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1
SENATE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened
3to learn of the death of Michael Stokely Kelly, who passed away
4on September 2, 2021 at the age of 52; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Michael Kelly was born in Chicago on October 25,
61968; at age four, his family moved to Oak Park, Illinois; and
 
7    WHEREAS, Michael Kelly attended the Hawthorne and Holmes
8Elementary Schools and Oak Park and River Forest High School;
9and
 
10    WHEREAS, During high school, Michael Kelly wrote for the
11school newspaper, acted in stage plays, and was the junior
12class president; the highlight of these years was his
13directorial debut for the Little Theater; while casting for
14the play Bleacher Bums, he selected multiple students who had
15no prior acting experience; and
 
16    WHEREAS, Michael Kelly completed his bachelor's degree at
17the University of Michigan in 1991; he later earned a master's
18degree in Social Work and, in 2006, a doctoral degree in Social
19Work from the University of Illinois at Chicago; and
 
20    WHEREAS, In his career as a helping professional, Michael

 

 

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1Kelly served as a family therapist, a youth minister at St.
2Giles Family Mass, and a school social worker for 14 years,
3first at Indian Trail Middle School in Addison and later at
4Mann and Lincoln Elementary Schools in Oak Park; and
 
5    WHEREAS, After completing his doctoral degree, Michael
6Kelly entered academia by joining the faculty of the School of
7Social Work at Loyola University; in 2020, he was named the
8Lucian Welch and Carol Matusak Endowed Chair; and
 
9    WHEREAS, Michael Kelly was also a prolific writer in the
10social work field; he published more than 100 articles, and
11one of his books was recently translated into Japanese; and
 
12    WHEREAS, Michael Kelly earned a fellowship at the Oxford
13University Symposium for School-Based Family Counseling; in
14that role, he edited the School Mental Health Journal and the
15International Journal of School Social Work; all the while, he
16mentored countless students in the United States and Canada;
17and
 
18    WHEREAS, Michael Kelly ran in a number of marathons,
19including those in Chicago, Rome, and Ireland, and competed in
20a total of 18 international races; and
 
21    WHEREAS, Michael Kelly was preceded in death by his

 

 

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1father, Richard Kelly; and
 
2    WHEREAS, Michael Kelly is survived by his wife, Lucy Fox;
3their three sons, Benjamin, Isaac, and Alfred; his mother,
4Karen Kelly; his brother-in-law, Daniel (Susan) Fox; his
5parent-in-laws, Win and Alan Fox; and his countless relatives
6and friends; therefore, be it
 
7    RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL
8ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of
9Michael Stokely Kelly and extend our sincere condolences to
10his family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be it
11further
 
12    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
13presented to the family of Michael Kelly as an expression of
14our deepest sympathy.