Full Text of HR0654 95th General Assembly
HR0654 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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HR0654 |
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| HOUSE RESOLUTION
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| WHEREAS, Baum's, the oldest family-run retail business in | 3 |
| Illinois, opened by Henry Baum as a dry-goods store in Morris | 4 |
| in 1874, and later operated by his son, George Baum, then his | 5 |
| grandson, H. James (Jim) Baum, has closed its doors after 133 | 6 |
| years in business; and
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| WHEREAS, Jim and his wife, Carol Baum, kept the business | 8 |
| successful not by keeping things the same, but by changing to | 9 |
| keep current with the industry, evolving from an emporium to a | 10 |
| moderately priced women's apparel shop; at one time, it was one | 11 |
| of the largest women's specialty shops in northern Illinois | 12 |
| outside Chicago; Jim was a partner in as many as four Hallmark | 13 |
| shops around the State; at one time, the Baums had eight | 14 |
| stores; and
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| WHEREAS, The Baums have been retail visionaries, | 16 |
| galvanizing interest in a comprehensive study of success and | 17 |
| failure factors in independent retailing in the | 18 |
| internationally acclaimed book, "Small Store Survival", and | 19 |
| later leading a white paper study of independent retailing, | 20 |
| "Challenges of the Future", underwritten in part by the | 21 |
| Illinois Retail Merchants Association, the National Retail | 22 |
| Federation Foundation, and the George H. Baum Community | 23 |
| Charitable Trust; and
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| WHEREAS, Jim and Carol Baum together have dedicated | 2 |
| themselves in just about every conceivable way to the vitality | 3 |
| of their hometown; Jim has been called the "voice of the | 4 |
| downtown business community" for his role as director and/or | 5 |
| chief executive for more than a dozen organizations, including | 6 |
| the Grundy County National Bank, the Morris Hospital, the | 7 |
| Grundy County Chamber of Commerce, and the Morris Community | 8 |
| High School Board; and Carol has served in the Presbyterian | 9 |
| Women's Association, Daughters of the American Revolution, and | 10 |
| the Morris Women's Club; both have served the First | 11 |
| Presbyterian Church of Morris; and
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| WHEREAS, An urban planner by training, Jim Baum has had an | 13 |
| active hand over the years in the development of the city's | 14 |
| downtown and Morris as a whole, serving as chairman of the | 15 |
| Morris Chamber of Commerce and member of the Morris Planning | 16 |
| Commission, as well as director of the Grundy Economic | 17 |
| Development Council; he also catalyzed the creation of the | 18 |
| Morris Community Trust and the Morris Downtown Development | 19 |
| Partnership, Inc., a comprehensive program to revitalize the | 20 |
| central business district; and | 21 |
| WHEREAS, Jim Baum served the retail industry, serving as a | 22 |
| director for IRMA, including a term as chairman, and as | 23 |
| director of the NRF; he was a frequent speaker on issues of |
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| small store survival and the redevelopment of small town main | 2 |
| streets; and he is a co-founder of the National Small Store | 3 |
| Institute and a contributor of articles on issues confronting | 4 |
| small retailers; and
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| WHEREAS, Jim Baum was named NRF's Small Store Retailer of | 6 |
| the Year in 1993, and both Jim and Carol Baum were honored by | 7 |
| IRMA in 1997 as the Illinois Retailers of the Year; Baum's was | 8 |
| also named one of IRMA's "Illinois' Retailers of the 20th | 9 |
| Century" in September 2000; and
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| WHEREAS, The Illinois Retail Merchants Association will | 11 |
| honor Baum's as one of its 26 charter retail members during | 12 |
| IRMA's 50th Anniversary Luncheon on September 19, 2007 at the | 13 |
| Palmer House Hilton in Chicago; therefore, be it
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| RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | 15 |
| NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we | 16 |
| congratulate the Baums for their longevity in business, their | 17 |
| dedication to the retail industry, and their service to their | 18 |
| customers and community; and be it further
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| RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 20 |
| presented to Jim and Carol Baum as a symbol of our respect and | 21 |
| admiration.
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