HR0327 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0327 LRB097 11823 KXB 55116 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of William "Bill" Alfred Cook, formerly of Canton, who passed away on April 15, 2011; and

WHEREAS, Bill Cook was born January 27, 1931, to George Cook and Cleo DeLong Orndorff Cook of Mattoon; he was born during the hard-luck years of the Great Depression to a father who sold magazine subscriptions and insurance policies to farmers, but eventually took out a bank loan and bought two grain elevators to trade grain on the Chicago Board of Trade; and

WHEREAS, Bill Cook grew up in Canton, where he went to public high school and after graduation attended Northwestern University, where he drove a cab to help pay off tuition loans; with an unbridled drive toward achievement, Bill Cook launched a company with partners to manufacture and market disposable hypodermic needles; and

WHEREAS, When Bill Cook severed his association with a Chicago company, Bill and his wife, Gayle, moved to Bloomington, Indiana, to create a new firm, Cook Inc.; by moving past setbacks and industry competition, his company grew to become the world's largest privately owned medical device company; and

WHEREAS, In addition to growing their medical device company, he and his wife became revered leaders of the American historical restoration movement, personally renovating dozens of historic but dilapidated buildings, a passion that he would later bring to his hometown of Canton; and

WHEREAS, Besides founding a company employing more than 10,000 people worldwide producing and marketing minimally invasive medical devices, he would also go on to own a world-renowned drum and bugle corps, the Star of Indiana, to own a European championship basketball team, and to produce the Tony and Emmy Award winning musical Blast; and

WHEREAS, Bill Cook, who became a billionaire through his company, made it his company's mission to put patients first, and that philosophy served the company well and fueled growth for nearly a half century; the company, bearing his name, was simply a means to an end for his generous philanthropic work throughout the Midwest; and

WHEREAS, Bill Cook helped to revive industry in his hometown of Canton; Bill spent a great deal of time in Canton, especially during the last decade of his life; in Canton, Bill built a factory, bought and renovated the Fulton Square, was constructing a hotel, and purchased the former Lewis Drug Emporium, now a Sweet Shoppe with soda fountains similar to the fountains that were there when he was a kid growing up in Canton; and

WHEREAS, His service to his community and to the Midwest were not without recognition; he served as an honorary Speaker of the Indiana House of Representatives and was named the Indiana Chamber of Commerce Business Man of the Year in 1999; he received numerous awards for community service and historic preservation, business and productivity; and the City of Canton twice honored him for his restoration of thousands of trees after a tornado devastated the town; and

WHEREAS, Bill Cook's legacy as a philanthropist throughout the Midwest will serve as a permanent reminder of community stewardship and corporate responsibility; and

WHEREAS, William Cook is survived by his wife, Gayle Cook, and his son, Carl Cook; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn, along with his family and friends, the passing of William Alfred Cook; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the family of William "Bill" Cook as an expression of our sympathy and esteem for his life and career.