Full Text of HJR0138 94th General Assembly
HJ0138 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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| HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION
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| WHEREAS, Gudmund B. "Sonny" Jessen, Jr. of Hennepin died on | 3 |
| October 5, 2003; and
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| WHEREAS, Mr. Jessen was born on a farm in Putnam County, | 5 |
| north of Hennepin, on March 15, 1933; he attended the Nash and | 6 |
| Durley one room school house; he graduated from the Hennepin | 7 |
| Township High School in 1950; and | 8 |
| WHEREAS, Mr. Jessen was inducted for service in 1953 and | 9 |
| took basic training at Camp Roberts, California; he served in | 10 |
| intelligence at Heidelberg, Germany during the Korean War; he | 11 |
| was promoted to sergeant and discharged in February 1955; and | 12 |
| WHEREAS, Mr. Jessen became precinct committeeman for the | 13 |
| Democratic Party in 1955 and held that position until his | 14 |
| death; he also was County Chairman of the Democratic Party for | 15 |
| 16 years; he was presented
a Certificate of Appreciation plaque | 16 |
| for Outstanding and Dedicated Service by the Illinois | 17 |
| Democratic County Chairman's Association on August 15, 2002; | 18 |
| and | 19 |
| WHEREAS, Mr. Jessen was elected Justice of the Peace of | 20 |
| Hennepin/Senachwine Townships in 1960; he was the youngest | 21 |
| person in the State of Illinois to serve in that office; he | 22 |
| held the position until it was terminated; he married 17 | 23 |
| couples in the now Pulsifer House, which was where he resided | 24 |
| until the farmland was sold for the J&L Steel plant; and | 25 |
| WHEREAS, Mr. Jessen farmed the Hennepin prairies all of his | 26 |
| life; he was a Marshall-Putnam Farm Bureau member; he served on | 27 |
| the M-P Oil Board and was chairman of the Executive Committee | 28 |
| of the M-P Extension Council; and | 29 |
| WHEREAS, Mr. Jessen was the past president of the Putnam |
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| County National Farmers Organization; he was commissioner of | 2 |
| the Hennepin Drainage & Levy District until 2001; he was also a | 3 |
| member of Ducks Unlimited; he helped form the Hennepin | 4 |
| Sportsman Club and was club president; at one time he raised | 5 |
| turkeys and pheasants to be released around Putnam County; and
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| WHEREAS, Mr. Jessen was one of the original members of the | 7 |
| Hennepin Betterment Association; he served on the Water | 8 |
| District Board and Zoning Board for Hennepin; he was also a | 9 |
| lifetime member of the Putnam County Historical Society; and
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| WHEREAS, Mr. Jessen was commander of the Hennepin American | 11 |
| Legion; he also belonged to the Hennepin
Independent Order of | 12 |
| Odd Fellows; he has held all offices in that Order; and
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| WHEREAS, Mr. Jessen was elected Hennepin Township Clerk in | 14 |
| the 1960s and still held that office at his death; he became | 15 |
| Putnam County Clerk and Recorder in September 1987 and held | 16 |
| that office until his retirement on November 30, 2002; he was a | 17 |
| member of the Illinois Township Clerks; and
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| WHEREAS, Interstate Route 180 includes a bridge that spans | 19 |
| the Illinois River at Hennepin; therefore, be it
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| RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | 21 |
| NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE | 22 |
| SENATE CONCURRING HEREIN, that the Interstate Route 180 bridge | 23 |
| across the Illinois River at Hennepin be designated the Gudmund | 24 |
| "Sonny" Jessen Bridge; and be it further
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| RESOLVED, That the Department of Transportation is | 26 |
| requested to erect, at suitable locations, consistent with | 27 |
| State and federal regulations, appropriate plaques or signs | 28 |
| giving notice of the name; and be it further | 29 |
| RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be |
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| presented to the Secretary of the U.S. Department of | 2 |
| Transportation, the Secretary of the Illinois Department of | 3 |
| Transportation, and the family of Gudmund B. Jessen Jr.
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