SR0712 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR0712 LRB097 21117 KXB 68518 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to learn of the death of Mark H. Ayers of Alexandria, Virginia, formerly of Peoria, who passed away on April 8, 2012; and

WHEREAS, He was born on January 22, 1949, in Canton, to Edward Charles Ayers and Daunie Darlene Hawks Ayers; he married Deborah Selburg in Peoria, on May 24, 1998; and

WHEREAS, Mark H. Ayers was President of the Building and Construction Trades Department, AFL-CIO; prior to becoming President of the BCTD, he served for 9 years as the director of the Construction and Maintenance Department at the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW); he was also a member of IBEW Local 34 in Peoria, since 1973, which he headed as business manager for 9 years; and

WHEREAS, He was co-founder and chairman of the Central Illinois Chapter of the National Electrical Contractors Association-IBEW Local 34 Quality Connection; he was appointed to the National Joint Apprenticeship Training Committee; he served as a trustee and chairman of the NECA-IBEW Welfare and Pension Trust Funds; and he was a member of the board and on the executive committee of the Peoria Area Labor Management Council and the Labor Management Cooperative Health Program; and

WHEREAS, During his years with Local 34 and the West-Central Illinois Building and Construction Trades Council, he also served on the Board of Directors of the Peoria Chapter of the American Red Cross, and was appointed by the Mayor of the City of Peoria to serve on the Peoria Civic Center Authority; he worked with the Junior League of Peoria to build the Tri-Centennial Playground in Glen Oak Park commemorating the 300th birthday of the founding of Peoria; and

WHEREAS, He was also instrumental in organizing 2 major Labor Management committees in the Peoria area, including the Peoria Area Labor Management (PALM) group which brought all area unions and companies together including Caterpillar and the UAW, and the Tri-County Construction labor management committee, which brings all the building trades unions and their respective contractors and associations together in a positive Labor-Management setting; and

WHEREAS, He attended the George Meany Institute for Labor Studies, the University of Wisconsin, and the University of Illinois Institute of Labor and Industrial Relations; he also served in the United States Navy as an aviator during the Vietnam war era, and his commitment and devotion to our nation's military veterans was amplified through his direct involvement with the "Helmets to Hardhats" program, serving as president of the AFL-CIO Union Veterans Council and through his support of the Education Center of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund; and

WHEREAS, He was appointed by President Barack Obama to serve on the Blue Ribbon Commission on America's Nuclear Future; he also served as chairman of the National Coordinating Committee for Multi Employer Plans and on the Board of Directors of the Diabetes Research Institute; he was Secretary-Treasurer of the Union Labor Life Insurance Company and a Chairman of the Center for Construction Education and Research CPWR; he was on the Board of Trustees for the AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust and was Labor Co-Chair for the Helmets to Hardhats Program; he served on the Board of Directors of the Nuclear Energy Institute and on the Board of Trustees of the National Labor College; and he was on the Board of Directors of the Elderly Housing Development and Operations Corporation (EHDOC); and

WHEREAS, He was preceded in death by his father, Edward Charles Ayers; and his stepfather, John Taylor; and

WHEREAS, Mark Ayers is survived by his wife, Deborah Selburg Ayers; his mother, Daunie Hawks Ayers Taylor; his brother, Edward Kent (Nancy) Ayers; his daughters, Aimee Ayers (Bill) Mansfield and Tami (Bill) Lamprecht; his grandchildren, Carlee, Porter, Brenin, Tatym, Taryn, and Taylor; and several nieces and nephews; therefore, be it

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

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the family of Mark Ayers as a symbol of our sincere sympathy.