Full Text of SR0119 99th General Assembly
SR0119 99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | SENATE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to | 3 | | learn of the death of George Washington Collins, who passed | 4 | | away on July 31, 2014; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, George Collins was born in Bennettsville, South | 6 | | Carolina on October 14, 1926 to Bishop W.C. and Elizabeth (nee | 7 | | McCall) Collins; he attended Laurinburg Normal and Industrial | 8 | | Institute, in Laurinburg, North Carolina; he served in the | 9 | | United States Army Air Corps, achieving the rank of Sergeant; | 10 | | and
| 11 | | WHEREAS, Upon being discharged in 1947, George Collins | 12 | | began working as a reporter for The People's Voice; he later | 13 | | joined the Afro-American Newspapers in Baltimore, Maryland, | 14 | | where he covered such historical events as the March on | 15 | | Washington and the assassination of President Kennedy; his | 16 | | award-winning coverage included many events in the 1960s Civil | 17 | | Rights Movement and he was a tenacious investigative reporter | 18 | | bringing justice to corrupt public officials; he garnered | 19 | | national recognition for his coverage of the funerals of Dr. | 20 | | Martin Luther King, Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy in 1968; he | 21 | | worked as an anchor and associate editor at WMAR-TV 2 News, | 22 | | where he established himself as the first African-American | 23 | | television journalist in Baltimore; during his 20-year, he was |
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| 1 | | an executive producer, investigative reporter, political | 2 | | analyst, and editorial director; his programs looked at | 3 | | substantive issues in the black community; he spent last decade | 4 | | of his career as host of @Issue, a live, one-hour weekly | 5 | | program on Morgan State University Radio, WEAA-88.9 FM, that | 6 | | explored provocative issues having both a direct and indirect | 7 | | impact on the quality of life as seen through the Black | 8 | | Experience; and
| 9 | | WHEREAS, In 2003, George Collins was jointly cited by the | 10 | | Library of America, the National Committee for Excellence in | 11 | | Journalism, and the Smithsonian Institution as "one of the best | 12 | | American journalists of the 20th century"; and | 13 | | WHEREAS, George Collins was a member of the New Shiloh | 14 | | Baptist Church for 41 years; and
| 15 | | WHEREAS, George Collins was preceded in death by his | 16 | | parents; and
| 17 | | WHEREAS, George Collins is survived by his wife of over 65 | 18 | | years, Eloise Ross Collins; his 4 children, Barbara C. Rhodes | 19 | | (Warren), Ronald B. Collins (Sylvia), Vanessa C. Pyatt (James), | 20 | | and Valerie D. Collins; his 4 grandchildren, Mandisa A. | 21 | | Rhodes-Trower (Christopher), Zachary P. Collins, Vashti E. | 22 | | Pyatt, and Tabitha D. Pyatt; his great-grandchild, Khadijah A. |
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| 1 | | Trower; his 4 brothers, David C. Collins, Benjamin F. Collins, | 2 | | Bishop Floyd D. Collins (Barbara), and Nathaniel N. Collins; | 3 | | his 2 sisters-in-law, Annie Collins and Leah Collins; and a | 4 | | host of nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends; therefore, be it
| 5 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-NINTH GENERAL | 6 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of | 7 | | George Washington Collins, and extend our sincere condolences | 8 | | to his family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be | 9 | | it further
| 10 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 11 | | presented to the family of George Collins as an expression of | 12 | | our deepest sympathy.
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