Full Text of SR0144 98th General Assembly
SR0144 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
| | SR0144 | | LRB098 11258 GRL 42306 r |
|
| 1 | | SENATE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to | 3 | | learn of the death of our friend and former colleague, Dawn | 4 | | Clark Netsch, who passed away on March 5, 2013; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, Dawn Clark Netsch was born on September 16, 1926, | 6 | | in Cincinnati, Ohio; after attending public schools throughout | 7 | | the Depression and World War II, she graduated from | 8 | | Northwestern University in 1948 and subsequently enrolled in | 9 | | the University's law school, where she graduated first in her | 10 | | class in 1952; and
| 11 | | WHEREAS, Dawn Clark Netsch dedicated herself to a lifetime | 12 | | of service to the people of the State of Illinois and the | 13 | | nation at large; after working for Adlai Stevenson during his | 14 | | 1952 presidential campaign, she worked with a Washington, D.C. | 15 | | law firm for 2 years before returning to Chicago, where she | 16 | | served as a clerk for Judge Julius Hoffman; she again worked | 17 | | for Stevenson's presidential campaign in 1956, and afterwards | 18 | | became an active member of the Committee on Illinois | 19 | | Government, a group of independent Democrats that sought to | 20 | | carry on Stevenson's legacy; she then worked for 4 years in a | 21 | | Chicago law firm before beginning her service as an assistant | 22 | | to Governor Otto Kerner from 1961 to 1965; in 1965, she joined | 23 | | the Northwestern University School of Law faculty, becoming one |
| | | SR0144 | - 2 - | LRB098 11258 GRL 42306 r |
|
| 1 | | of the first group of women law professors in the United | 2 | | States; in 1969, she was elected as a delegate to the Illinois | 3 | | Constitutional Convention; and
| 4 | | WHEREAS, In 1972, Dawn Clark Netsch was elected to serve as | 5 | | State Senator; she served in the Senate until 1991 and quickly | 6 | | became one of the most prominent members of the body; during | 7 | | her tenure, she served as a stalwart champion of numerous | 8 | | issues, including the Equal Rights Amendment, ethics reform, | 9 | | the merit selection of State judges, the reform of State | 10 | | revenue and finance, and many issues related to gender | 11 | | equality; and
| 12 | | WHEREAS, In 1990, Dawn Clark Netsch was elected to serve as | 13 | | the Illinois State Comptroller, where she served with integrity | 14 | | and dedication during a time of severe budget constraints in | 15 | | the State and achieved the distinction of being the first woman | 16 | | elected to a State constitutional executive office in Illinois; | 17 | | in 1994, she ran against Governor Jim Edgar for the | 18 | | governorship, once again making history as the first woman to | 19 | | run for governor of Illinois as the candidate of a major | 20 | | political party; during the election, she advocated for a raise | 21 | | in the State income tax coupled with a decrease in individual | 22 | | property taxes in order to restore fiscal health to the State's | 23 | | school system; following her defeat in the gubernatorial | 24 | | election, she began serving on the faculty of the Northwestern |
| | | SR0144 | - 3 - | LRB098 11258 GRL 42306 r |
|
| 1 | | University School of Law; despite her exit from State politics, | 2 | | she remained involved in a variety of worthwhile causes, | 3 | | including Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel's Ethics Reform Task | 4 | | Force, and gained a great and deserved reputation as one of the | 5 | | State's most respected elder statesmen; and | 6 | | WHEREAS, Dawn Clark Netsch was preceded in death by her | 7 | | dear husband, Walter Netsch; and
| 8 | | WHEREAS, Dawn Clark Netsch's legacy of honest governance | 9 | | and great dignity and integrity will be dearly missed by the | 10 | | members of this body, the people of the State of Illinois, and | 11 | | her friends and admirers throughout the nation; therefore, be | 12 | | it
| 13 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL | 14 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn, along with | 15 | | her family and friends, the passing of our friend and | 16 | | colleague, Dawn Clark Netsch; and be it further
| 17 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 18 | | presented to the family of Dawn Clark Netsch as an expression | 19 | | of our sympathy and great respect for Dawn Clark Netsch's life | 20 | | and legacy.
|
|