Full Text of SR0263 97th General Assembly
SR0263 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
| | SR0263 | | LRB097 12252 GRL 56714 r |
|
| 1 | | SENATE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to | 3 | | learn of the death of
Tom Roeser, who passed away on May 28, | 4 | | 2011; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, Tom Roeser was born in Evanston; he was a graduate | 6 | | of St. John's University in Minnesota; and
| 7 | | WHEREAS, Tom Roeser started his career as a newspaper | 8 | | reporter; he later covered politics in Minnesota, where he | 9 | | became a research-publicist for the Minnesota Republican | 10 | | Party; he subsequently served as an aide to two United States | 11 | | congressmen and a governor; he later returned to Chicago to | 12 | | launch the Quaker Oats Company's government relations | 13 | | department in 1964 and continued his education with | 14 | | post-graduate studies at DePaul and Loyola Universities; and
| 15 | | WHEREAS, In 1964, Tom Roeser was named manager-public | 16 | | affairs for the Quaker Oats Company; he was then promoted to | 17 | | Director of Public Affairs in 1966, serving in that capacity | 18 | | until 1969; he left Quaker temporarily to assume a role in the | 19 | | federal government as assistant to the Secretary of Commerce | 20 | | for Minority Enterprise in 1969; he then recommended the | 21 | | abolition of his own agency, which was a controversial | 22 | | challenge to the permanent bureaucracy, and was reassigned as |
| | | SR0263 | - 2 - | LRB097 12252 GRL 56714 r |
|
| 1 | | Director of Public Affairs for the Peace Corps, where he served | 2 | | as a foreign service officer until 1971; in 1971, he returned | 3 | | to the Quaker Oats Company, where he served as vice president | 4 | | until his retirement in 1991; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, In 1994, Tom Roeser joined WLS Radio and became | 6 | | the host of "The Tom Roeser Show"; he quickly became a valued | 7 | | member of the WLS on-air lineup; he was heard primarily in his | 8 | | regular Sunday night slot, where listeners could participate in | 9 | | his radio 'plebiscites', weighing in on the political issues of | 10 | | the past week, and look forward to the week ahead; in 2007, he | 11 | | formed the Chicago Daily Observer, the city's first | 12 | | Internet-based five-day a week newspaper; and
| 13 | | WHEREAS, Tom Roeser was a senior correspondent and talk | 14 | | show host for Catholic Family Radio, a network with outlets in | 15 | | Chicago, Los Angeles, Denver, Minneapolis, and Milwaukee; he | 16 | | was also an occasional commentator on "Chicago Tonight" on | 17 | | WTTW-TV; and
| 18 | | WHEREAS, Tom Roeser was a member of the American Federation | 19 | | of Television, the Radio Artists AFL-CIO, the Catholic Citizens | 20 | | of Illinois, the Haymarket Center, Project LEAP, the Better | 21 | | Government Association, the United Republican Fund of | 22 | | Illinois, the Chicago Committee of the Council of Foreign | 23 | | Relations, Rotary International, the Rockford Institute, and |
| | | SR0263 | - 3 - | LRB097 12252 GRL 56714 r |
|
| 1 | | the Fellowship of Catholic Scholars; he also served as | 2 | | president of the City Club of Chicago for 17 years; and | 3 | | WHEREAS, In 1988, Tom Roeser and his wife were named by | 4 | | Pope John Paul II as a Knight and Lady of the Equestrian Order | 5 | | of the Holy Sepulcher of Jerusalem; and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, Tom Roeser is survived by his wife, Lillian; his | 7 | | four children; and his 13 grandchildren; therefore, be it
| 8 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL | 9 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn, along with | 10 | | his family and friends, the passing of Tom Roeser; and be it | 11 | | further
| 12 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 13 | | presented to the family of Tom Roeser as an expression of our | 14 | | sympathy.
|
|