HR0348 100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0348 LRB100 12512 MST 25483 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives wish to commend Father David Medow on his 19 years of service to St. Mary Immaculate Parish in Plainfield; and

WHEREAS, Father Medow has served St. Mary Immaculate Parish since July of 1998, at which time the parish had 3,982 enrolled households; currently, the Parish has 8,158 enrolled households, having more than doubled since 1998; and

WHEREAS, Father Medow was born in the West Rogers Park neighborhood of Chicago and graduated from Mather High School in 1974; he received his Bachelor of Arts from Georgetown University in 1978 and his Master of Arts from Mansfield College, Oxford University in 1981; and

WHEREAS, Father Medow met Jane Rooney in England in 1979; she would become his wife, and together, they are the proud parents of Nikolai and Hannah; and

WHEREAS, Father Medow pursued his dream of becoming a Lutheran minister, returning to Chicago and studying at the Lutheran School of Theology; he was ordained as a Lutheran minister in 1985, and followed this pathway for over 11 years; and

WHEREAS, In the 1990s, Father Medow discovered a yearning for the Roman Catholic Church; he was received into the Church on November 1, 1996 by Bishop Joseph Imesch; he was granted permission by the Holy See to begin a course of study for the priesthood, and prepared for Catholic ordination from 1998 to 2001; and

WHEREAS, During the course of his studies, Father Medow joined the staff of St. Mary Immaculate in July of 1998; he was granted permission to become a priest and was ordained in June of 2001; he became the Parochial Vicar of the St. Mary Immaculate Parish School in June of 2001, and became the Pastor of the Parish in June of 2005; and

WHEREAS, As pastor of St. Mary Immaculate Parish, Father Medow has carried out a life of Christian service; his involvements are too numerous to list, but include the inauguration of a series of parish pilgrimages to Europe and the Holy Land, a mission trip to the African nation of Malawi, a series of outreach efforts to new parish members, a series of Harley Davidson Motorcycle Blessings, and the Relay for Life Plainfield Blessings, begun in 2004; and

WHEREAS, Father Medow has been active in the Plainfield-area interfaith community, serving in the Plainfield Ministerial Association from 2001 until the present; he established the Plainfield Interfaith Food Pantry and has, for the past six years, served as its president; and

WHEREAS, After serving St. Mary Immaculate Parish for 12 years as its pastor, Father David Medow will be moving on to a new life of service in June of 2017; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDREDTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we commend Father David Medow on his 19 years of service to St. Mary Immaculate Parish in Plainfield, and we wish him well as he moves on to a new life of service along with his wife; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to Father Medow as an expression of our esteem and respect.