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1
SENATE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened
3to learn of the death of James Keith "Whip" Williams of
4Springfield, who passed away on August 19, 2021; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Jim Williams was born in Lafayette, Indiana to
6Dr. James E. Williams and Lucinda Helen Keith Williams on
7January 30, 1934; he served in the U.S. Navy from 1953 to 1957,
8where he was stationed on Guam and at the Seabee facility at
9Port Hueneme, California, and he completed his service as a
10petty officer first class; he graduated from Purdue University
11in West Lafayette, Indiana in 1960, where he majored in
12journalism and was a member of the Kappa Sigma fraternity and
13Student Journalism Society; he was also a tuba player and
14vocalist with the Salty Dogs, a student jazz band; and
 
15    WHEREAS, Jim Williams became a reporter for the Danville
16Commercial-News; he was then a reporter for the Rockford
17Register-Republic and Morning Star from 1963 to 1973, where he
18served as the newspapers' municipal government reporter and
19political editor before becoming the daily general-interest
20columnist; and
 
21    WHEREAS, Jim Williams received an Illinois Press
22Association first place award in 1965 for a four-part series

 

 

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1exposing widespread irregularities in Rockford municipal
2purchasing, resulting in the passage of a centralized
3purchasing ordinance for the city; he also won an Illinois
4Associated Press second place award in 1969 as a co-author of a
5five-part series exploring the impact of Alabama Governor
6George Wallace's candidacy in the presidential race; he was
7cited by the American Political Science Association in 1970
8for excellence in public affairs reporting for a series of
9political columns tracking the issues during Illinois' 1970
10Constitutional Convention; and
 
11    WHEREAS, Jim Williams served as press secretary to
12Illinois Comptroller George W. Lindberg from 1973 to 1977; he
13served as assistant press secretary to Illinois Governor James
14R. Thompson from 1977 to 1981, followed by ten years as the
15governor's staff assistant for public safety; he was chairman
16of the Illinois Prisoner Review Board during the eight years
17of Governor Jim Edgar's administration; he retired in 1999;
18and
 
19    WHEREAS, In 2010, Jim Williams wrote and self-published
20the bio-discographical book Jimmie Noone: Jazz Clarinet
21Pioneer, which included an extensive listing of Noone's
22recorded work in the 1920s and 1930s; he also self-published
23three detective novellas; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, Jim Williams was a passionate collector of
2original issue 78 rpm jazz and blues recordings, focusing
3primarily on discs issued between 1923 and 1933; he was fond of
4playing the tenor banjo, tuba, and piano in later years, and he
5would occasionally play the banjo or the piano at parties and
6sing; he enjoyed cooking for friends, particularly in
7preparing barbecued hickory-smoked ribs and dishes with a
8Cajun or Creole flair; and
 
9    WHEREAS, Jim Williams is survived by his daughter, Marne
10Rebecca Williams; his granddaughter, Mallory Marne Jones; his
11great-grandson; and his great-granddaughter; therefore, be it
 
12    RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL
13ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of
14James Keith "Whip" Williams and extend our sincere condolences
15to his family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be
16it further
 
17    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
18presented to the family of Jim Williams as an expression of our
19deepest sympathy.