Full Text of HR0190 97th General Assembly
HR0190 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | 3 | | Representatives are pleased to honor Rafael Mendez Jr. on his | 4 | | work as the homeless liaison for the Waukegan School District; | 5 | | and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, Rafael Mendez Jr. was born October 14, 1958 in | 7 | | Bayamon, Puerto Rico, the second of five children of Rafael and | 8 | | Ruth Mendez; he was educated in Waukegan public schools and | 9 | | received a General Education Degree in 1978; he has worked as a | 10 | | dishwasher, apparel store salesman, grocery clerk, | 11 | | carpenter/plastering apprentice, and metal heat treating tech; | 12 | | and
| 13 | | WHEREAS, He now works for the Waukegan School District, | 14 | | where he has been a truant officer, security officer, and | 15 | | residency officer, and currently holds the position of homeless | 16 | | program liaison; and
| 17 | | WHEREAS, Since 2002, he has worked extensively with the | 18 | | homeless students of Waukegan; his duties include: | 19 | | (1) identifying the homeless population and | 20 | | coordinating activities, entities, and agencies that | 21 | | benefit homeless students; | 22 | | (2) ensuring that homeless children and youth enroll in |
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| 1 | | and have a full and equal opportunity to succeed in the | 2 | | schools they are eligible to attend, including Head Start | 3 | | and preschool programs; | 4 | | (3) initiating referrals to health care, dental, | 5 | | mental health, and other appropriate services; | 6 | | (4) informing parents or guardians of homeless | 7 | | children and youth about the available educational and | 8 | | related opportunities and providing them with meaningful | 9 | | ways to participate in the education of their children; | 10 | | (5) promoting awareness of the educational rights of | 11 | | homeless children and youth by posting public notices in | 12 | | schools, family shelters, and soup kitchens; | 13 | | (6) advising parents, guardians, and any unaccompanied | 14 | | youth of the mediation process involving enrollment | 15 | | disputes and fully informing them of procedures for | 16 | | accessing all transportation services required by the | 17 | | McKinney-Vento Act; and | 18 | | (7) allocating funds to provide school uniforms, | 19 | | backpacks, school supplies, access to field trips, outdoor | 20 | | education, and assistance with summer school fees; and
| 21 | | WHEREAS, The endless giving of his time and dedication to | 22 | | homeless students goes well beyond his assigned duties; he | 23 | | organized "Coats 4 Kids" in 2002, resulting in thousands of | 24 | | donations of new winter coats, hats, and gloves by public and | 25 | | private corporations and employee groups from surrounding |
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| 1 | | communities; and | 2 | | WHEREAS, In 2004, he was presented with a certificate of | 3 | | appreciation from the Illinois State Board of Education in | 4 | | recognition of exemplary service to the Illinois | 5 | | McKinney-Vento Homeless Student Programs; and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, In addition to his valuable work, he has kept | 7 | | alive his love for music as a guitar player, songwriter, | 8 | | singer, and recording artist, with frequent performances | 9 | | throughout Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, Indiana, and Michigan; | 10 | | and | 11 | | WHEREAS, His wife, Rachelle, also works for the students of | 12 | | Waukegan, as a third grade teacher; he is an active member of | 13 | | the Trinity Christian Center in Zion and is quite proud of the | 14 | | fact that he is a lifelong "home-grown" resident of Waukegan; | 15 | | therefore, be it
| 16 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | 17 | | NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | 18 | | we honor and thank Rafael Mendez Jr. for his hard work and | 19 | | dedication to the homeless students of Waukegan, and commend | 20 | | him for for the many ways in which he has enriched the lives of | 21 | | the people of Illinois; and be it further
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| 1 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 2 | | presented to Rafael Mendez Jr. as a symbol of our respect and | 3 | | esteem.
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