HR0629 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0629 LRB103 39636 LAW 69996 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives wish to congratulate Lester H. McKeever Jr. on the occasion of being named a 2024 Lincoln Laureate of the Order of Lincoln; and

WHEREAS, Established in 1964, the Order of Lincoln is the State's highest civilian honor for professional achievement and public service, honoring Illinois residents whose work uplifts every community in the State; and

WHEREAS, Lester McKeever, born and raised in Chicago, made history in 1960 when he became the 60th Black Certified Public Accountant (CPA) in the United States; today, he is a leader across the industries of accounting, business, and finance; and

WHEREAS, Lester McKeever began his undergraduate education at the University of Illinois' short-lived Navy Pier satellite campus before transferring to the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, where he became a member of the Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. and received his Bachelor of Science in Accounting in 1955; he was drafted into the U.S. Army in 1957, serving for two years; he obtained his CPA license in 1960; he later earned his Juris Doctor from the Illinois Institute of Technology's Chicago-Kent College of Law in 1971; and

WHEREAS, Lester McKeever began his accounting career at the Unity Mutual Life Insurance Company and worked as a part-time assistant during tax season for Mary T. Washington, the first Black woman to earn her CPA license, who became his mentor and introduced him to the accounting field; and

WHEREAS, After his military service, Lester McKeever returned to accounting, taking a full-time position at Mary Washington's firm, Washington and Pittman, which was eventually renamed Washington, Pittman & McKeever and where he was named managing partner in 1976; and

WHEREAS, Lester McKeever was appointed as board chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago in 1997, a position he held until 2001; and

WHEREAS, Lester McKeever has been a passionate civic leader and advocate for increasing diversity in the accounting profession, serving on the Finance Committee under Chicago Mayors Harold Washington and Richard M. Daley and holding leadership positions in a number of organizations, including the American Association of Attorney-CPAs (AAA-CPA), the Chicago Urban League, the Commercial Club of Chicago, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association, the Illinois CPA Society, the Illinois Institute of Technology, the Metropolitan Planning Council, the National Society of Black CPAs, the University of Illinois Board of Trustees, and the United Way of Metropolitan Chicago; and

WHEREAS, Lester McKeever has received a number of accolades during his career, becoming the namesake of the Lester H. McKeever Jr. Advancing Diversity Award by the Illinois CPA Society in 2016 and receiving the Gold Medal Award of Distinction by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountant (AICPA) in 2018; and

WHEREAS, Lester McKeever and his fellow 2024 Lincoln Laureates join more than 350 distinguished Illinois residents of the Order of Lincoln since its inception, and they will be honored at the 60th annual Convocation and Investiture at the Chicago History Museum on April 13, 2024; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate Lester H. McKeever Jr. on being named a 2024 Lincoln Laureate of the Order of Lincoln, and we recognize his service and dedication to the residents of Illinois; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to Lester McKeever as an expression of our esteem and respect.