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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2     WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3 Representatives are pleased to congratulate Ira Weinstein of
4 Glencoe on the occasion of his 90th birthday on June 10, 2009;
5 and
 
6     WHEREAS, Ira Weinstein was born in 1919 in Chicago; during
7 high school, his talent for print communication found
8 expression in the school newspaper; and
 
9     WHEREAS, After high school, Ira Weinstein began a promising
10 career in advertising at Goldblatt's department stores, a
11 career which was interrupted by America's entry into World War
12 II; he signed up for officer's school and trained in Texas and
13 Colorado to become an officer in the Army Air Corps, rising to
14 the rank of Lieutenant Colonel; just before completing his
15 training as a bombardier-navigator and transferring to
16 overseas duty in 1942, he married Norma Randall, beginning a
17 wonderful marriage that would last until her passing in 1995;
18 and
 
19     WHEREAS, After his training, Ira Weinstein joined the 702nd
20 Squadron of the 445th Bomb Group, 8th Air Force out of
21 Tibbenham, England; he took part in 2 dozen missions as a pilot
22 of a B-24 Liberator; in trying to close out his quota of

 

 

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1 missions in order to go home to his new bride, he traded his
2 pass for the Jewish High Holidays and took part in one last
3 mission; unfortunately, his last mission was the ill-fated
4 Kassel mission on September 27, 1944, known as the greatest
5 single loss of men and material in the European air war; left
6 without fighter cover, Mr. Weinstein's plane was shot down;
7 after successfully escaping from the plane, he evaded Gestapo
8 search patrols for 6 days until his hunger and fatigue overtook
9 him and he gave himself up at a nearby town; and
 
10     WHEREAS, Following his capture, Ira Weinstein was held in
11 Stalag Luft I in Barth, Germany, enduring difficult conditions
12 as winter set in and his captors provided less and less food
13 and shelter to their captives; he remained there until the
14 camp's liberation on May 11, 1945; for his heroism during the
15 war, he was awarded the Purple Heart, the Air Medal, the POW
16 Medal, a Presidential Citation, the American Campaign and
17 European Campaign Medals, the WWII Victory Medal, and the
18 French Croix de Guerre; and
 
19     WHEREAS, After the war, Ira Weinstein returned to Chicago
20 and took over a small advertising firm, growing Schram
21 Advertising Co. into a nationally known direct marketing firm;
22 he soon moved to Glencoe to raise his daughters, Laura and
23 Terri; after his retirement, he married Mary Gandleman; and
 

 

 

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1     WHEREAS, Ira Weinstein is well known in his community as an
2 expert gardener; his greenhouse has been a neighborhood
3 landmark with blooms surpassed only by the nearby Botanical
4 Gardens; and
 
5     WHEREAS, Ira Weinstein has been active with numerous
6 community organizations; he was a founding member of
7 Congregation Solel; he has been a benefactor and supporter of
8 the Women's American ORT and a contributor toward the building
9 of the Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C.; he has also been
10 active with the 8th Air Force Historical Society and has been
11 active in the building of the Kassel Mission Memorial project;
12 and
 
13     WHEREAS, Ira Weinstein has served as a model of hard work,
14 integrity, and dedication for the people of the State of
15 Illinois; therefore, be it
 
16     RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
17 NINETY-SIXTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we
18 congratulate Ira Weinstein on the occasion of his 90th birthday
19 and wish him many happy and healthy years to come; and be it
20 further
 
21     RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
22 presented to Ira Weinstein as a symbol of our esteem and

 

 

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1 respect.