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1 | SENATE RESOLUTION
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2 | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate were saddened | ||||||
3 | to learn of the death of Georgia Ann Pillow Rountree of | ||||||
4 | Springfield, who passed away on May 26, 2008; and
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5 | WHEREAS, Georgia Rountree was born on March 14, 1920 in | ||||||
6 | Nashville, Tennessee; she was the daughter of Robert Armstead | ||||||
7 | and Flora (Collier) Pillow II; she married Alvin Lester | ||||||
8 | Rountree on November 17, 1945 in Corinth, Mississippi; and
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9 | WHEREAS, Georgia Rountree received her bachelor's degree | ||||||
10 | from Tennessee State University and her master's degrees from | ||||||
11 | Western Illinois University and Sangamon State University; and
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12 | WHEREAS, Georgia Rountree began her career as a vocational | ||||||
13 | home economics teacher at Cranes High School in Brownsville, | ||||||
14 | Tennessee; she moved on to serve as a Home Demonstration Agent | ||||||
15 | in Pulaski, Tennessee for the University of Tennessee; and
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16 | WHEREAS, In 1946, Georgia Rountree and her husband moved to | ||||||
17 | Springfield, where she was employed as a nursery school | ||||||
18 | teacher; in 1955, she worked as an Assistant Dietitian, | ||||||
19 | teaching Diabetic and Special Diets to patients at St. John's | ||||||
20 | and Memorial Hospitals in Springfield; and |
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1 | WHEREAS, As a secretary of the YMCA, Georgia Rountree was | ||||||
2 | responsible for organizing the first black Y-Teen for young | ||||||
3 | girls, which participated in the desegregation of the YMCA's | ||||||
4 | swimming pool; and
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5 | WHEREAS, After 10 years of attempts, Georgia Rountree | ||||||
6 | eventually became a teacher for Springfield School District | ||||||
7 | 186, one of the first in a group of black teachers to be hired | ||||||
8 | by the district; she went on to serve for 37 years at Edison | ||||||
9 | and Lanphier Schools as a language arts, social studies, | ||||||
10 | civics, consumer education, and American history teacher; she | ||||||
11 | also taught African-American History in summer school classes | ||||||
12 | and taught for several semesters at Blackburn College; and | ||||||
13 | WHEREAS, Georgia Rountree was a member of Grace United | ||||||
14 | Methodist Church for over 62 years; as a member of the church, | ||||||
15 | she served as President of the United Methodist Women for two | ||||||
16 | terms; she was a member of the choir and was a lay speaker; she | ||||||
17 | served as a Church School teacher; she also served as | ||||||
18 | Chairperson of the Pastor Parish Relation Committee, among many | ||||||
19 | others; and
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20 | WHEREAS, Georgia Rountree held many positions within the | ||||||
21 | United Methodist Conference; she served as Chairperson of the | ||||||
22 | Race Relations Committee on Ethnic Local Concerns; she served | ||||||
23 | as Secretary of the United Methodist Women's Commission on |
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1 | Archives and History; she served on numerous commissions, | ||||||
2 | including the Commission on Status Role of Women and the | ||||||
3 | Commission on Nominations, among many others; she taught in the | ||||||
4 | Conference Schools of Christian Mission; she was appointed by | ||||||
5 | Bishop White as a trustee to Wiley College in Marshall, Texas; | ||||||
6 | she also served in numerous positions in the Springfield | ||||||
7 | District level, including Lay Delegate at Large for the Annual | ||||||
8 | Conferences and Certified Lay Speaker; and | ||||||
9 | WHEREAS, Georgia Rountree was an active member of her | ||||||
10 | community; she served as President of Urban League Guild; she | ||||||
11 | was a member of the Human Relation Commission and the | ||||||
12 | International Visitors' Sister Cities; she was an elected | ||||||
13 | Regional Director for the National Urban League Guilds' Central | ||||||
14 | Region; she served as President of the Grace Urban Ministries | ||||||
15 | Board of Directors and as Director for the Jessie Rogers Child | ||||||
16 | Development Center; she was also a member of the Alpha Kappa | ||||||
17 | Alpha Sorority; and
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18 | WHEREAS, Georgia Rountree was the recipient of many awards | ||||||
19 | in recognition of her service to her community, including the | ||||||
20 | Teacher of the Year award, a Humanitarian award for Outstanding | ||||||
21 | accomplishments in Education and Community Service, a Wiley | ||||||
22 | College Award for Christian Education and Public Service, a | ||||||
23 | Social Workers and Human Relations of the State of Illinois | ||||||
24 | Humanitarian Award, and a Golden Life Membership award and a |
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1 | scholarship in her name from the Nu Omicron Omega Chapter in | ||||||
2 | Springfield, which she founded and served as president; and | ||||||
3 | WHEREAS, Georgia Rountree was preceded in death by her | ||||||
4 | parents; her sisters, Ida Sumerall and Flora "Febbie" Majors; | ||||||
5 | and her brother, Robert Armstead Pillow III; and | ||||||
6 | WHEREAS, Georgia Rountree is survived by her sister, | ||||||
7 | Bernice Higgins; her son, Dana Alvin Rountree (wife, Carrolyn | ||||||
8 | Delk); her daughter, Janice Lenora Thompson (husband, | ||||||
9 | Anthony); her grandchildren, Devin T. Rountree, Ashley M. | ||||||
10 | Thompson, and Amanda J. Thompson; and her many nieces, nephews, | ||||||
11 | and friends; therefore, be it
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12 | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL | ||||||
13 | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn, along with | ||||||
14 | her family and friends, the passing of Georgia Rountree; and be | ||||||
15 | it further
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16 | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | ||||||
17 | presented to the family of Georgia Rountree as an expression of | ||||||
18 | our sympathy.
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