SR1565 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR1565 LRB101 21870 LAW 72831 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to learn of the death of Carole E. Sharp of Staunton, who passed away on July 20, 2020; and

WHEREAS, Carole Sharp was born in Osage, Iowa to Rosemarie (Wenninger) Elbert and Donald G. Elbert on November 15, 1947; she completed her high school education at the International School of Kuwait; she studied abroad at the American College in Paris, France and at the Beirut College for Women in Lebanon; she graduated from the University of Iowa; she married John F. Sharp at St. Patrick's Catholic Church in Iowa City, Iowa on April 6, 1974; and

WHEREAS, Carole Sharp taught German at Civic Memorial High School in Bethalto in the early 1970s; alongside her husband, she co-owned Party all the Time in Alton during the 1990s; she got involved in real estate in 2001, and she became a member of a sales associate team with her husband; together, they became part-owners of Coldwell Banker Neuhaus Real Estate in Staunton; and

WHEREAS, Carole Sharp began volunteering at the Staunton Food Pantry in 1997, beginning a chapter of her life that would result in 20 years of dedicated service to her community; she raised awareness about hunger in the community and the importance of the pantry through writing articles each week in the Staunton Star-Times and Kwik Konnection, handwriting thank you notes to every donor, and helping coordinate donation drives; she became the pantry's director in 2001; under her leadership, she assembled a team of volunteers who helped oversee its tremendous growth, and the pantry went from feeding 15 families per month to as many as 60 families per month by the mid-2000s; within her first four years of running the pantry, she helped feed 10,000 people; she retired from the Staunton Food Pantry on December 31, 2017; and

WHEREAS, Carole Sharp received a number of accolades for her service to her community; she was nationally recognized by Realtor Magazine in 2005, which awarded her with one of its five "Good Neighbor" awards, an award given to realtors who make an extraordinary difference to their community, nation, or the world through volunteer work; she was then honored during the National Realtors Conference in San Francisco, California; she was named Staunton Chamber of Commerce's "Citizen of the Year" in 2007; and

WHEREAS, Carole Sharp was lovingly known as "Maw Maw" by her five grandchildren; she will be missed; and

WHEREAS, Carole Sharp was preceded in death by her parents and her stepmother, Phyllis Elbert; and

WHEREAS, Carole Sharp is survived by her husband; her children, John (Margaret Jayne) Sharp, Jim (Lisa) Sharp, and Annmarie (Rudy) Angel; her grandchildren, Ethan Sharp, Jace Sharp, Colton Sharp, Lila Sharp, and Brianna Angel; her brother, Donald Elbert Jr. (Myrene); and her sister, Anne Fratzke; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of Carole E. Sharp and extend our sincere condolences to her family, friends, and all who knew and loved her; and be it further

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