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92_HR0461
LRB9209594RHrh
1 HOUSE RESOLUTION
2 WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3 Representatives wish to express their sincere condolences to
4 the family and friends of Thomas Dwight "Dike" Eddleman, who
5 passed away on August 1, 2001; and
6 WHEREAS, Thomas Dwight Eddleman was born on December 27,
7 1922 in Centralia, Illinois to Thomas and Alma Eddleman; he
8 married Teddy Townsley on December 25, 1945 in Centralia; and
9 WHEREAS, Dike Eddleman will be remembered as the best
10 athlete in the history of the University of Illinois at
11 Champaign; his athletic career at the University of Illinois
12 included 11 University varsity letters as well as setting Big
13 Ten records for punting and returning as a member of the 1946
14 Big Ten championship football squad; he also set a record
15 with an 88-yard punt against the University of Iowa, a record
16 that still stands; in addition, he won five Big Ten
17 individual titles in track and field, including an NCAA high
18 jump championship; he closed out his track and field career
19 by winning a silver medal at the 1948 Summer Olympic Games in
20 London; and
21 WHEREAS, Dike Eddleman led the University of Illinois'
22 basketball squad in scoring during two of his three seasons;
23 he was an Associated Press Second Team All-American selection
24 as a basketball forward in 1949; and
25 WHEREAS, After graduating from the University of Illinois
26 at Champaign, Mr. Eddleman enjoyed a career in the National
27 Basketball League; during his tenure as a professional
28 basketball player he averaged 8.4 points per game with a
29 career total of 386 games while playing for the Tri-City
30 Blackhawks (forerunner of the Atlanta Hawks), and the Fort
31 Wayne Zollner Pistons (forerunner of the Detroit Pistons); on
32 December 18, 1952, he set the NBA single-game scoring record
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1 for the season, scoring 48 points; he was later selected as a
2 two time NBA All-Star; and
3 WHEREAS, Mr. Eddleman was a member of the Centralia
4 Sports Hall of Fame, the Illinois Sports Hall of Fame, the
5 Illinois Basketball Coaches' Hall of Fame, the Tri-State
6 Sports Hall of Fame (Illinois, Indiana, and Kentucky), the
7 National High School Sports Hall of Fame, the Drake Relays
8 Hall of Fame, the University of Illinois All-Century Football
9 Team, the USA Today All-Time Final Four Basketball Team, the
10 State of Illinois Athletic Board, the Illinois High School
11 Association of Athletics Hall of Fame Board, the Fellowship
12 of Christian Athletes, the Association of Retired National
13 Basketball Players, and a charter member of Honor the Chief;
14 and
15 WHEREAS, In addition, Mr. Eddleman was the recipient of
16 many honors including the Tribe of the Illinois, Ma-Wan-Da,
17 Sachem, Chi Gamma Iota, University of Illinois Varsity "1"
18 Man of the Year in 1993, and Champaign-Urbana Exchange Golden
19 Deed Award Recipient in 1993; and
20 WHEREAS, Thomas Eddleman was employed as the executive
21 director of the Fighting Illinois Scholarship Fund where his
22 fundraising efforts had generated almost $4.25 million; in
23 addition, he served in the United States Army Air Corps and
24 was a member of University Place Christian Church; and
25 WHEREAS, The passing of Thomas Dwight Eddleman will be
26 deeply felt by all who knew and loved him, especially his
27 wife, Teddy; his son, Tom Eddleman; his daughters, Diana
28 Lenzi, Nancy Hambright, and Kristy Stevenson; his sister,
29 Josephine Brosnan; and his eight grandchildren; therefore, be
30 it
31 RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
32 NINETY-SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
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1 we mourn, along with all who knew him, the death of Thomas
2 Dwight Eddleman of Champaign, Illinois; and be it further
3 RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
4 presented to the family of Thomas Dwight Eddleman with our
5 sincere condolences.