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1 | HOUSE RESOLUTION
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2 | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | ||||||
3 | Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of | ||||||
4 | Frederick Walton "Fred" Allen of Peoria, who passed away on | ||||||
5 | January 24, 2021; and
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6 | WHEREAS, Fred Allen was born to Frederick William Allen | ||||||
7 | and Laura Josephine (Johnson) Allen in Ripon, Wisconsin on | ||||||
8 | June 10, 1923; he graduated from Ripon High School in 1941; he | ||||||
9 | attended Ripon College until he voluntarily enlisted in the | ||||||
10 | U.S. Army Air Force on December 7, 1942, where he learned to | ||||||
11 | fly a B-29 bomber, received his pilot's license at Moody Field | ||||||
12 | in Valdosta, Georgia on August 5, 1944, and completed his | ||||||
13 | training as a second lieutenant; following his military | ||||||
14 | service, he signed as a contract pitcher with the Papermakers | ||||||
15 | of Appleton, Wisconsin, a minor league affiliate of the | ||||||
16 | Cleveland Indians; he attended law school at Northwestern | ||||||
17 | University; he was admitted to the Illinois State Bar in 1949; | ||||||
18 | he married Tilley Derges at the First Methodist Church of | ||||||
19 | Peoria on July 26, 1952, and she preceded him in death on | ||||||
20 | October 20, 2018; and
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21 | WHEREAS, Fred Allen had a long and distinguished career as | ||||||
22 | a plaintiff's attorney; he first worked at the law firm of | ||||||
23 | Louis Knobloch in Peoria; he became the first downstate |
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1 | Illinois lawyer to win a $1 million award for a client after a | ||||||
2 | jury verdict against the Ford Motor Company in 1974, which | ||||||
3 | earned him a membership in the Inner Circle of Advocates, an | ||||||
4 | elite national group limited to plaintiff's attorneys who had | ||||||
5 | won seven figure awards; he built his own law firm as a | ||||||
6 | self-made businessman; he personally funded each case, hired | ||||||
7 | experts, and regularly made time for pro bono legal work; he | ||||||
8 | had a reputation for taking cases to trial by jury instead of | ||||||
9 | settling for less, always seeking the best result for his | ||||||
10 | clients; he earned the admiration of other attorneys for his | ||||||
11 | work ethic and was known to be humble, generous, and exact in | ||||||
12 | his actions; and
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13 | WHEREAS, Fred Allen was very active in many state, | ||||||
14 | national, and international legal organizations; he was a | ||||||
15 | fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, the | ||||||
16 | International Society of Barristers, the International Academy | ||||||
17 | of Trial Lawyers, and the Illinois Bar Foundation; he was a | ||||||
18 | member of the Board of Governors of the Association of Trial | ||||||
19 | Lawyers of America; he also played prominent roles in many | ||||||
20 | Illinois legal groups, including as president of the Illinois | ||||||
21 | Trial Lawyers Association from 1974 to 1975, the Peoria County | ||||||
22 | Bar Association from 1979 to 1980, and the Society of Trial | ||||||
23 | Lawyers of Illinois from 1983 to 1984; he was active in the | ||||||
24 | Illinois State Bar Association for more than 50 years; and
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1 | WHEREAS, Fred Allen remained a loyal member of the | ||||||
2 | Democratic Party his entire life; he ran unsuccessfully for | ||||||
3 | Congress against Bob Michel in 1956; he served as the 18th | ||||||
4 | Congressional District State Central Committeeman for eight | ||||||
5 | years, and he met several notable individuals, including | ||||||
6 | President John F. Kennedy and President Lyndon Johnson; and
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7 | WHEREAS, Fred Allen belonged to a number of organizations, | ||||||
8 | including the American Legion, the First United Methodist | ||||||
9 | Church of Peoria, the Union League Club of Chicago, the | ||||||
10 | Springs Country Club of Rancho Mirage, California, the Old | ||||||
11 | Baldy Club of Saratoga, Wyoming, and Mascoutin Golf Club of | ||||||
12 | Berlin, Wisconsin; he was a member of the Elks Club for more | ||||||
13 | than 70 years; he served as president of the Country Club of | ||||||
14 | Peoria; and
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15 | WHEREAS, Fred Allen was known for his love and devotion to | ||||||
16 | his wife; alongside her, he enjoyed traveling the world, | ||||||
17 | attending professional meetings, touring sites, golfing, and | ||||||
18 | making lifelong friends; he remained a devoted baseball fan, | ||||||
19 | especially supporting the Chicago Cubs; he loved golf and had | ||||||
20 | hundreds of friendships at country clubs across the U.S.; and
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21 | WHEREAS, Fred Allen enjoyed spending time with his | ||||||
22 | daughters, his grandchildren, his great-grandchildren, and | ||||||
23 | their families; his love and pride for them was boundless; he |
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1 | will be remembered for being a confident, self-made man who | ||||||
2 | answered others with honesty; and
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3 | WHEREAS, Fred Allen was preceded in death by his parents; | ||||||
4 | his wife of 66 years, Tilley (Derges) Allen; his daughter, | ||||||
5 | Laura Allen Curfman; and his sister, Jane (Allen) Waters; and
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6 | WHEREAS, At the time of his passing, Fred Allen was | ||||||
7 | survived by his daughters, Diane (Doug) Allen Cullinan | ||||||
8 | Oberhelman and Rita Allen Graves; his grandchildren, Kathleen | ||||||
9 | Cullinan (Tyson) Brill, Maureen Cullinan (Christopher) | ||||||
10 | Bennett, Alison Cullinan (Matt) Unkovich, Allen (Laura) | ||||||
11 | Cullinan, Crystal Curfman (Coby) Shaw, Colette Curfman, and | ||||||
12 | Whitney Graves; and his 13 great-grandchildren with another | ||||||
13 | expected shortly; therefore, be it
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14 | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | ||||||
15 | HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | ||||||
16 | we mourn the passing of Frederick Walton "Fred" Allen and | ||||||
17 | extend our sincere condolences to his family, friends, and all | ||||||
18 | who knew and loved him; and be it further
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19 | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | ||||||
20 | presented to the family of Fred Allen as an expression of our | ||||||
21 | deepest sympathy.
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