SR0551 93RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR0551 LRB093 22118 KEF 50784 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Senate of the State of Illinois were saddened to learn of the death of Dr. Mina Rea Perlow of Downers Grove on April 19, 2004; and

WHEREAS, Mina Rea was born on July 14, 1909 in Harrodsburg, Kentucky, the daughter of the late Samuel Beriah and Violet Carter Jones; and

WHEREAS, She attended Centre College in Danville, Kentucky, where she received a bachelor's degree in chemistry and was the first Phi Beta Kappa recipient from that college; she later went on to get a master's degree in chemistry from Pennsylvania State University and a doctorate in chemistry from the University of Chicago in 1941; it was during graduate school when she met her husband, whom she married a few months later; they recently celebrated their 63rd wedding anniversary; and

WHEREAS, While working on her thesis at University of Chicago, she did research on the chemistry of lithium hydrides, work which turned out to have practical application in the making of military equipments, such as airplane engines and radios; and

WHEREAS, During World War II, Dr. Perlow and her husband lived in Washington D.C., where she worked at the War Production Board; after the war, the couple returned to the Chicago area, and she became a part-time consultant chemist at Argonne National Laboratory near Downers Grove, where for many years she worked with her husband, assisting him and other scientists in various projects; and

WHEREAS, A faithful Downers Grove resident since 1953, she was active in the League of Women Voters; in her retirement, she was also an enthusiastic sailor, a sport she frequently shared with family and friends; and

WHEREAS, The passing of Dr. Mina Rea Perlow will be deeply felt by many, especially her husband, Dr. Gilbert Perlow; her brother David C. Jones; and three generations of nieces nephews, and cousins; and

WHEREAS, She was preceded in death by five sisters and one brother; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the death of Dr. Mina Rea Perlow along with all who knew and loved her and extend our sincere condolences to her friends and family; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the family of Dr. Mina Rea Perlow as an expression of our deepest sympathy.