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1
SENATE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened
3to learn of the death of Frederick "Fred" Walton Allen of
4Peoria, who passed away on January 24, 2021; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Fred Allen was born to Frederick William Allen
6and Laura Josephine (Johnson) Allen in Ripon, Wisconsin on
7June 10, 1923; he graduated from Ripon High School in 1941 and
8enrolled in Ripon College; he halted his studies to
9voluntarily enlist in the U.S. Army Air Force on December 7,
101942; he spent time as a pilot stationed at Keesler Field in
11Biloxi, Mississippi, the College of Waynesburg in
12Pennsylvania, the Classification Center at Nashville,
13Tennessee, Maxwell Field in Montgomery, Alabama, Douglas,
14Georgia, and Cochran Army Airfield in Macon, Georgia; he
15received his pilot's wings on August 5, 1944 at Moody Field in
16Valdosta, Georgia and completed his training with the rank of
17second lieutenant; with the assistance of the GI Bill, he
18attended law school for two years at Northwestern University;
19he was admitted to the Illinois State Bar in 1949; he married
20Tilley (Derges) Allen at the First Methodist Church of Peoria
21on July 26, 1952; and
 
22    WHEREAS, Fred Allen had a long and distinguished career as
23a plaintiff's attorney; in 1949, he was hired by the law firm

 

 

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1of Louis Knobloch; in 1974, he became the first downstate
2Illinois lawyer to win a $1 million award for a client, Ford
3Motors Company; he built his own law firm as a self-made
4businessman and regularly made time for pro bono legal work;
5and
 
6    WHEREAS, Fred Allen ran for Congress in 1956; he was
7elected for eight years as the 18th Congressional District
8State Central Committeeman for the Democratic party; and
 
9    WHEREAS, After his $1 million verdict, Fred Allen earned
10membership into the Inner Circle of Advocates, an elite
11national group limited to plaintiff's attorneys who had won
12seven figure awards; at the time of his inclusion, there had
13been only 55 such awards paid out in the United States and
14members were limited to 100 nationally; he was a fellow of the
15American College of Trial Lawyers, a fellow of the
16International Society of Barristers, a fellow of the
17International Academy of Trial Lawyers, and a member of the
18Board of Governors of the Association of Trial Lawyers of
19America; he was president of the Illinois Trial Lawyers
20Association from 1974 through 1975, the Peoria County Bar
21Association from 1979 through 1980, and the invitation only
22Society of Trial Lawyers of Illinois from 1983 through 1984;
23he was a fellow and active in the Illinois State Bar
24Association for more than 50 years; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, Fred Allen was a member of the Elks Club for more
2than 70 years; he was a president of the Country Club of Peoria
3and was also a member of the American Legion, the First United
4Methodist Church of Peoria, the Union League Club of Chicago,
5Springs Country Club of Rancho Mirage, California, Old Baldy
6Club of Saratoga, Wyoming, and the Mascoutin Golf Club of
7Berlin, Wisconsin; and
 
8    WHEREAS, Before World War Two, Fred Allen signed with a
9farm team of the New York Yankees, where he was known for his
10fastball; following his military service, he signed a contract
11as a pitcher with the Papermakers of Appleton, Wisconsin, a
12minor league affiliate of the Cleveland Indians; while he
13never realized the dream of becoming a Major League pitcher,
14he remained a devoted baseball fan; in 2016, a dream of his
15came true when he watched with his family as his beloved Cubs
16won the World Series; he especially enjoyed spending time with
17his daughters, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and their
18families; and
 
19    WHEREAS, Fred Allen was preceded in death by his parents;
20his wife of 66 years; his daughter, Laura Allen Curfman; and
21his sister, Jane (Allen) Waters; and
 
22    WHEREAS, Fred Allen is survived by his two daughters,

 

 

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1Diane (Doug) Allen Cullinan Oberhelman and Rita Allen Graves;
2his seven grandchildren, Kathleen Cullinan (Tyson) Brill,
3Maureen Cullinan (Christopher) Bennett, Alison Cullinan (Matt)
4Unkovich, Allen (Laura) Cullinan, Crystal Curfman (Coby) Shaw,
5Colette Curfman, and Whitney Graves; his 13
6great-grandchildren, Austin Brill, Hudson Brill, Cameron
7Brill, Michael Bennett, Avery Bennett, Luke Bennett, Duane
8Douglas Cullinan, Mary Michael Cullinan, Frances Cullinan,
9Duke Unkovich, Tilley Unkovich, Adelaide Lott, and Coleman
10Lott; and his one great-grandchild on the way at the time of
11his passing; therefore, be it
 
12    RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL
13ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of
14Frederick "Fred" Walton Allen and extend our sincere
15condolences to his family, friends, and all who knew and loved
16him; and be it further
 
17    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
18presented to the family of Fred Allen as an expression of our
19deepest sympathy.