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| 1 | SENATE RESOLUTION | ||||||
| 2 | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened | ||||||
| 3 | to learn of the death of Kenneth Ray Ford, who passed away on | ||||||
| 4 | February 14, 2025; and | ||||||
| 5 | WHEREAS, Kenneth Ford was born to James "Partner" Ford and | ||||||
| 6 | Edna Bennett in Tamms; he attended Blane Elementary School | ||||||
| 7 | while supplementing his family's income by working a number of | ||||||
| 8 | jobs, including plowing fields and harvesting fruit; he | ||||||
| 9 | graduated from Lovejoy High School and moved to Chicago; he | ||||||
| 10 | served in the U.S. Army, through which he traveled throughout | ||||||
| 11 | Europe; he then began an apprenticeship at the Central Shops | ||||||
| 12 | of the University of Chicago, working under the tutelage of | ||||||
| 13 | several physicists who contributed to the Manhattan Project; | ||||||
| 14 | and | ||||||
| 15 | WHEREAS, Kenneth Ford worked as a machinist who designed | ||||||
| 16 | and made tools for scientific purposes, including several | ||||||
| 17 | instruments sent on the Apollo 11 mission to the moon; he also | ||||||
| 18 | served as a union steward, and he was elected as the first | ||||||
| 19 | African American business representative for the International | ||||||
| 20 | Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, AFL-CIO in | ||||||
| 21 | the 1980s, remaining in this position until he retired; and | ||||||
| 22 | WHEREAS, Kenneth Ford committed to his faith later in | ||||||
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| 1 | life, and he enjoyed golfing, improving his culinary skills, | ||||||
| 2 | traveling, gardening, and attending family gatherings; and | ||||||
| 3 | WHEREAS, Kenneth Ford was a lifelong believer in the | ||||||
| 4 | importance of fairness and justice; he will be remembered for | ||||||
| 5 | his quick wit, boisterous laughter, and sharp humor; and | ||||||
| 6 | WHEREAS, Kenneth Ford was preceded in death by his | ||||||
| 7 | children, Patricia Foggs and Richard Grundy; his grandson, | ||||||
| 8 | Aaron Ford; and his siblings, Marie Jackson, Wendell Ford, | ||||||
| 9 | Sandra Jones, and Marian Venson; and | ||||||
| 10 | WHEREAS, Kenneth Ford is survived by his wife, Flo; his | ||||||
| 11 | children, Kenneth Ray (Shirley) Grundy, Cynthia Denise Ford, | ||||||
| 12 | Joy (Bernard) Manley, and Angela (William) Ford-Heath; his | ||||||
| 13 | siblings, Ramona Moore, Ursula (Gerald) Jenkins, and Dana | ||||||
| 14 | Ford; and a host of grandchildren, great-grandchildren, | ||||||
| 15 | nieces, nephews, and friends; therefore, be it | ||||||
| 16 | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED FOURTH GENERAL | ||||||
| 17 | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of | ||||||
| 18 | Kenneth Ray Ford and extend our sincere condolences to his | ||||||
| 19 | family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be it | ||||||
| 20 | further | ||||||
| 21 | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | ||||||
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| 1 | presented to the family of Kenneth Ford as an expression of our | ||||||
| 2 | deepest sympathy. | ||||||