SR1238 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR1238 LRB102 29266 MST 41223 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to learn of the death of J. Michael "Mike" Zimmers, who passed away on October 5, 2022; and

WHEREAS, Mike Zimmers was born in Chicago to William F. and Dorothy L. (Meeks) Zimmers on October 15, 1949; he graduated from Vienna High School in 1967 and earned his bachelor's degree at MacMurray College in 1971, where he was MVP and basketball captain his senior year; he married Nancy Severa at St. Wenceslaus Church in Cedar Rapids, Iowa on August 3, 1974; he received his master's degree in educational administration from the University of Illinois Springfield in 1991; and

WHEREAS, Mike Zimmers began his teaching career as a behavior disorders middle school teacher in Park Ridge from 1974 to 1977; he moved to Springfield and worked as a behavior disorders middle school teacher for 13 years at Washington/Feitshans and Grant Middle Schools; he also coached girls' and boys' basketball and track; he began his administrative career as an assistant principal and athletic director at Washington and Jefferson Middle Schools for 15 years from 1990 to 2005; and

WHEREAS, Mike Zimmers served as principal at Jefferson Middle School from 2005 to 2008, where he started the first gender-based education program in Springfield and introduced the nationally recognized Behavior Intervention Support Team (BIST), a program still used in Springfield schools; in 2009, he was recruited to work as a managing principal for three years; he retired in 2011; and

WHEREAS, Mike Zimmers ran for Springfield School Board #186 in 2013 and served over nine years as a member; he served for three years as board president and for three years as vice president; he was active on the Facilities Planning Committee and the city-wide Keep Kids in School effort every fall, to encourage immunizations; he also served with the One Sangamon Schools group, which organized a countywide school tax referendum that successfully passed a sales tax increase in 2018, benefiting nine county school districts; he was particularly pleased to be concluding his service on the board as the first major renovation projects for Springfield schools from that referendum were being completed this year and so many more were underway; and

WHEREAS, Mike Zimmers' community activities include service as a classroom volunteer at Enos Elementary School, a reader for Real Men Read, and as a long-time member of the Interview Committee for the Physician Pipeline Preparatory Program, a joint program with the SIU School of Medicine; he also volunteered for the United Way Education Vision Team, the Rotary International-Sunrise Chapter (past president), the Cherry Hills Homeowners Association (past president), the MacMurray College Alumni Board (past president), the Race Unity Council, and the Central Illinois Food Bank; and

WHEREAS, Mike Zimmers' professional affiliations include the Council for Exceptional Children, the Springfield Principals Association (past president), the Springfield Education Association, the Illinois Education Association, and the National Education Association; and

WHEREAS, Mike Zimmers was a long-time supporter of the Springfield Public Schools Foundation; he was in the process of establishing a new fund to support local Springfield school teachers, the Mike Zimmers Teacher Professional Development Fund, also known as the Mike Z Teacher Fund; and

WHEREAS, Mike Zimmers was presented with the Bob Goldman Friend of Education award by the Springfield Education Association in April of 2022; he loved visiting schools, listening to administrators, going into classrooms, talking with teachers, interacting with students, helping with parent requests, serving as head timer for track meets, cheering at the City Tournament, and many other activities; and

WHEREAS, Mike Zimmers was a lifelong Chicago Cubs fan; he enjoyed games at Wrigley Field and Sloan Park in Mesa, Arizona; he enjoyed working out at and supporting the Springfield Y, gardening and keeping his many bird feeders filled, and walking the family's Westie and his best buddy, Duffy; in 2014, he was named to MacMurray College's Athletic Hall of Fame, where he held the all-time single season rebound record; and

WHEREAS, Mike Zimmers was preceded in death by his parents and his brother, Eric S. Zimmers; and

WHEREAS, Mike Zimmers is survived by his wife, Nancy; his daughter, Layne A. Zimmers (Lori Smith); his cousins, David A. Allbritten, Trina Kozer, Michael Accomondo, and Lisa (Accomondo) Keller; his extended family, including Nancy's sisters and their spouses, Sidney and Larry Lutz, Sara and Duane Tack, and Stacy (the late Dave) Martin; and numerous nieces and nephews and their children; 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 J. Michael "Mike" Zimmers 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 Mike Zimmers as an expression of our deepest sympathy.