SR1326 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR1326 LRB102 27158 LAW 38667 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to learn of the death of Mary Therese "Tesse" Donnelly, who passed away on January 4, 2022 at the age of 91; and

WHEREAS, Tesse Donnelly was born on October 20, 1930 to Vincent and Theresa McNulty Hartigan and lived in St. Louis with her younger siblings Vincent Emmet and Helen Patrice Hartigan; and

WHEREAS, Tesse Donnelly attended Fontbonne College until she transferred to the College of New Rochelle in New York; and

WHEREAS, Tesse Donnelly was an active member of the Young Christian Students and the National Students Association, serving as Chair of the latter's Missouri-Kansas region in 1949; and

WHEREAS, Tesse Donnelly continued her education at the University of Chicago, studying under Yves Simon and earning her master's degree in history; and

WHEREAS, Tesse Donnelly was the only woman enrolled in the University of Chicago's graduate history program at the time; and

WHEREAS, Tesse Donnelly and her future husband, William J. Donnelly, met during her time at the University of Chicago and, at the time of his death in 2016, they had been married nearly 60 years; and

WHEREAS, Tesse Donnelly and her husband led a household of five children in Oak Park; and

WHEREAS, Tesse Donnelly worked vigorously for racial integration, open housing, and the Fair Housing Ordinance, which, in May 1968, culminated in its passage in Oak Park; and

WHEREAS, Tesse Donnelly worked with women to foster their mutual flourishing in groups and organizations, including the La Leche League, the Lauds Prayer Group, and Limina, a women's spirituality organization; and

WHEREAS, Tesse Donnelly served as president on the board of the C.G. Jung Institute in Evanston; and

WHEREAS, Tesse Donnelly helped to found the Experimental Program at Oak Park River Forest High School and Arbor West Neighbors; and

WHEREAS, Tesse Donnelly made sure that as often as her activism drew her from the home into the world that she would also bring the world into her home; and

WHEREAS, Tesse Donnelly and her husband Bill would invite guests to join them for gatherings characterized by ritual and song; and

WHEREAS, Tesse Donnelly, a founding member of the St. Giles Family Mass Community in 1971, hosted numerous meetings and, on occasion, mass in her home; and

WHEREAS, Tesse Donnelly was an avid organic gardener and delighted in visits from all manner of birds to her always-full birdfeeder; and

WHEREAS, Tesse Donnelly treasured her neighbors on Forest Avenue and was involved in planning annual block parties, attending her last one in the fall of 2021; and

WHEREAS, Tesse Donnelly, when asked how she would like to be remembered, replied "As someone who cared"; and

WHEREAS, Tesse Donnelly is survived by her children, Thomas (Anne Wicker), John, Theresa (John Irwin), Patrick (Jessica Daniels), and Maura (Matthew O'Halloran); and her grandchildren, Claude, Ambrose, Liam, Gabriel, Lucy, Beatrice, Fiona, Finnbar, Ronan, and Emmett; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of Mary Therese "Tesse" Donnelly and extend our sincere condolences to her family, friends, and all who knew and loved her; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the family of Tesse Donnelly as an expression of our deepest sympathy.