HR1284 93RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR1284 LRB093 24130 CSA 54322 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Mario Pena is a dedicated public servant with over 15 years of distinguished service to the people of Lake County, and he is also an elected official of Waukegan Township, where he holds the position of Trustee; he retired in 2003 from Abbott Laboratories in North Chicago after 29 years of service; and

WHEREAS, He has done extensive volunteer work within the Hispanic community by providing assistance to individuals needing help completing Naturalization documents, completing paperwork for lost or misplaced "Green Cards" (Permanent Resident Card), and making referrals to the Department of Immigration and Naturalization Services; and

WHEREAS, He knows first-hand the difficulties involved with the citizenship application process; when he applied, he became extremely frustrated with the amount of paperwork involved and how long the actual process took; it was then when he started talking to non-profit organizations about helping to streamline the INS process; for the first five years, he visited churches county-wide in an effort to assist people in becoming U.S. citizens; as of today, he has contributed approximately 7,600 hours of volunteer work and has helped over 3,800 people of various origins in communities across the county become U.S. citizens; his hard work and dedication paid off not only for the 3,800 people, it also allowed over 12,000 immediate relatives the opportunity to become legal U.S. residents; and

WHEREAS, Mario Pena has listened, felt compassion and has found it very rewarding to help people overcome their problems; he has done approximately 500 hours of casework and has helped about 1,000 people by his efforts or by referring them to different agencies or organizations with issues other than immigration or naturalization; and

WHEREAS, He sets a standard for what can be done when just one person sincerely wants to reach out and help others; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we commend Mario Pena for his compassion and willingness to help others and we thank him for his tireless efforts on behalf of those in the Hispanic community; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to Mario Pena as an expression of our respect and esteem.