HR1350 99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR1350 LRB099 22226 GRL 49595 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives wish to congratulate the congregation of St. Constance Church in Chicago on the occasion of the church's 100th anniversary in 2016; and

WHEREAS, St. Constance Church was organized in 1916 at the request of 90 Polish families who belonged to Our Lady of Victory Church; members of the Polonia Club of Our Lady of Victory Roman Catholic Parish asked Auxiliary Bishop Paul P. Rhode to help them in their efforts to obtain a parish of their own; and

WHEREAS, On July 16, 1916, Archbishop George W. Mundelein appointed Rev. Alex Knitter, a former assistant at St. Adalbert Church, to organize the new national parish in the district known as Colonial Gardens, part of the larger Jefferson Park community; Father Knitter celebrated the first Mass in the home of Valentine Wachowski at Lawrence Avenue and Long Avenue; and

WHEREAS, On August 20, 1916, a simple frame church at Lawrence Avenue and Central Avenue, in the vicinity of the Dyniewicz Park subdivision, was rededicated as St. Constance Church; late in 1916, property bounded by Strong Street, Ainslie Street, Marmora Avenue, and Menard Avenue was selected as the site of the new Polish parish; work later commenced on a three-story church and school building at 5809 West Strong Street, which was dedicated on October 7, 1917 by Archbishop Mundelein; the School Sisters of Notre Dame were invited by Father Knitter to staff the parish school; and

WHEREAS, St. Constance's modern church, designed by A.J. Del Bianco and Richard Donatoni, was completed in 1970; the bell tower was installed in 1980 and the wooden altar was installed by Jerzy Kenar in 1981; and

WHEREAS, In 1974, the Maximilian Kolbe School of Polish Language was founded at St. Constance Church; the school has continued its ministry of instructing young Chicagoans in the Polish language into the present day; and

WHEREAS, St. Constance Church remains a strong cultural center for the Polish diaspora in Chicago and much of the parish membership is Polish; confessions are still heard in Polish and liturgies held each Sunday are celebrated in both Polish and English; as the neighborhood has grown increasingly diverse, families of Italian, Irish, German, Filipino, and Latin American descent have joined this community of faith; and

WHEREAS, The congregation of St. Constance Church serve as models of hard work, integrity, and dedication for the people of the State of Illinois; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate the congregation of St. Constance Church on the occasion of the church's 100th anniversary and wish them continued success and happiness in the future; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to St. Constance Church as a symbol of our esteem and respect.