HR0494 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0494 LRB095 12355 KXB 37327 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of the Honorable John M. Flaherty of Oak Lawn, who passed away on May 21, 2007; and

WHEREAS, John M. Flaherty was a retired Associate Judge with the 5th District Circuit Court of Cook County; he was an United States Army Air Corps Veteran of World War II; and

WHEREAS, Judge Flaherty grew up in Chicago's Canaryville neighborhood; he was the fourth of seven children, and was the son of Irish immigrants, a Chicago Police officer, and a homemaker; after his graduation from Englewood High School, he enlisted in the United States Army Air Forces; between 1943 and 1945, Mr. Flaherty was a machine-gunner in a B-24 Liberator aircraft, flying over Europe; he survived his plane being shot down; after his military discharge, he attended DePaul University, where he earned bachelor's and law degrees; and

WHEREAS, In the late 1940s, he passed the Illinois bar exam and married Margaret Leiser; together they lived in Canaryville until 1965, when they moved to Oak Lawn, where they raised their five children; and

WHEREAS, Judge Flaherty worked as a Cook County public defender for a time; he was appointed an associate judge in 1965, working as a Traffic Court judge before working as a roving judge; he worked in various village halls presiding over municipal matters; in his last years as a judge, Judge Flaherty was assigned to the county courthouse in Bridgeview, where he retired at the age of 74; and

WHEREAS, Judge Flaherty lived his life by this principle: "There is but one rule of conduct for a man to do the right thing. The cost may be dear in money, in friends, in influence, in labor, in a prolonged and painful sacrifice; but the cost not to do right is far more dear: you pay in the integrity of your manhood, in honor, in truth, in character. You forfeit you soul's content, and for a timely gain, you barter the infinities."-Archer G. Jones; and

WHEREAS, John Flaherty was the beloved husband of Margaret M., nee Leiser, for 58 years; the loving father of Mary Flaherty, John (Lynn), Honorable Brian (Mary Beth), Mark (Alice) and Colleen (Tim) Shea; the dear "Papa" of Michael, Eileen, Tom, Patrick, Kevin, Grace, Maggie, Colin, Alanna, Nora, Cara and Annie; the devoted brother of the late Mary Goldsmith, Patricia Meyer, Virginia Kenny, Margaret O'Connor, and Stephen and Edward Flaherty; and the fond uncle of many nieces and nephews; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn, along with his family and friends, the passing of the Honorable John M. Flaherty; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the family of the Honorable John M. Flaherty as a symbol of our sympathy.