093_HR0392

                                     LRB093 12047 KEF 17048 r

 1                          HOUSE RESOLUTION

 2        WHEREAS, It has come to the attention of the  legislative
 3    members    and   employees   of   the   Illinois   House   of
 4    Representatives that Penny  A.  Kink  will  retire  from  her
 5    position  as  Chief  Journal  Clerk for the Illinois House of
 6    Representatives at the end of  the  2003  spring  legislative
 7    session; and

 8        WHEREAS, Penny A. Kink began her State of Illinois career
 9    with  the  Department  of  Transportation  as  a  data  input
10    operator  on  January  22,  1968, and then transferred to the
11    Legislative Information System and worked there from November
12    1, 1974, through September 15, 1980; and

13        WHEREAS, On September 16, 1980, then Clerk of the  House,
14    Jack   O'Brien,  transferred  Penny  A.  Kink  to  the  House
15    Democratic Research/Appropriations staff; and

16        WHEREAS, On that very day, the support  staff  supervisor
17    had  absolutely  "no idea" who Penny A. Kink was and what her
18    duties were to be, and quizzingly inquired "Can  you  type?";
19    and

20        WHEREAS,  From  that  day  forward,  as  a  member of the
21    Democratic staff, Penny A.  Kink  proved  herself  to  be  an
22    invaluable employee by:

23        --  always  giving  150%  to  every  task  encountered --
24    amazingly without  ever  once  yawning,  slumping,  snapping,
25    grumping,  slowing,  fraying,  or  showing any other signs of
26    strain;

27        -- arriving one hour early so as never to be late;

28        -- carrying a large enough purse to  accommodate  a  wide
29    variety   of   items,  including  800  milligram  Motrins,  a
30    full-size uncut watermelon, and an acrylic-encased  snakehead
 
                            -2-      LRB093 12047 KEF 17048 r
 1    from her past addiction to ordering from catalogs;

 2        --  willingly sharing her stash of vitamins, potions, and
 3    personal remedies for  every  imaginable  (and  unimaginable)
 4    illness;

 5        --  bravely  clubbing  to  death, with her black stiletto
 6    heel, a 5th floor  mouse  while  her  co-workers  "eeked"  in
 7    terror; and

 8        -- typing at lightning speed with exceedingly long purple
 9    acrylic nails; and

10        WHEREAS,  Penny  A.  Kink  was  then transferred from the
11    Research/Appropriations staff to the House Journal Room,  and
12    mistakenly left her infamous purse in her old office; and

13        WHEREAS,  It  has been documented that another Democratic
14    staff secretary transported  that  infamous  HEAVY  purse  to
15    Penny's new office by way of Mud's workroom cart; and

16        WHEREAS,  Penny  A.  Kink  was  then transferred from the
17    House Journal Room to the  Issues  Development  Unit  in  the
18    Stratton  Building,  and  then back to the House Journal Room
19    where she remains today; and

20        WHEREAS, Penny A.  Kink,  as  Chief  Journal  Clerk,  has
21    quietly  weaseled  our  Chief  of  Staff, Clerk of the House,
22    directors, and employees out of legislative scrapes,  posting
23    mistakes,  and  computer disasters by utilizing her eagle eye
24    and expert knowledge to catch and correct bloopers, blunders,
25    typos, and "agreed-list" boo-boos; and

26        WHEREAS, Penny A. Kink has been known to  cut  short  any
27    conversation  with  those  four  tiny words:  "Gotta go, it's
28    Tim"; and

29        WHEREAS, Penny A. Kink, who has always liked to work with
30    computers and punch keys, formed a  lasting  friendship  when
 
                            -3-      LRB093 12047 KEF 17048 r
 1    she  looked  into the eyes of our former computer information
 2    systems planner, Frank G. Kink; and

 3        WHEREAS, Penny A. Kink and Frank G. Kink,  on  that  very
 4    day, became inseparable and subsequently married; and

 5        WHEREAS,    Penny    A.   Kink   has   worked   alongside
 6    representatives and staff members, their children, and  their
 7    children's children; and

 8        WHEREAS,  Penny A. Kink's daughter, Melisa A. Fraase, who
 9    was only 18 months old when Penny started her career with the
10    House of Representatives, is now a grown woman with  her  own
11    daughter, and works at the Legislative Reference Bureau; and

12        WHEREAS,  Penny A. Kink is now the very proud grandmother
13    of 4-year old Briley Isabelle Tanner; and

14        WHEREAS, Penny A. Kink's decades of service on behalf  of
15    the  State  of  Illinois  have  made  her  one  of  the  most
16    knowledgeable  and  informed  employees in the entire General
17    Assembly, and an inexhaustible source of counsel; and

18        WHEREAS, Penny A. Kink and Frank G. Kink have purchased a
19    retirement home in Colorado  Springs,  Colorado,  and  invite
20    everyone  they  know  --  and  everyone they don't know -- to
21    visit at all times and ungodly hours; therefore, be it

22        RESOLVED,  BY  THE  HOUSE  OF  REPRESENTATIVES   OF   THE
23    NINETY-THIRD  GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
24    we sincerely  thank  Penny  A.  Kink  for  her  extraordinary
25    dedication  and  loyalty,  for a job more than well-done, and
26    for her unparalleled skill; and be it further

27        RESOLVED, That we, as friends and colleagues, wish  Penny
28    A.  Kink and her husband Frank G. Kink the very best in their
29    retirement and new life in Colorado; and be it further

30        RESOLVED, That  we  will  surely  miss  Penny  A.  Kink's
 
                            -4-      LRB093 12047 KEF 17048 r
 1    friendship, smiles, and laughter; and be it further

 2        RESOLVED,  That  a  suitable  copy  of this resolution be
 3    presented to Penny A. Kink as an expression of  our  profound
 4    respect and friendship over the many, many years.