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92_SR0221
LRB9210075RHrh
1 SENATE RESOLUTION
2 WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate wish to
3 express their sincere condolences to the family and friends
4 of Betty Nicolai, who passed away on August 15, 2001; and
5 WHEREAS, Betty Jones Nicolai was born on September 17,
6 1931 in Chicago, Illinois; she graduated from North Park
7 Academy and attended North Park College in Chicago; and
8 WHEREAS, Betty Jones married Herb Nicolai on June 2,
9 1951, they are the parents of three children; and
10 WHEREAS, Mrs. Nicolai began her newspaper career in the
11 1960's as a part-time reporter with Day Publications; she
12 later moved on to Des Plaines Publishing, where she wrote
13 features, theater and restaurant reviews, and a humor column;
14 in addition, she worked in classified advertising where her
15 sense of humor surfaced as she conducted a contest that
16 challenged readers to find the bogus ad that she had written;
17 and
18 WHEREAS, Mrs. Nicolai was appointed to the position of
19 Food Editor for the Des Plaines Publishing Company's Chicago
20 Suburban Times Newspapers in 1985; during her tenure as the
21 Food Editor, she was able to meet and interview a number of
22 noted chefs and even hosted the famed Emeril Lagasse, who
23 cooked a meal in her Des Plaines kitchen; in 1991 she was
24 honored as Food Editor of the Year by the Illinois Beef
25 Council; and
26 WHEREAS, Mrs. Nicolai began working for Pioneer Press as
27 a food writer in 1995 after Pioneer acquired the Des Plaines
28 Publishing Company; she served as a food writer for all of
29 the Pioneer Press papers and wrote features for the Home &
30 Design section and for the Schools and Images sections of the
31 North Group papers; and
-2- LRB9210075RHrh
1 WHEREAS, Mrs. Nicolai endeared herself to Pioneer readers
2 and her co-workers with her willingness to track down
3 recipes, answer questions, and offer advice to cooks in a
4 quandary; and
5 WHEREAS, Mrs. Nicolai was a member of the Des Plaines
6 Christian Science Church and a music enthusiast who wrote a
7 number of shows for her husband's barbershop singing group;
8 she was also an animal lover who, along with her husband,
9 operated a popular pet sitting service; and
10 WHEREAS, The passing of Betty Nicolai will be deeply felt
11 by all who knew and loved her, especially her husband of 50
12 years, Herb Nicolai; her son, Rick (wife, Dana) Nicolai; her
13 daughters, Nancy (husband, Roger) Messman and Lori (husband,
14 Al) Barger; and her grandchildren, Jorie, Alyssa, and Amy;
15 therefore, be it
16 RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-SECOND GENERAL
17 ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn, along with
18 all who knew her, the death of Betty Nicolai of Des Plaines,
19 Illinois; and be it further
20 RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
21 presented to the family of Betty Nicolai with our sincere
22 condolences.