SR0365 LRB093 15707 KEF 41317 r

1
SENATE RESOLUTION

 
2     WHEREAS, The members of the Senate of the State of Illinois
3 learned with great sadness of the passing of Joseph T. Potasiak
4 of Chicago on December 19, 2003; and
 
5     WHEREAS, Born in Chicago to immigrant parents, Joseph
6 Potasiak did maintenance work at his elementary school to help
7 pay tuition; he pumped gas and worked as a cashier and stocker
8 as well; and
 
9     WHEREAS, Mr. Potasiak earned his bachelor's degree in
10 political science and criminal justice from the University of
11 Illinois at Chicago; he made the dean's list while earning his
12 law degree from Cooley School of Law in Lansing, Michigan; and
 
13     WHEREAS, In 1987, Mr. Potasiak began working as an
14 assistant corporation counsel for Chicago; he handled special
15 and municipal prosecutions and most recently enforced building
16 codes for the building and land use division; and
 
17     WHEREAS, Mr. Potasiak was tough in the courtroom but worked
18 behind the scenes, calling the Cook County public guardian's
19 office, aldermen, and community organizations to help elderly
20 and low-income tenants get the support they needed; and
 
21     WHEREAS, Active in the Polish community, Mr. Potasiak was
22 named the Polish American Police Association's Person of the
23 Year in 2000; and
 
24     WHEREAS, Joseph Potasiak met Marilyn Mazewski at a meeting
25 of the Advocates Society, a Polish lawyers' organization; they
26 were married in 1995; and
 
27     WHEREAS, An avid fisherman and hunter, Mr. Potasiak enjoyed
28 spending the day with his Chesapeake Bay retriever, and best

 

 

SR0365 - 2 - LRB093 15707 KEF 41317 r

1 friend, "Duke"; and
 
2     WHEREAS, Joseph Potasiak was a member of the American,
3 Illinois and Chicago (Government Service, Litigation and
4 Judicial Evaluations Committees) Bar Associations; Thomas M.
5 Cooley, University of Illinois, Lane Technical and St. Fidelis
6 Alumni Associations; the Polish National Alliance; the Chicago
7 Society, and the Polish Museum of America; he was a Polish
8 American Congress-Delegate and a past president of the
9 Advocates Society of Polish American Lawyers; in addition, he
10 was a member of the Catholic Lawyers Guild and served as a
11 DePaul and John Marshall Moot Court Judge; and
 
12     WHEREAS, The passing of Joseph T. Potasiak has been deeply
13 felt by all who knew and loved him, especially his wife Marilyn
14 A. Mazewski; his mother, Gabriela; his sister, Teresa; his
15 godson, Arthur (Sophia) Potasiak; his nieces and nephews,
16 Alaina, Brittney, Candice, and Douglas; his mother-in-law,
17 Florence Mazewski; and his brother-in-law, Aloysius A.
18 (Janice) Mazewski; he was preceded in death by his father
19 Joseph and his father-in-law Aloysius A. Mazewski; and
 
20     RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-THIRD GENERAL
21 ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of
22 Joseph T. Potasiak along with all who knew and loved him and
23 extend our sincere condolences to his family and friends; and
24 be it further
 
25     RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution is
26 presented to the family of Joseph T. Potasiak.