Illinois General Assembly - Full Text of HR1042
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Full Text of HR1042  100th General Assembly

HR1042 100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY


  

 


 
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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3Representatives wish to honor and celebrate the life of Thomas
4"Tom" Waid Vanderpoel; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Tom Vanderpoel was born on February 10, 1951 to
6Waid and Ruth Vanderpoel; and
 
7    WHEREAS, Graduating from Barrington High School in 1969,
8Tom Vanderpoel and his four brothers developed an appreciation
9for wildlife and conservation thanks to their parents; and
 
10    WHEREAS, Following high school, Tom Vanderpoel went on to
11study wildlife biology at the University of Wyoming; and
 
12    WHEREAS, Returning to the Barrington area after his
13studies, Tom Vanderpoel followed in his father's footsteps and
14became actively involved in the Citizens for Conservation,
15ultimately taking on the role of Director of Restoration; and
 
16    WHEREAS, Tom Vanderpoel became widely recognized for the
17many native restoration efforts he led in the Barrington area,
18part of a vision to create a series of high-quality habitats
19and pathways to connect preserves throughout the area to allow
20wildlife to flourish; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, The countless hours Tom Vanderpoel spent planning
2future restoration tasks, encouraging volunteers, and doing
3the hard physical labor of digging, burning, and picking is
4seen today in the transformation of the formerly fallow, weed
5filled fields at Grigsby Prairie and Flint Creek Savanna that
6now thrive with seas of native grasses; and
 
7    WHEREAS, Tom Vanderpoel's spearheading of local
8initiatives has restored and preserved more than 3,500 acres of
9natural habitat in the Barrington area; and
 
10    WHEREAS, Although he never sought leadership positions,
11Tom Vanderpoel's abilities were constantly sought by leading
12ecologists, leading to his participation in many more
13restoration efforts throughout Illinois and Wisconsin; and
 
14    WHEREAS, Despite the many overtures for his services,
15including by the Nature Conservancy, which is a leading
16international conservation organization, Tom Vanderpoel
17remained passionately focused on local conservation projects
18and education; and
 
19    WHEREAS, Tom Vanderpoel's contribution is not only seen in
20restoration projects, he shared his expertise freely and kindly
21to both educate and inspire young and old alike; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, Tom Vanderpoel shared this knowledge and worked
2collaboratively with the Nature Conservancy's Volunteer
3Stewardship Network, the Bobolink Foundation, Audubon Great
4Lakes, the Lake County Forest Preserve, the Forest Preserve
5District of Cook County, and member organizations of Chicago
6Wilderness; and
 
7    WHEREAS, Although Tom Vanderpoel never pursued personal
8accolades or recognition, he received numerous awards for both
9his volunteerism and his restoration work, notably being named
10the 2009 Citizen of the Year by the Barrington Area Development
11Council and receiving the inaugural Excellence in Conservation
12Award from Chicago Wilderness in 2004, an honor he cherished;
13and
 
14    WHEREAS, Those who knew and volunteered and worked
15alongside Tom Vanderpoel saw his passion and willingness to
16teach others as an inspiration to all, thus he was called a
17"conservation luminary" by a colleague for his lasting
18contribution to his community; and
 
19    WHEREAS, Tom Vanderpoel passed away unexpectedly on August
208, 2017 at the age of 66, but his work has left a lasting
21impression for decades to come; therefore, be it
 

 

 

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1    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
2HUNDREDTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we
3honor and celebrate the life of Tom Vanderpoel for his many
4years of dedicated service to his community, the Citizens for
5Conservation, and natural restoration; and be it further
 
6    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
7presented to the family of Tom Vanderpoel as an expression of
8our esteem and respect.