SR0130 104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR0130 LRB104 12412 MST 22694 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to learn of the death of former Illinois State Rep. Ronald A. "Ron" Wait, who passed away on December 30, 2024; and

WHEREAS, Rep. Wait, a native of Boone County, was born in Belvidere on April 15, 1944, the son of Grace Smith Wait and Cecil Wait; he grew up in Belvidere, where his father was the manager of Wait Farms; the future lawmaker was a member of one of the Illinois farm families that was helping to feed the world during the hungry time of World War II and the years of postwar austerity; and

WHEREAS, Rep. Wait earned a college degree at Drake University, majoring in accounting; returning to Boone County with a car, he drove tirelessly to Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, where he earned a Master of Science in Education and a Master of Business Administration; and

WHEREAS, Rep. Wait was a teacher and sports enthusiast and served for four years as a track coach and basketball coach at Belvidere High School; and

WHEREAS, Rep. Wait resumed his ties with Drake University, earning admission to their law school and earning a Juris Doctor; and

WHEREAS, Rep. Wait was also co-managing and managing his family's Boone County farm throughout this period as a student, accountant, teacher, and lawyer; and

WHEREAS, Rep. Wait's home in Boone County was drawn into the new Illinois House 64th Representative District in 1982 as the result of redistricting after the 1980 census and the creation of the new system of single-member districts; the new district was physically centered on Boone County, with large slices of McHenry and Winnebago County; and

WHEREAS, Rep. Wait's neighbors nominated him in the March 1982 primary election as the Republican candidate for the November 1982 general election; the new district was staunchly Republican, and he was elected by a margin of more than 8,000 votes; and

WHEREAS, Rep. Wait, with his farm background, was quickly appointed to what was then the House Agriculture Committee, and in only his second term, in 1985-86 (84th General Assembly), he became the House Republican spokesperson on the committee; and

WHEREAS, Rep. Wait was the Republican spokesperson for Illinois farmers and their work for eight years until 1993; during this time, he was joined in life by his beloved wife, Jody Wait, and her son, Danny Phillips; and

WHEREAS, Rep. Wait briefly left office after the November 1992 election but remained in politics; he challenged the brief Democratic office-holder from what had become the 68th Representative District, Rep. Barbara Giolitto, to a rematch in November 1994, defeated her, and was elected to the 89th General Assembly; and

WHEREAS, Rep. Wait became a committee chairperson with the Republican majority of the 89th General Assembly; he became chair of the House Committee on Transportation and Motor Vehicles; in January 1997, he became the minority spokesperson of the same Committee, a post he would retain for 12 years; and

WHEREAS, Rep. Wait chose to move on from the Illinois House of Representatives in spring 2010; although his friends put in his name for a judgeship on the 17th Circuit Court of Illinois, the voters selected another candidate, and he opted to end his career in active politics; and

WHEREAS, Rep. Wait won renewed praise from his neighbors for his continuing active participation in the local and community affairs of Belvidere after returning to private life in Boone County in spring 2011; these issues grew more challenging in the 2010s in conjunction with the overall economic status of Illinois as a place to invest and create jobs; and

WHEREAS, Rep. Wait served in a number of leadership positions, including with the Highland Hospital, the Boone County Board, the Boone County Housing Authority Board, the University of Illinois Cooperative Extension Board, and the Boone County Farm Bureau; and

WHEREAS, Rep. Wait was active with a number of community organizations, including the First United Methodist Church of Belvidere, the United Way, Rosecrance, the Boone County Bar Association, the Cosmopolitan Club of Belvidere, the Grange, the Moose Club, the Belvidere YMCA, and the Belvidere Area Chamber of Commerce; in addition, he was instrumental in finding funding for the Belvidere Community Building Project; and

WHEREAS, Rep. Wait was honored in October 2024 by the Belvidere Chamber of Commerce with the honorary status of a Doctor of Civic Betterment in homage to his life of service to Boone County and its people; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of former Illinois State Rep. Ronald A. "Ron" Wait and extend our sincere condolences to his family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we recognize the life, community service, and long legislative service of Rep. Wait; and be it further

RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be presented to Rep. Wait's two surviving brothers and sisters-in-law, Roger and Nancy Wait and Dean and Karen Wait, as a symbol of our deepest sympathy.