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| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION
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| 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of |
| 3 | | Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of
James M. |
| 4 | | Bailey Sr. of Alton, who passed away on August 10, 2012; and
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| 5 | | WHEREAS, James Bailey Sr. was born on May 5, 1915, in |
| 6 | | Trenton, Tennessee; his family later moved to St. Louis, where |
| 7 | | he graduated from Vashon High School; he subsequently earned |
| 8 | | his bachelor's degree in education from Lincoln University in |
| 9 | | 1939 and his master's degree in education from the University |
| 10 | | of Illinois-Champaign in 1948; and
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| 11 | | WHEREAS, After college, James Bailey Sr. went to Alton to |
| 12 | | work as a teacher and basketball coach at Lovejoy School; he |
| 13 | | later became principal at Central Junior High School and then |
| 14 | | assistant principal at Alton Senior High School; he was also |
| 15 | | the first black administrative assistant to the superintendent |
| 16 | | in the district; and
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| 17 | | WHEREAS, James Bailey Sr. was the first black citizen to be |
| 18 | | elected to the Alton City Council and the first to be named as |
| 19 | | comptroller for the City of Alton; and
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| 20 | | WHEREAS, James Bailey Sr. was instrumental in the creation |
| 21 | | of numerous local organizations that still exist today, |
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| 1 | | including the Elijah P. Lovejoy Memorial Society and the |
| 2 | | Madison County Urban League; and
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| 3 | | WHEREAS, James Bailey Sr. was the recipient of numerous |
| 4 | | awards and honors, including the Alton Community Citizens |
| 5 | | Award, the Lovejoy Human Rights Award, and the NAACP's |
| 6 | | Outstanding Citizen Award; in September of 2011, he was honored |
| 7 | | by the Ministry of Greater St. James Baptist Church as its |
| 8 | | fifth distinguished elder; the date of September 25 was |
| 9 | | designated "James M. Bailey Day in the City of Alton" by Mayor |
| 10 | | Tom Hoechst and the library at the new Alton High School was |
| 11 | | named the James M. Bailey Library in November 2006 in honor of |
| 12 | | his great work in the city; and
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| 13 | | WHEREAS, James Bailey Sr. and his loving wife of 74 years, |
| 14 | | the former Mary Louise Simmons, had 2 sons, the Honorable Duane |
| 15 | | Bailey and Dr. James M. Bailey Jr.; therefore, be it
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| 16 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE |
| 17 | | NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that |
| 18 | | we mourn, along with his family and friends, the passing of |
| 19 | | James M. Bailey Sr.; and be it further
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| 20 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be |
| 21 | | presented to the family of James Bailey Sr. as an expression of |
| 22 | | our sympathy.
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