SR0378 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR0378 LRB102 18888 MST 27616 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to learn of the death of Paul Rector of Urbana, who passed away on March 24, 2021; and

WHEREAS, Paul Rector was born in Afton, Oklahoma to John Fred and Edna (Harris) Rector on March 5, 1921; he grew up in Urbana, delivering both the Courier and The News-Gazette; he was an active Boy Scout and always enjoyed visiting Camp Drake; he was proud to be an Eagle Scout; he graduated from Urbana High School in 1940, where he was a state champion in wrestling; after three semesters at the University of Illinois studying business and accounting, he was drafted into the U.S. Army; he married Billie Wesson of Sidney in 1943 at the family home, and they renewed their vows in front of the same fireplace 67 years later; and

WHEREAS, Paul Rector received his commission as a second lieutenant in the Army in 1943; he completed basic training at South Camp Polk, Louisiana; his Eagle Scout rank helped him qualify for Officers Training School, which he completed at Fort Knox, Kentucky; he served in the 775th Tank Battalion in Papua New Guinea and the Philippines; he was discharged as a first lieutenant and returned home to Urbana on Christmas Day 1945; and

WHEREAS, Paul Rector began working as head inspector at the R.H. Bishop Co.; he became a member of the Local 149 Plumber & Steamfitters Union in 1949; he also worked for F.R. Inskip Plumbing and Heating as head of the service department; and

WHEREAS, Paul Rector's family had a tradition of holding family reunions; he never missed one and continued to travel well into his 90s, with family reunion trips to Hawaii, Puget Sound in Washington, the Outer Banks of North Carolina, and Branson, Missouri; he enjoyed traveling and loved to drive across the U.S. and explore and visit family members along the way; he took his family on many camping trips to numerous state parks in Illinois and Indiana; and

WHEREAS, Paul Rector and Billie were active in the First Presbyterian Church in Champaign, and they went on several mission trips for their church and enjoyed their Bible study groups; they worked together restoring their rental properties and always seemed to have a project that needed attention; they enjoyed being with their family and were extremely proud of their children; and

WHEREAS, Paul Rector was the husband of Billie; the father of Sharon Rector, James (Gail) Rector, and Sue (Skip) Inskip; the grandfather of eight; the great-grandfather of 10; the son of John Fred and Edna (Harris) Rector; and the brother of Earl Rector, Mary Fern (Rector) Atwood, Lottie Bernice (Rector) LaFuze, Dennis Rector, Orton Rector, John Henry Rector, and Leo Harris Rector; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of Paul Rector 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 Paul Rector as an expression of our deepest sympathy.