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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3Representatives are pleased to remember Mary Elizabeth Pierce
4for her many years of dedicated service to her community,
5family, and friends; and
 
6    WHEREAS, Mary Elizabeth Pierce was born December 4, 1922,
7in Chicago; she was the daughter of Henry Harris and Eva Irene
8Hanes Pierce; in 1928, her family relocated to Richton Park,
9when the Illinois Central was electrified and her father became
10responsible for maintaining the switches; she enjoyed relating
11that, when her family moved to town, the town's population sign
12read "50"; and
 
13    WHEREAS, Mary Elizabeth Pierce's education started in a
14one-room schoolhouse on Sauk Trail, just east of the IC tracks;
15she attended Matteson High School for 3 years, and graduated
16from Thornton High School; she later attended Chicago Teachers
17College and, once certified in education, started teaching in
181944 in a one-room schoolhouse in Green Garden Township, west
19of Monee; and
 
20    WHEREAS, In 1947, Mary Elizabeth Pierce taught in the
21Peotone Elementary School; in 1951, she was employed by Steger
22Central Junior High, where she taught for 28 years; she retired

 

 

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1from teaching in 1979 after being diagnosed with cancer; and
 
2    WHEREAS, Mary Elizabeth Pierce worked as public relations
3coordinator at Steger Central for 26 years; she was an active
4member of the Beta Beta chapter of Delta Kappa Gamma, an
5educational service sorority, and a lifelong member of the
6Illinois Education Association and the National Educational
7Association; and
 
8    WHEREAS, In 1991, Mary Elizabeth Pierce was elected village
9clerk of Richton Park; she was a founding member of the Friends
10of the Library and co-chair of Richton Park's Bicentennial
11Committee; she was a co-author of "The History of the Village
12of Richton Park, Illinois, 75th Anniversary, 1926-2001" and was
13considered the historian for Richton Park who gladly gave
14presentations on the development of her community; she served
15on the Human Relations Commission, the Senior Citizen
16Commission, the Bill Fleming Scholarship Committee, and was an
17ardent promoter of her hometown; she was also an avid Chicago
18White Sox fan; and
 
19    WHEREAS, Mary Elizabeth Pierce was preceded in death by her
20parents; her brothers; John, Edward, Henry Jr. (Junie), and
21David; her sister, Nancy Graham; and her nephews, James Graham,
22Lee Graham, and Robert Pierce, Jr.; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, Mary Elizabeth Pierce is survived by her brothers,
2Robert (Sherryl) Pierce and Roy Pierce; her sisters-in-law,
3Billie Bednarczyk and Kathleen Pierce; her several nieces and
4nephews; and her special friends, Jerry and Kathy Corsaro and
5Tom and Barb Martin; she donated her body to the Anatomical
6Gift Association of Illinois; and
 
7    WHEREAS, Mary Elizabeth Pierce never married and had no
8biological children of her own, but her love of teaching filled
9her life with countless hours of joy and happiness; she will be
10missed by those who knew and loved her; therefore, be it
 
11    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
12NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
13we mourn the passing of Mary Elizabeth Pierce and remember her
14for her many years of dedicated service to her community,
15family, and friends; and be it further
 
16    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
17presented to the family of Mary Elizabeth Pierce as a symbol of
18our esteem and respect.