SR1695 100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR1695 LRB100 21846 ALS 39613 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to learn of the death of Mark Edward Badasch of Collinsville, who passed away on April 29, 2018; and

WHEREAS, Mark Badasch was born in St. Louis, Missouri to Gerhard M. "Jerry" and Fay R. (Jaffee) Badasch on November 3, 1947; his family moved to Southern California, where he graduated from Westchester High School in 1965; in high school, he was an avid musician; after high school, he joined the United States Navy Reserves and attended Submarine School; in 1968, he attended George Williams College in Downers Grove, Illinois and majored in Group Work and Recreation; he married Ann Shawler on September 20, 1969; he earned his bachelor's degree in recreation from Indiana State University in 1973; and

WHEREAS, Mark Badasch began his career as the Assistant Superintendent of Recreation for the Pekin Park District; he was also the Youth Program Director and Camp Manager for Neighborhood House in Peoria; he was hired as the Executive Director of the first county park district in the state of Illinois, Clark County, in 1977; he was instrumental in the development of Mill Creek Park; in 1979, he accepted the position of Director of Parks and Recreation in Roxana, where he served for 15 years and was also a volunteer firefighter and a member of the Roxana School Board; in 1994, he was named Executive Director for the Collinsville Area Recreation District (CARD); he was instrumental in the development of SplashCity, Willoughby Heritage Farm, and Arlington Heights Golf Course; he retired in 2011; and

WHEREAS, Mark Badasch dedicated his time to building relationships and improving the community through membership in the Wood River Rotary Club, the Kiwanis, the Southern Illinois Parks and Recreation Association (SIPRA), the Illinois Parks and Recreation Association (IPRA), where he was president from 1998 until 1999, and the Illinois Association of Park Districts (IAPD); and

WHEREAS, In retirement, Mark Badasch enjoyed traveling with his wife, including a trip overseas to visit his daughter in Jerusalem and to study genealogy in Berlin, Germany and Poland; he became an avid volunteer, and eventually Director, at the Greater St. Louis Air and Space Museum in Cahokia and was on the board for the Cahokia Mounds Society; he enjoyed singing in a barbershop quartet, antiquing with his wife, collecting sulfide marbles, and admiring cars; and

WHEREAS, Mark Badasch was preceded in death by his father and his father-in-law, Lyman K. Shawler; and

WHEREAS, Mark Badasch is survived by his mother; his wife, Ann; his children, Michael (Rose), Joshuah (Sarah), and Megan Badasch; his grandsons, Jerry and Greyson; his step-grandsons, David, Christian, and Zachary Mundy; his step-great-grandson, Levi Mundy; his mother-in-law, Doris E. Shawler; his stepmother, Shirley Head; his step siblings, Tim, Kevin, Shaun, and Erin Gallagher and Kellie Gallagher-White; and his many step-nieces, nephews, and extended family; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDREDTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of Mark Edward Badasch 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 Mark Badasch as an expression of our deepest sympathy.