SR0263 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

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SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to learn of the death of Tom Roeser, who passed away on May 28, 2011; and

WHEREAS, Tom Roeser was born in Evanston; he was a graduate of St. John's University in Minnesota; and

WHEREAS, Tom Roeser started his career as a newspaper reporter; he later covered politics in Minnesota, where he became a research-publicist for the Minnesota Republican Party; he subsequently served as an aide to two United States congressmen and a governor; he later returned to Chicago to launch the Quaker Oats Company's government relations department in 1964 and continued his education with post-graduate studies at DePaul and Loyola Universities; and

WHEREAS, In 1964, Tom Roeser was named manager-public affairs for the Quaker Oats Company; he was then promoted to Director of Public Affairs in 1966, serving in that capacity until 1969; he left Quaker temporarily to assume a role in the federal government as assistant to the Secretary of Commerce for Minority Enterprise in 1969; he then recommended the abolition of his own agency, which was a controversial challenge to the permanent bureaucracy, and was reassigned as Director of Public Affairs for the Peace Corps, where he served as a foreign service officer until 1971; in 1971, he returned to the Quaker Oats Company, where he served as vice president until his retirement in 1991; and

WHEREAS, In 1994, Tom Roeser joined WLS Radio and became the host of "The Tom Roeser Show"; he quickly became a valued member of the WLS on-air lineup; he was heard primarily in his regular Sunday night slot, where listeners could participate in his radio 'plebiscites', weighing in on the political issues of the past week, and look forward to the week ahead; in 2007, he formed the Chicago Daily Observer, the city's first Internet-based five-day a week newspaper; and

WHEREAS, Tom Roeser was a senior correspondent and talk show host for Catholic Family Radio, a network with outlets in Chicago, Los Angeles, Denver, Minneapolis, and Milwaukee; he was also an occasional commentator on "Chicago Tonight" on WTTW-TV; and

WHEREAS, Tom Roeser was a member of the American Federation of Television, the Radio Artists AFL-CIO, the Catholic Citizens of Illinois, the Haymarket Center, Project LEAP, the Better Government Association, the United Republican Fund of Illinois, the Chicago Committee of the Council of Foreign Relations, Rotary International, the Rockford Institute, and the Fellowship of Catholic Scholars; he also served as president of the City Club of Chicago for 17 years; and

WHEREAS, In 1988, Tom Roeser and his wife were named by Pope John Paul II as a Knight and Lady of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulcher of Jerusalem; and

WHEREAS, Tom Roeser is survived by his wife, Lillian; his four children; and his 13 grandchildren; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn, along with his family and friends, the passing of Tom Roeser; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the family of Tom Roeser as an expression of our sympathy.