HR0773 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

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HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Representative Monique D. Davis and the members of the Illinois House of Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of John W. Rogers, Sr. of Chicago, who passed away on January 21, 2014; and

WHEREAS, John Rogers, Sr. was born in 1918 in Knoxville, Tennessee; he graduated from Tilden Technical High School in Chicago and earned his bachelor's degree in education in 1941 from what is now Chicago State University; he earned his pilot's license and enlisted in the United States Army Air Forces; and

WHEREAS, John Rogers, Sr. was a member of the famed Tuskegee Airmen during World War II; he was part of the 99th Pursuit Squadron and was one of the original 28 airmen to go overseas; he flew 120 missions in Europe and achieved the rank of Captain; he was a part of a group of approximately 300 Tuskegee Airmen to be honored with the Congressional Gold Medal, and in January of 2012, he was part of a group that went to the White House as a special guest of President Obama to view the movie "Red Tails", which tells their story; and

WHEREAS, Following the war, John Rogers, Sr. attended the University of Chicago Law School on the GI Bill; he married Jewel Stradford in 1946 and graduated law school in 1948; together he and his wife started a law firm; later her joined Earl L. Neal & Associates (now Neal & Leroy) and worked for them from 1974 until 1977; in 1968 he met his future wife, Gwendolyn; the couple dated for 33 years and married in 2001; and

WHEREAS, John Rogers, Sr. was appointed an associate judge for Cook County in May of 1977 and eventually assigned to the Juvenile Division; he retired from the bench in 1998; in 2012, the University of Chicago Law School named the school's Director of Admissions office after Judge Rogers and his first wife; and

WHEREAS, John Rogers, Sr. was preceded in death by his parents and by his first wife, Jewel; and

WHEREAS, John Rogers, Sr. is survived by his wife, Gwendolyn; his son, John W. Rogers, Jr.; and his granddaughter, Victoria Rogers; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of John W. Rogers, Sr., and extend our sincere condolences to his family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the family of John Rogers, Sr. as an expression of our deepest sympathy.