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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of Theodis
4R. Leonard, Sr., who passed away on April 8, 2012; and
 
5    WHEREAS, He was born February 3, 1934, in Schlater,
6Mississippi, to Joseph Richard and Lelia Leonard; he graduated
7from Mileston High School in Tchula, Mississippi in 1953 and
8enlisted in the United States Air Force, where he served 4
9years, obtaining the rank of Staff Sergeant, and receiving a
10special commendation for inventing a hand tool to service
11airplanes; he was honorably discharged in 1957; and
 
12    WHEREAS, After leaving the Air Force, he married his high
13school sweetheart, Essie Tate, and moved to Chicago's North
14Lawndale community; he enrolled at Crane Junior College, where
15he received his AB degree in education; he later received his
16Master's degree in guidance and counseling from Chicago's
17Teachers College (now Chicago State University); he completed
18additional coursework to obtain his Type 75 certification (to
19qualify for school principal) at Governor's State University;
20and
 
21    WHEREAS, He began teaching at Gregory School in 1965, and
22was promoted to guidance teacher and later to Assistant

 

 

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1Principal; early on in his career, he served as a program
2director for a summer youth outreach program based in the Urban
3Progress Center; he was a mentor to young teachers and was
4instrumental in bringing programs such as Project CANAL and
5Adopt A School to help teachers develop professionally and to
6supplement the school's public resources; he served as
7Principal of Paderewski School until his retirement in 2001;
8and
 
9    WHEREAS, He encouraged several parents to get involved with
10the PTA and Local School Council, and to go back to school to
11become teachers; he served as a representative to the Chicago
12Teachers Union; he was instrumental in getting a representative
13from the West Side appointed to the Chicago Board of Education
14and helped organize students, parents, and faculty to keep
15Gregory School from closing in the late 1980s; and
 
16    WHEREAS, He networked with a broad cross section of
17community based organizations, including the Midwest Community
18Council and Better Boys Foundation; he was an active member of
19the PTA for Daniel J. Corkery School; he was a founding member
20of the North Lawndale Learning Community, a network of
21principals, educators, and North Lawndale residents; and
 
22    WHEREAS, He was a member of the Carey Tercentenary AME
23Church for over 50 years; he served in a number of capacities,

 

 

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1including Sunday School Superintendent, a member of the Usher
2Board, Class Leader, member of the Steward Board, and member of
3the Board of Trustees; he was the co-chairman of a scholarship
4drive in which the church sold subscriptions, enabling several
5members of the church to get scholarships to offset college
6expenses; and
 
7    WHEREAS, He was appointed President of the Layman's
8Organization, a position to which he was elected and re-elected
9for over 30 years; under his leadership, the organization
10organized a tutoring program to help students with their
11reading and math skills while enabling student teachers to get
12hands on experience; the organization was one of the first
13church auxiliaries in the City of Chicago to develop a computer
14training program, using TRS-80s and the Commodore 64 computers
15in the 1980s; the organization started the Carey Cardinals
16baseball team, which was the West Side's only official Little
17League affiliate at the time; and
 
18    WHEREAS, The Laymen's organization also sponsored sewing
19classes where students learned to sew and showed off their
20creations with an annual fashion show; the organization
21developed a Black History Bowl, in which youth and adults
22competed on teams to answer trivia questions concerning Black
23History; he was active at the City, 4th District (regional),
24and Connectional (national and international) levels of the

 

 

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1Laymen's organization, focusing on educational issues and
2raising funds for scholarships; the last project he spearheaded
3was raising funds for a lift for the church to make services
4accessible to the elderly and disabled church members and
5visitors; and
 
6    WHEREAS, He was very engaged in the civic affairs of North
7Lawndale, serving as an informal advisor to a number of elected
8officials, including Congressman Danny K. Davis, former State
9Representative Arthur L. Turner, and Cook County Commissioner
10Robert Steele; he networked with other community activists from
11North Lawndale and the AME Church on voter education and
12registration drives, candidate forums, and election campaigns
13for the late Mayor Harold Washington; he also worked with the
14Carey Tercentenary AME Church Laymen's organization to
15coordinate North Lawndale's first political rally for State
16Senator Barack Obama in his quest for United States Senate; and
 
17    WHEREAS, He was a lifetime member of the NAACP, Retired
18Teachers Association, and the Principals and Administrators
19Association; and
 
20    WHEREAS, Theodis R. Leonard, Sr. leaves to cherish his
21memory, his wife, Essie; his children, Renee (Floyd) Turner,
22Valerie F. Leonard, Theodis R. Leonard, Jr., and Curtis Allan
23Leonard; his special family friend, Kyshia Thompson; his

 

 

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1brother, William Humphrey (Juanita) Leonard; his
2brother-in-law, Thomas Stepp; his Godson, Dr. Raymond H.
3O'Neal, Jr.; his aunt, LB Holmes; his 10 grandchildren; his 8
4great-grandchildren; and a host of nieces, nephews, cousins,
5and friends; therefore, be it
 
6    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
7NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
8we mourn, along with his family and friends, the passing of
9Theodis R. Leonard, Sr.; and be it further
 
10    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
11presented to the family of Theodis R. Leonard, Sr. as a symbol
12of our sincere sympathy.