Full Text of SR1657 100th General Assembly
SR1657 100TH 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 Preston F. "Pres" Helgren of Gurnee, who | 4 | | passed away on March 14, 2018; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, Pres Helgren was born in Waukegan to Fred and | 6 | | Esther Helgren on June 30, 1926; always a lover of music, he | 7 | | had a fine tenor voice, and he played the clarinet in high | 8 | | school; he graduated from the University of Wisconsin Madison | 9 | | with a degree in chemistry, where he played in the band under | 10 | | the direction of Ray Dvorak; and
| 11 | | WHEREAS, Pres Helgren worked at Carnation in Milwaukee and | 12 | | then spent the rest of his career as a research chemist at | 13 | | Abbott Laboratories, where he was a specialist in gas | 14 | | chromatography and amino acid analysis; while at Abbott, he met | 15 | | Helen Efinger, a fellow chemist, and they celebrated 58 years | 16 | | of marriage; and
| 17 | | WHEREAS, Pres Helgren was a lifelong member of Christ | 18 | | Church in Waukegan, where he sang in the choir, served on | 19 | | Vestry, and was a member of the Christ Care group; because of | 20 | | his work as a volunteer for Elder Care at Christ Church, he was | 21 | | named Senior Citizen of the Year by the Lake County Council for | 22 | | Seniors; and
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, Pres Helgren had many interests; he inherited a | 2 | | love of gardening from his parents and was known for his | 3 | | perfect yard, beautiful rose garden, and productive vegetable | 4 | | garden and orchard; he and Helen were also passionate about | 5 | | prairies and recreated prairie landscapes around the Gurnee | 6 | | area; he collected antique cars and was active in the Waukegan | 7 | | Chapter of the Antique Automobile Club of America, where he | 8 | | served as president of the chapter and was on the Illinois | 9 | | Region Board; he and Helen enjoyed traveling the country and | 10 | | attending car meets; he eventually won the top prize, a grand | 11 | | national award, with his 1933 Chevrolet; he was a voracious | 12 | | reader, a die hard fan of the Wisconsin Badgers, and an avid | 13 | | golfer; he generously supported the causes he held dear: the | 14 | | environment, the less fortunate, education, and the arts; and
| 15 | | WHEREAS, Pres Helgren was preceded in death by his parents; | 16 | | his wife, Helen; two of his daughters in infancy; his sister, | 17 | | Mary Ellen Johnson; and his niece, Susan Johnson; and
| 18 | | WHEREAS, Pres Helgren is survived by his son, Daniel | 19 | | (Elizabeth) Helgren; his daughter, Mary Catherine (Richard | 20 | | Radek) Helgren; his step-children, Zachary Noah and Madeline | 21 | | Rose; his nephews, Preston and Peter Johnson; and his best | 22 | | friend, Eileen Graham; therefore, be it
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| 1 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDREDTH GENERAL | 2 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of | 3 | | Preston F. "Pres" Helgren and extend our sincere condolences to | 4 | | his family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be it | 5 | | further
| 6 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 7 | | presented to the family of Pres Helgren as an expression of our | 8 | | deepest sympathy.
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