SR0970 96TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR0970 LRB096 23811 GRL 43196 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to learn of the death of Bill Jacobs of Hinsdale, who passed away on September 5, 2010; and

WHEREAS, Bill Jacobs was well-known throughout metropolitan Chicago for his thriving automobile dealership business; he began in Joliet with a Chevrolet dealership that he purchased from his father at the age of 23, which made him the youngest large-volume Chevrolet dealer ever appointed by General Motors; over the years, he built the group into 10 dealerships with Illinois franchises for BMW, Mini, Volkswagen, Land Rover, Chevrolet, Cadillac, Mazda, Subaru, Kia, and Mitsubishi; last year, the Bill Jacobs Automotive Group employed about 480 staff and earned around $300 million in sales; once he had a sizable and deep management team in place, he began expanding into auto-related and real estate businesses; he also became a noted collector of antique cars that regularly appeared and were sold at major antique auto shows from Pebble Beach to Europe; and

WHEREAS, Bill Jacobs served on the National Dealer Councils for BMW, Land Rover, and Chevrolet; he was also president of the Chicagoland and Northwest Indiana Chevrolet Dealers Advertising Group and a member of the advisory boards of 2 automotive museums; and

WHEREAS, Bill Jacobs and his dealerships were the recipients of numerous awards, including the Time Magazine Quality Dealer of the Year Award, the General Motors Jack Smith Award, and the Chevrolet and Cadillac Genuine Leader Award; and

WHEREAS, Bill Jacobs had a life-long involvement with the communities were he did business; he served as both education chair and president of the Chicago Chapter of the YPO and was involved in the WPO; he was the recipient of the Rush Neurobehavioral Center's Living Proof Award; he was a founding member of the RNBC advisory board; he served on the Friends of Prentice Hospital Advisory Board and the Hinsdale Center for the Arts Board; he was a founding member and substantial contributor of the Will County Center for Economic Development; the Bill Jacobs Group was also recognized by the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation for 10 consecutive years for raising the most funds of any BMW dealership in the United States; and

WHEREAS, Bill Jacobs is survived by his wife, Linda R. Jacobs; his sons, William T. Jacobs III, Kevin M. Jacobs, Maximilian K. Jacobs, and Clayton R. Jacobs; and his mother, Jeanne Jacobs; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-SIXTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn, along with his family and friends, the passing of Bill Jacobs; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the family of Bill Jacobs as an expression of our sympathy.