HR0873 104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0873 LRB104 21707 MST 37315 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of Sherwin A. Swartz, who passed away on April 11, 2026; and

WHEREAS, Sherwin Swartz was born in Chicago on April 18, 1929, the son of a north side small-business family, and attended Chicago public schools; and

WHEREAS, After graduating from Roosevelt University with a history degree, Sherwin Swartz joined the Independent Voters of Illinois (IVI) in 1953 and developed legendary skills in the face-to-face teaching and tutoring of pre-election campaign tactics, including political organizing, grassroots campaigning, and door-to-door work; and

WHEREAS, After moving to Springfield in 1978, Sherwin Swartz joined the Republican staff for the House of Representatives, becoming a key internal Illinois General Assembly staff expert for both sides of the aisle on issues including Chicago government, local government, election law, and the recital of any U.S. Census-related or governmental statistic that any of his colleagues needed to know during the final years before this knowledge was accessible online; and

WHEREAS, Sherwin Swartz was a passionate Major League Baseball fan, preserver of a wide variety of baseball lore, and played a key role in preventing the Chicago White Sox from moving to Tampa Bay, Florida in June 1988 by working with the General Assembly to enact language within the authorization law for the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority (IFSA), a newly-created independent entity within the public sector, which gave the IFSA the financial means and authority to oversee the construction and completion of a new ball park for the White Sox; and

WHEREAS, Although Sherwin Swartz grew up on Chicago's north side, he was not a fan of the North Side MLB team; for more than a decade before his passing, he transferred much of his baseball allegiance from the Chicago White Sox to a MLB team based in St. Louis, explaining to friends that the Missouri team played the North Side team more often; and

WHEREAS, After Sherwin Swartz left General Assembly service in 1991, he was a fixture of the Springfield mentoring scene for decades, continuing to share his knowledge of political organization work, baseball appreciation, and United States history; with the help of friends, he visited all 50 states and every major battlefield of the American Civil War and could tell listeners how each battle had been won and lost; and

WHEREAS, By the time of Sherwin Swartz's passing, the St. Louis Cardinals had beaten the other team 1,234 times in regular season and postseason play; and

WHEREAS, In his final years, Sherwin Swartz attended many Cardinal games with his mentees, Joe Vespa and John Webb, and also enjoyed the company of many other friends who had enduring memories of his advice and encouragement over the years; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDRED FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of Sherwin A. Swartz 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 Sherwin Swartz as a symbol of our deepest sympathy.