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1
SENATE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to
3learn of the death of our friend and colleague, former Illinois
4State Senator Robert Walter Mitchler of Oswego; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Robert Mitchler was born on June 4, 1920 in
6Aurora; he was the son of John L. and Clara (Rub) Mitchler; he
7married the former Helen Drew on June 16, 1950; and
 
8    WHEREAS, Robert Mitchler attended East Aurora public
9schools; he graduated from East Aurora High School in 1937 and
10is a member of the East Aurora High School Hall of Fame; he
11earned his Bachelor of Science degree from Aurora University in
121953; and
 
13    WHEREAS, As a young man, Robert Mitchler was employed by
14the CB&Q Railroad until 1941; in November of that year, he
15enlisted in the United States Navy, where he conducted
16amphibious and minesweeping operations until the end of World
17War II; in 1950, he was recalled to active duty during the
18Korean War and served as a Chief Petty Officer under Admiral
19Allen Smith; he was subsequently assigned to the United Nations
20Military Armistice Command as a stenographer at the Panmunjom
21armistice talks; he served in the Aurora Navy League Council
22since 1965; he also served as National Director of the Navy

 

 

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1League in 1982 and was elected as the National Director
2Emeritus in 1993; and
 
3    WHEREAS, Following his stint in the Navy, Robert Mitchler
4returned to the railroad and began working with the Burlington
5Northern Railroad; in 1958, he began working in the sales and
6marketing department of the Northern Illinois Gas Company in
7Aurora; and
 
8    WHEREAS, Robert Mitchler was politically active in his
9community throughout his life; in 1964, he was elected to the
10Illinois State Senate, where he served for 17 years until his
11retirement in 1981; during his tenure as Senator, he was
12appointed to serve as Legislative Liaison to the Illinois
13Department of Veteran Affairs by Governor Jim Thompson; in
141991, he was appointed to the rank of Permanent Captain in the
15Illinois Naval Militia as a Military and Naval Aide by Governor
16Jim Edgar; he was reappointed to serve in this capacity in 1999
17by Governor George Ryan; he also served as a Precinct
18Committeeman for 60 years; and
 
19    WHEREAS, Robert Mitchler was a longtime member of the
20Fourth Street United Methodist Church of Aurora; he was a life
21member of the Aurora Masonic Lodge No. 254 A.F. & A.M., a 32nd
22degree life member of the Scottish Rite Order, and the First
23Ceremonial Master of the Tebala Shrine in Rockford; he served

 

 

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1as the Vice-President of the Kendall County Republican Central
2Committee, the Kendall County Young Republican Organization,
3the Illinois Republican Veterans League, and the Illinois
4Police Association; he was a member of the Board of Trustees
5for Jennings Terrace in Aurora; and
 
6    WHEREAS, Robert Mitchler enjoyed competing in the Annual
7Mid-America Canoe and Kayak Race on the Fox River for 22 years;
8and
 
9    WHEREAS, Robert Mitchler was preceded in death by his
10parents, John and Clara Mitchler; his sister, Helen Virginia
11Mitchler; his brother, William G. Mitchler; and his
12daughter-in-law, Maria Aragon; and
 
13    WHEREAS, Robert Mitchler is survived by his wife, Helen
14Mitchler; his children, John (Kathy) Mitchler, Kurt (Sharon
15Buntain) Mitchler, and Heidi (Daniel) Lyjak; his
16grandchildren, Briana, Scott, Haley, Joseph, Natalie, Olivia,
17Matthew, Garrick, and Trevor; his sister-in-law, Cecile
18Mitchler; and his many nieces and nephews; therefore, be it
 
19    RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL
20ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn, along with
21his family and friends, the passing of former Illinois State
22Senator Robert Walter Mitchler; and be it further
 

 

 

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1    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
2presented to the family of Robert Mitchler as an expression of
3our sympathy.