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| 1 | HOUSE RESOLUTION
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| 2 | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | ||||||
| 3 | Representatives are pleased to congratulate our friend and | ||||||
| 4 | former Illinois State Representative, Ron Stephens, on the | ||||||
| 5 | occasion of being honored as the November 2012 Veteran of the | ||||||
| 6 | Month by the Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs; and
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| 7 | WHEREAS, Ron Stephens served in the United States Army from | ||||||
| 8 | 1969 to 1971 as a paratrooper with the storied 173rd Airborne | ||||||
| 9 | Brigade; he is a combat veteran who suffered wounds to his | ||||||
| 10 | head, arm, shoulder and hand as a result of enemy fire; and | ||||||
| 11 | WHEREAS, Ron Stephens was awarded the Purple Heart, the | ||||||
| 12 | Bronze Star, the Combat Infantry Badge, the Vietnam Service | ||||||
| 13 | Medal with bronze service star, and the Vietnam Campaign Medal | ||||||
| 14 | with device for his meritorious service; and
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| 15 | WHEREAS, Ron Stephens has done many great works within the | ||||||
| 16 | veteran community, both in his former capacity as State | ||||||
| 17 | Representative and in his personal life; he has spent more than | ||||||
| 18 | 40 years working with the VFW and American Legion to raise | ||||||
| 19 | funds for veteran causes and has participated in and organized | ||||||
| 20 | a multitude of events for fellow veterans and their families; | ||||||
| 21 | he has served as a coordinator of this year's 160-mile Wounded | ||||||
| 22 | Warrior Walk, which raised $16,000 for the Wounded Warriors | ||||||
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| 1 | Project; and
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| 2 | WHEREAS, Ron Stephens has worked with the Marine Corps | ||||||
| 3 | League's Trees for Troops and Toys for Tots programs over the | ||||||
| 4 | past 10 years and, as an Army veteran, was honored with the | ||||||
| 5 | Marine Corps League Honorary Membership Award; he has donated | ||||||
| 6 | funds and time to the local Benjamin Mills Daughters of the | ||||||
| 7 | American Revolution Chapter, where he teaches elementary | ||||||
| 8 | school children about the significance of Veterans Day and the | ||||||
| 9 | importance of respecting the American flag and presents all 3rd | ||||||
| 10 | graders in the local school system with their own flags; and
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| 11 | WHEREAS, As a legislator and veteran, Ron Stephens | ||||||
| 12 | steadfastly lobbied to name particular roads and bridges in | ||||||
| 13 | honor of veterans, in addition to his efforts to honor veterans | ||||||
| 14 | with memorials, including the efforts to name a new bridge | ||||||
| 15 | being constructed over the Mississippi
River in the Metro East | ||||||
| 16 | area as the "Veterans Bridge" and in the creation of the | ||||||
| 17 | Springfield Vietnam Veterans Memorial and; he has also been | ||||||
| 18 | involved in fundraising for a Women Veterans Memorial; and
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| 19 | WHEREAS, Ron Stephens was honored as the November 2012 | ||||||
| 20 | Veteran of the Month during a ceremony at the First Christian | ||||||
| 21 | Church in Greenville; and | ||||||
| 22 | WHEREAS, Ron Stephens serves as a model of hard work, | ||||||
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| 1 | integrity, and dedication for the people of the State of | ||||||
| 2 | Illinois and the world at large; therefore, be it
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| 3 | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | ||||||
| 4 | NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | ||||||
| 5 | we congratulate our friend and former colleague, Ron Stephens, | ||||||
| 6 | on the occasion of being honored as the November 2012 Veteran | ||||||
| 7 | of the Month and wish him continued success and happiness in | ||||||
| 8 | the future; and be it further
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| 9 | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | ||||||
| 10 | presented to Ron Stephens as a symbol of our esteem and | ||||||
| 11 | respect.
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