HR1391 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR1391 LRB098 23518 GRL 62709 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives wish to congratulate Illinois State Representative Kay Hatcher of Yorkville on her distinguished service to the people of the State of Illinois; and

WHEREAS, Representative Hatcher has been a member of the Illinois House of Representatives since 2009 and has served this body with honor and distinction; and

WHEREAS, Representative Hatcher began her career in public service in 1985 by winning election to the Oswego School Board, where she served until 1991; and

WHEREAS, Representative Hatcher was subsequently appointed to the Kendall County Board in 1991, winning election in her own right in 1992; and

WHEREAS, After retiring from the Kendall County Board in 1996, Representative Hatcher was re-elected to the Board in 2002; she also served as President of the Kendall County Forest Preserve District until 2008; and

WHEREAS, Representative Hatcher won a majority of the vote in a 4-way primary in March of 2008 for the open 50th Representative District seat, vacated by retiring State Representative Patricia Reid Lindner; she went on to win the General Election in November of 2008 serving portions of Kane, Kendall, and LaSalle Counties; and

WHEREAS, During the 98th General Assembly, Representative Hatcher served as Republican Spokesperson on the Human Services, Transportation: Vehicles and Safety, and Tourism & Conventions Committees; she also served on the Appropriations-General Services, Public Utilities, Veterans' Affairs, Health Care Availability and Accessibility, Transportation: License Plates, and Transportation: Signs Committees; and

WHEREAS, Representative Hatcher has been a trailblazer among and leader of Illinois Republican women; she was an Illinois Lincoln Series Fellow with the Class of 1999, State President of the Illinois Federation of Republican Women from 2004 to 2005, a former board member of the National Federation of Republican Women, Governor of the Illinois Lincoln Series Board from 2006 to 2008, and Precinct Committeewoman in Kendall Township from 1996 to 2008; and

WHEREAS, A lifelong Illinois resident, Representative Hatcher has also long managed her family's farm in central Illinois; and

WHEREAS, Representative Hatcher received corporate communications training at Boston College's Carroll School of Management; and

WHEREAS, Representative Hatcher is married to Steve Hatcher, a United States Army veteran and former executive director of the Aurora Chamber of Commerce and Oswego Chamber of Commerce; and

WHEREAS, Representative Hatcher and her husband are the proud parents of 4 children, Beth, Bonnie, Jennifer, and Curt; together, they have welcomed 6 beautiful grandchildren; and

WHEREAS, Representative Hatcher has been noted for leading the effort to respect fallen United States service members and their families by sponsoring and passing a new law in 2011 to expand Illinois' "Let Them Rest in Peace Act", strengthening restrictions on protests at military funerals to protect the privacy of grieving families; and

WHEREAS, Representative Hatcher has made immeasurable contributions to the public good through her extensive civic and volunteer involvement, including past service as Greater Aurora Chamber of Commerce Government Relations Chair, membership on the River Valley Workforce Investment Board, the Aurora Area Convention and Visitor's Bureau Board, Conservation Foundation Leadership Board, the Valley Industrial Association Board, the Naperville Development Partnership Board, the Oak Brook Association of Commerce and Industry Board, the United Way of Aurora Board, the St. Charles United Way Board, the Three Fires Boy Scout Board, the Paramount Arts Council Endowment Board, the Court Appointed Special Advocate Board, the DuPage Girl Scout Board, the Fox Valley Symphony Board, the Community Counseling Board, and the Family Counseling Board, among many others; she was also President of the Boulder Hill Civic Association, President of the Kendall County Crime Stoppers, a member and Legislative Chairman of the Naperville Chamber of Commerce Board, President of the DuKane Valley Council Board, and Rotary President; and

WHEREAS, Representative Hatcher enjoyed a successful career in the private sector as Community Affairs Director for Illinois Bell in the non-profit sector as Senior Marketing Director for Senior Services Associates, Inc.; and

WHEREAS, Representative Hatcher has been honored by numerous organizations in recognition of her outstanding service in the General Assembly, including the Illinois Farm Bureau ACTIVATOR Friend of Agriculture Award and Legislator of the Year from the Metro West Council of Government, among others; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate Representative Kay Hatcher on her retirement from the General Assembly and wish her all the best in her future endeavors; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to Representative Hatcher as an expression of our esteem and respect for our colleague and friend.