HR1207 LRB094 20288 HSS 58303 r

1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2     WHEREAS, Mr. Dominic DiFrisco has been named a recipient of
3 the Joseph Cardinal Bernardin Humanitarian of the Year Award
4 given by the Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans
5 (JCCIA); and
 
6     WHEREAS, The JCCIA's Joseph Cardinal Bernardin
7 Humanitarian of the Year Award is presented annually to those
8 whose lives exemplify the virtues of caring, humanity, and good
9 will that were the hallmark of Cardinal Bernardin's tenure as
10 Archbishop of Chicago; and
 
11     WHEREAS, Mr. DiFrisco moved to Chicago in 1962 after being
12 transferred from his native New York by his employer Alitalia;
13 he served as the public relations manager for the Midwest and
14 later was promoted to district sales manager; it was during his
15 career with Alitalia that Mr. DiFrisco began to devote himself
16 to serving the Italian-American community; he served as
17 president of the JCCIA from 1990 to 1994; and
 
18     WHEREAS, His involvement in the Italian-American community
19 began as a combination of commercial necessity and personal
20 commitment; he needed to maintain close ties with the Italian
21 community because that is where most of Alitalia's clientele
22 were from, but he also wanted to take part in causes that
23 celebrated and advanced Italian culture; and
 
24     WHEREAS, Born to Leoluca and Antonina, immigrants from
25 Corleone, Sicily, Mr. DiFrisco was taught the importance of
26 community involvement at an early age; his father's involvement
27 in many Italian-American causes left a strong impression on him
28 and inspired him to dedicate most of his adult life to the
29 promotion of Italian-American culture; and
 
30     WHEREAS, After Alitalia temporarily pulled out of the

 

 

HR1207 - 2 - LRB094 20288 HSS 58303 r

1 Chicago market in 1975, Mr. DiFrisco decided to remain in
2 Chicago and created a successful career for himself in the
3 public relations field; he is currently a senior consultant at
4 Edelman Chicago; among the more prominent clients he has
5 counseled throughout his career are the Illinois Department of
6 Alcoholism and Substance Abuse, the Illinois Department of
7 Public Health, the Mayor's Office of Employment and Training,
8 Gatorade, McDonald's, and Kerr-McGee Corp.; he has earned
9 praise throughout his career for effective leadership in
10 Chicago's multi-ethnic social fabric; and
 
11     WHEREAS, He is a commendatóre of the republic of Italy and
12 president emeritus of the Joint Civic Committee of Italian
13 Americans; he served five one-year terms as president of the
14 JCCIA and is the chairman emeritus of the board of directors of
15 the Shrine of Our Lady of Pompeii; he has received numerous
16 awards from the Italian-American community; and
 
17     WHEREAS, He has also been honored by the African-American
18 and Native-American communities and served as a board member of
19 the Regional Organ Bank of Illinois and chairman for an Israel
20 Bond event; he currently serves as a board member of the
21 Illinois Arts Alliance and director of the Italian American
22 Human Relations Foundation; therefore, be it
 
23     RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
24 NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
25 we congratulate Mr. Dominic DiFrisco on being a recipient of
26 the Joseph Cardinal Bernardin Humanitarian of the Year Award
27 given by the Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans; and be
28 it further
 
29     RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
30 presented to Mr. DiFrisco as an expression of our esteem.