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1
SENATE RESOLUTION

 
2     WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to
3 learn of the death of William Hugh Davis of Oak Park, who
4 passed away on September 5, 2007; and
 
5     WHEREAS, Bill Davis was born in Baltimore on February 24,
6 1948; after the divorce of his parents, he was sent to live
7 with his maternal grandparents in the hills of West Virginia;
8 after graduating from high school, he enlisted in the United
9 States Air Force in August 1966, serving in the Tactical
10 Airlift Squadron at Vung Tau Army Airfield in Vietnam and in
11 Thailand; he joined the Vietnam Veterans Against the War while
12 serving in the Air Force, later becoming a national
13 coordinator; and
 
14     WHEREAS, After his discharge in 1970, Bill Davis went to
15 live with his mother in Akron, Ohio, and became more active in
16 the anti-war movement, leading him to move to Columbus, Ohio
17 and Chicago; he met his wife Joan in Chicago, where she had
18 come to protest the war as well; the couple married in 1978 and
19 settled in Oak Park; and
 
20     WHEREAS, Bill Davis continued to be a voice against war and
21 was one of the founders of Labor Against the War, a group
22 protesting the Iraq war, and worked closely with Iraq Veterans

 

 

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1 Against the War; over the years, he had become a staple of
2 Memorial Day and Veterans Day activities throughout Chicago and
3 hosted the Chicago visit of the national tour for the Vietnam
4 Association for Victims of Agent Orange; and
 
5     WHEREAS, Bill Davis was a mechanic for United Parcel for
6 over 30 years, retiring from his position in 2007; throughtout
7 his career, he was focused on preserving democracy within his
8 union; he was elected President of the Automobile Mechanics
9 Union 701 in 2004; and
 
10     WHEREAS, Bill Davis was well known within Automobile
11 Mechanics Union 701 as a natural leader who relentlessly fought
12 for the union's members at meetings and picket lines; he earned
13 the admiration and respect of every member of his union through
14 his determination and his unrelenting belief in his work; and
 
15     WHEREAS, Bill Davis was also politically active, having
16 served as a Democratic precinct captain in Oak Park; he also
17 worked on many campaigns, including the campaigns of Danny
18 Davis and Harold Washington; and
 
19     WHEREAS, Bill Davis was an avid football and music lover;
20 he served as baseball coach, league director, and board member
21 of Oak Park Youth Baseball; and
 

 

 

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1     WHEREAS, Bill Davis always sported a wide, nurturing smile,
2 which was shaded by a genuine Chicago mustache; and
 
3     WHEREAS, Bill Davis was preceded in death by his son,
4 Joshua; and
 
5     WHEREAS, Bill Davis is survived by his wife, Joan; his
6 daughter, Rebecca; his father, Warren; his half-siblings,
7 Cathy Fox, Bo Davis, and Carla Taras; his stepsister, Anna
8 Carabucci; his godson, Dylan O'Connor; his nephew, Aaron Gatti;
9 his sister-in-law, Gail Hammer; and his brother-in-law,
10 Claudio Gatti; and
 
11     WHEREAS, Bill Davis will be remembered by all who knew and
12 loved him as a charismatic, witty, intelligent, and hard
13 working person who was liked and respected by many, as a person
14 who always took his union business and his public advocacy
15 seriously, and as someone who always stood up for what was
16 right, whether it was for peace and justice or for not throwing
17 back home run balls at Sox Park; therefore, be it
 
18     RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL
19 ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn, along with
20 his family and friends, the passing of William Hugh Davis; and
21 be it further
 

 

 

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1     RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
2 presented to the family of William Hugh Davis as an expression
3 of our sympathy.