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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 Anne
4Smedinghoff of River Forest, who was killed in Afghanistan on
5April 6, 2013; and
 
6    WHEREAS, Anne Smedinghoff served as a foreign service
7officer and was in Afghanistan working as a press officer for
8the U.S. embassy in Kabul; she was involved in helping Afghan
9journalists cover an event at a boys' school where the local
10U.S. Provincial Reconstruction Team was working to donate math
11and science books; she had been in Afghanistan since July 2012
12working in the public diplomacy department for the local
13population, helping women and working with schools and local
14businesses; she had been in the foreign service for 3 years;
15and
 
16    WHEREAS, Anne Smedinghoff had a passion for the work she
17was doing and particularly enjoyed the opportunity to interact
18directly with the Afghan people and was always looking for
19chances to reach out and help make a difference; she loved to
20travel and the foreign service allowed her to see the world and
21help those in need; one of her favorite projects was working
22with the Afghan women's national soccer team and helping it
23gain greater acceptance inside Afghanistan; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, Anne Smedinghoff was a Fenwick High School
2graduate; she attended Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore,
3where she majored in international studies and became the key
4organizer of the university's annual Foreign Affairs Symposium
5in 2008; after college she went into the U.S. Foreign Service
6and began her career at a post in Caracas, Venezuela; and
 
7    WHEREAS, Anne Smedinghoff's desire to help others began
8before she entered foreign service; the passing of her
9grandfather from cancer when she was 11 got her involved in
10raising money for cancer research and in 2009 she took part in
11The 4K for Cancer cross-country bike ride and she rode from
12Baltimore to San Francisco; and
 
13    WHEREAS, Anne Smedinghoff loved a physical challenge; she
14rode her bike with friends from the Dead Sea in Israel to the
15Red Sea in Jordan and had been running laps to train for a
16marathon; and
 
17    WHEREAS, Anne Smedinghoff is survived by her parents, Tom
18and Mary Beth Smedinghoff; her brother; and her 2 younger
19sisters; therefore, be it
 
20    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
21NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that

 

 

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1we mourn the passing of Anne Smedinghoff, recognize the
2sacrifice she made for her country, and extend our sincere
3condolences to her family, friends, and all who knew and loved
4her; and be it further
 
5    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
6presented to the family of Anne Smedinghoff as an expression of
7our deepest sympathy.