Full Text of HR0946 95th General Assembly
HR0946 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
|
|
|
HR0946 |
|
LRB095 18789 KXB 44915 r |
|
| 1 |
| HOUSE RESOLUTION
| 2 |
| WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | 3 |
| Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of former | 4 |
| Chicago mayor Eugene Sawyer, who passed away on January 19, | 5 |
| 2008; and
| 6 |
| WHEREAS, Eugene Sawyer was known for his calm manner and | 7 |
| ability to forge compromise; he rose to prominence in the days | 8 |
| following Chicago Mayor Harold Washington's death in November | 9 |
| of 1987; after a bitter, racially charged debate, a split | 10 |
| council voted to name him as Mayor Washington's replacement; he | 11 |
| served as mayor until 1989, when he lost in the Democratic | 12 |
| primary to current Mayor Richard M. Daley; and
| 13 |
| WHEREAS, He was born in Greensboro, Alabama; after moving | 14 |
| from Alabama to Chicago in 1957 with a degree in chemistry from | 15 |
| Alabama State University, he was hired as an industrial waste | 16 |
| coordinator for the Chicago Sewer Department; and in 1971 he | 17 |
| was elected 6th Ward alderman; and
| 18 |
| WHEREAS, Eugene Sawyer was soft-spoken and quiet; even | 19 |
| after he became mayor, he often held breakfast meetings at a | 20 |
| South Side restaurant called Ms. Biscuit; during his brief | 21 |
| tenure, Mayor Sawyer pushed through several initiatives that | 22 |
| Mayor Washington had started or supported, including a |
|
|
|
HR0946 |
- 2 - |
LRB095 18789 KXB 44915 r |
|
| 1 |
| human-rights ordinance that had languished in the council for | 2 |
| years before it was approved in 1988; and
| 3 |
| WHEREAS, After leaving office, he became an officer of an | 4 |
| energy company; he later switched the firm's focus to wholesale | 5 |
| tobacco deals; while he stayed in touch with politics, he spent | 6 |
| much of his time following sports and fancied himself a | 7 |
| talented poker player; he was also a devout member of his | 8 |
| church and a devoted family man; and
| 9 |
| WHEREAS, Eugene Sawyer is survived by his wife,
Veronica; | 10 |
| his children, Roderick, Shedrick, and Sheryl McGill; his | 11 |
| brothers Ernest and Charles; his sister Shirley; and his four | 12 |
| grandchildren; he was preceded in death by his sister, Melnee; | 13 |
| therefore, be it
| 14 |
| RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | 15 |
| NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we | 16 |
| mourn, along with his family and friends, the passing of former | 17 |
| Chicago mayor Eugene Sawyer; and be it further
| 18 |
| RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 19 |
| presented to the family of Eugene Sawyer as a symbol of our | 20 |
| sincere sympathy.
|
|