controller for the Civil Aeronautics Authority; and

18        WHEREAS,  He entered the United States Army Air Corps and
19    trained at Tuskegee Army Air Field in Tuskegee,  Alabama;  he
20    was a flight leader of the 302nd fighter squadron; during his
21    military  career,  he  flew 70 long range escort missions and
22    was credited with downing one enemy aircraft; he was  awarded
23    the   Air   Medal   with  five  Oak  Leaf  Clusters  and  the
24    Distinguished Flying Cross; after the  war,  he  remained  in
25    service,  first  as a Flight Leader at Godman Field, Kentucky
26    and later as Assistant Base Operations Officer at  Lockbourne
27    Air Force Base, Columbus, Ohio; he retired from the Air Force
28    in 1949, with the rank of Major; and

29        WHEREAS, He went on to become a sales representative with
30    Pabst  Brewing  Company in Saint Louis and later the director
31    of veterans programs for  the  Chicago  Department  of  Human
 
                            -2-               LRB9106584CBcbC
 1    Resources, retiring in 1987; and

 2        WHEREAS,  He was past president of the Chicago chapter of
 3    the Tuskegee Airmen and  spoke  to  school  children  in  the
 4    Chicago  area,  Minnesota, and Virginia about his experiences
 5    in World War II; and

 6        WHEREAS, Survivors include his sons, Felix III and Perry;
 7    his daughter, Jewel; and three grandchildren; and

 8        WHEREAS, He will be inducted into the  Illinois  Aviation
 9    Hall  of  Fame  on Saturday, May 15, 1999, at Frasca Field in
10    Champaign, Illinois; therefore, be it

11        RESOLVED,  BY  THE  HOUSE  OF  REPRESENTATIVES   OF   THE
12    NINETY-FIRST  GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
13    we join in paying tribute to Felix J. Kirkpatrick, Jr., as he
14    is inducted into the Illinois Aviation Hall of Fame and offer
15    our sincere  appreciation  for  his  outstanding  service  to
16    aviation; and be it further

17        RESOLVED,  That  suitable  copies  of  this resolution be
18    presented to his family.

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