SR0429 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR0429 LRB102 18974 LAW 27702 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to learn of the death of George L. "Sonny" Roebuck Jr., who passed away on March 29, 2021; and

WHEREAS, George Roebuck Jr. earned his associate's degree in Theology from Indiana University; and

WHEREAS, George Roebuck Jr. served as a social worker in the 1960s, where he helped organize and lead an employee walk-out strike to force the Dayton Welfare Department's administration to fairly distribute welfare monies to minorities; he helped form the Dayton Model Cities Program in 1965, which eventually became federally funded and was designed to make a noticeable impact on the racial, social, economic, justice, and physical problems of cities nationwide; in that same year, he helped lead the City of Dayton to involve minority citizens' participation in the decision-making process of the city's administrative policies that affected minority communities and lifestyles; he also assisted in the formation of Community Rights to Know, which later became the National Endorsements Access Model Cities Alumni Reunion; among his many accomplishments, he helped to initiate the Dayton Priority Boards, the Neighborhood Leadership Training Institute, and the Preserve Conserve Our Identity organization; and

WHEREAS, George Roebuck Jr. was a Republican politician who campaigned for candidates running for local, county, state, and federal offices; his campaign strategies helped to win minority votes for current Ohio Governor Mike DeWine in 2018; he belonged to several campaigns and committees, including Tony Hall's Congressional Advisory Committee, Ohio Senator Tom Roberts' Advisory Committee, the Bush-Cheney Re-election Campaign as chairman of Minority Affairs, the Executive Committee, and the Central Committees of the Montgomery County Republican Party; he served as chairman of the Minority Committee of the Montgomery County Republican Party for many years; and

WHEREAS, George Roebuck Jr. was also a songwriter, and he co-wrote the lyrics of "You're A Sight for Sore Eyes" on an album for Dayton's famous Ohio Players; and

WHEREAS, George Roebuck Jr. worked with nonprofit, private, and construction industries in attempts to restore vacant buildings in the declining Dayton View neighborhood where he lived; he was in the process of writing a proposal to prevent a planned relocation of Project C.U.R.E.'s drug addiction treatment program out of West Dayton when he became ill; and

WHEREAS, George Roebuck Jr. was a member of the Ethan Temple Seventh-Day Adventist Church, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), The Model Cities Planning Council, Northwest Priority Board, and the Southern Dayton View Association; he co-founded the Dayton Youth Coalition; he loved cooking, eating, and fellowship with family, friends, and neighbors; and

WHEREAS, George Roebuck Jr. was known for being talented, highly skilled, and one of a kind; he was always there to supply, support, and guide towards a resolution, whether it was providing housing, employment, assistance with getting out of jail, supplying food, or referring people to appropriate professionals and agencies; he will be remembered as a beloved community activist, leader, friend, and mentor; and

WHEREAS, George Roebuck Jr. was preceded in death by his parents, George L. Roebuck Sr. and Vivian Roebuck; 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 George L. "Sonny" Roebuck Jr. 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 George Roebuck Jr. as an expression of our deepest sympathy.