HR0485LRB100 13070 MST 27457 r

1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3Representatives wish to congratulate Jesse Davis of Chicago on
4the occasion of his 100th birthday; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Jesse Davis was born in Tupelo, Mississippi on
6August 21, 1917, the second of 15 children; he began working on
7the family farm at a young age; he was also a young
8entrepreneur and held numerous odd jobs, including collecting
9bottles to recycle, mowing lawns, and washing planes; he
10eventually became a crop duster pilot and received a Class A
11pilot license; and
 
12    WHEREAS, Jesse Davis married Beatrice Bell in 1940 and they
13were married for 73 years until her passing in 2013; they had
14two sons, three granddaughters, one grandson, and seven
15great-grandchildren; and
 
16    WHEREAS, Jesse Davis entered the United States Air Force in
171943; he was the only African American to have a pilots license
18upon entering the Air Force; he attended Fisk University while
19driving trucks from Mississippi to New York; he then went to
20work constructing an electrical line from Warm Springs, Georgia
21to Dallas, Texas; he also repaired engines for Caterpillar and
22John Deere; he helped construct a bridge over the Mississippi

 

 

HR0485- 2 -LRB100 13070 MST 27457 r

1River; and
 
2    WHEREAS, Jesse Davis and his wife settled in Chicago in
31950; he worked various jobs in Chicago over the next 30 years;
4he worked as a maintenance engineer at Wisconsin Steel and Coca
5Cola; in 1960, he enrolled in a mechanical engineering systems
6class at Tilden High School; he completed a training program
7for employment at the Ford Motor Company in Melrose Park and
8immediately joined Ford's Truck Engine Department in Dearborn,
9Michigan; he retired from McCarthy Lincoln as a mechanic in
101981; and
 
11    WHEREAS, Jesse Davis always paid special attention to his
12health; he has not had anything to drink other than water and
13fresh juices since the age of 19; he is still driving, living,
14and thinking for himself; and
 
15    WHEREAS, Jesse Davis enjoys sports, walking, and watching a
16little television; the last time he played basketball was at
17the age of 97; therefore, be it
 
18    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
19HUNDREDTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we
20congratulate Jesse Davis on his 100th birthday, and we wish him
21many more wonderful years; and be it further
 

 

 

HR0485- 3 -LRB100 13070 MST 27457 r

1    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
2presented to Jesse Davis as an expression of our esteem and
3respect.