Full Text of SR0369 98th General Assembly
SR0369 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | SENATE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to | 3 | | learn of the death of Harold "Pete" Vonachen of Peoria, who | 4 | | died on June 10, 2013; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, Harold Vonachen graduated from Spalding Institute | 6 | | and then Bradley University in 1949; he served in the U.S. Navy | 7 | | from 1943-1946; he married Donna Hurst on May 11, 1957; and | 8 | | WHEREAS, Harold Vonachen was a longtime Peoria | 9 | | entrepreneur and the person responsible for making minor league | 10 | | baseball stick in the city; he purchased the Peoria Suns in | 11 | | 1983, and in 1985 it was renamed the Chiefs and became an | 12 | | affiliation of the Chicago Cubs; throughout the years, the team | 13 | | has been affiliated with both the Cubs and the St. Louis | 14 | | Cardinals; the team set Midwest League attendance records in | 15 | | 1985, 1988, and 1989; he eventually sold the team, but in 1994 | 16 | | led a group to re-purchase it; the ballpark where the Chiefs | 17 | | played was renamed in his honor as Pete Vonachen Stadium and | 18 | | housed the team until they moved to their new downtown stadium, | 19 | | Dozer Park in 2002; and
| 20 | | WHEREAS, Before Harold Vonachen made his mark in minor | 21 | | league baseball, his early ventures were in the restaurant | 22 | | field; he began with a part-time job running Field House |
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| 1 | | concessions at Bradley University and at the same time worked | 2 | | at Murphy's restaurant; in 1955, he opened his own restaurant, | 3 | | Vonachen's Junction, a place known for its distinctive train | 4 | | car dining room; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, In 1970, after 15 years of running a successful | 6 | | restaurant, Harold Vonachen switched careers and became | 7 | | president of Peoria Blacktop Inc.; he ran his construction | 8 | | business until making another career move into the sports | 9 | | world; and | 10 | | WHEREAS, Harold Vonachen was named Midwest League | 11 | | Executive of the Year and The Sporting News Class A Pro | 12 | | Baseball Minor League Executive of the Year; he served on the | 13 | | Peoria Park Board for 6 years, as a member of Bradley's board | 14 | | of trustees, and as a member of the City Liquor Commission; he | 15 | | was a past director of the Peoria Area Chamber of commerce and | 16 | | the Peoria Rotary Club and was a member of OSF Saint Francis | 17 | | Medical Center's advisory board; he is an inductee of the | 18 | | Greater Peoria Sports Hall of Fame; and
| 19 | | WHEREAS, Harold Vonachen was preceded in death by his wife, | 20 | | Donna; and
| 21 | | WHEREAS, Harold Vonachen is survived by his children, Mary | 22 | | Michael "Mikie" Shadid, Harold "Rocky" III, Gregory, Daniel, |
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| 1 | | and Mark; therefore, be it
| 2 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL | 3 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of | 4 | | Harold Vonachen, and extend our sincere condolences to his | 5 | | family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be it | 6 | | further
| 7 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 8 | | presented to the family of Harold Vonachen as an expression of | 9 | | our deepest sympathy.
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