SR0512 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR0512 LRB102 20061 ECR 28906 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to learn of the death of Bonnie Noble of Peoria, who passed away September 9, 2021; and

WHEREAS, Bonnie Noble was born to Robert M. and Laura A. West in River Forest on August 11, 1941; she attended Oak Park River Forest High School and graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with a Bachelor of Science degree in Recreation and Park Administration; she married Kent A. Noble in River Forest on April 25, 1964; and

WHEREAS, In 1973, Bonnie Noble was the first woman elected as a trustee of the Peoria Park District; she served 19 years as a trustee and board president and 24 years as the executive director before her retirement in April of 2016; and

WHEREAS, As executive director, Bonnie Noble's major accomplishments were partnering with OSF Saint Francis Medical Center to build the downtown RiverPlex Recreation and Wellness Center, the development and completion of the Rock Island Trail in 2013 that included the Knoxville Avenue bridge, leading efforts to establish the Peoria Playhouse Children's Museum, and tripling the size of the Peoria Zoo by leading a capital campaign in 2009; by far, her greatest accomplishment was the positive impact the Park District has had on hundreds of thousands of people; and

WHEREAS, During Bonnie Noble's tenure as executive director, the Peoria Park District received the National Gold Medal Award in 1994, 2001, and 2010 for excellence in park and recreation management and earned accreditation as one of the first Illinois Distinguished Park Districts; and

WHEREAS, In 2004, Bonnie Noble was inducted as a fellow into the American Academy for Parks and Recreation, a national group limited to 125 practicing professionals; she received the Joseph Bannon Practitioner Award, the Jaycees Good Government Award, the Peoria Area Chamber of Commerce Athena Award, and the Ray A. Neumann Tri-County Citizen of the Year Award, among others; in 2013, the Peoria Park District Board of Trustees honored her by naming their new administration offices the "Bonnie W. Noble Center for Park District Administration"; she was also the recipient of the Charles K. Brightbill Distinguished Alumni Award, which is awarded annually by the Department of Recreation, Sport and Tourism at the University of Illinois; and

WHEREAS, Bonnie Noble is survived by her husband; her three daughters, Cindy (Shannon) Noble, Kristen (Darin) LaHood, and Jamie (Dan) Hogan; her five cherished grandsons, McKay, Lucas, and Theodore LaHood and Maxwell and Thatcher Hogan; and her brother, Robert C. West; 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 Bonnie Noble 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 Bonnie Noble as an expression of our deepest sympathy.