Full Text of SR0617 093rd General Assembly
SR0617 93RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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| SENATE RESOLUTION
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| WHEREAS, The members of the Senate of the State of Illinois | 3 |
| learned with sadness of the death of John Heller Beckman of | 4 |
| Darien, formerly of Downers Grove and Western Springs, on June | 5 |
| 9, 2004; and
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| WHEREAS, Mr. Beckman was born in Cumberland, Maryland, on | 7 |
| January 22, 1923, to John M. and Esther Heller Beckman; he was | 8 |
| Valedictorian of his high school class in Cumberland; and
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| WHEREAS, Following high school, Mr. Beckman valiantly | 10 |
| served his country in the U.S. Army in Europe during World War | 11 |
| II; while in the U.S. Army, he was granted his first patent for | 12 |
| a military equipment design; after the war, he attended Iowa | 13 |
| State University on the GI Bill and earned a degree in | 14 |
| Mechanical Engineering in 1948; and
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| WHEREAS, Mr. Beckman's entire 38 year corporate career was | 16 |
| spent with Union Carbide Corporation, beginning at Linde | 17 |
| Division in New York and Indianapolis; he retired from Films | 18 |
| Packaging Division in Chicago in 1985, where he had risen to | 19 |
| become vice president of Research and Development; a prolific | 20 |
| researcher and inventor, he was granted over 30 patents, both | 21 |
| within Union Carbide and privately; some of the collaborative | 22 |
| research on cryogenics he conducted over 30 years ago at Linde | 23 |
| is cited as the single most important cryogenic development in | 24 |
| the last 50 years; and
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| WHEREAS, Other areas in which Mr. Beckman held patents | 26 |
| included water desalination, refrigeration, and meat | 27 |
| processing; upon retiring from Union Carbide, he stated that he | 28 |
| would never truly retire; he formed BDC Inc. to continue his | 29 |
| research and he was granted three additional patents; and
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| WHEREAS, The passing of Mr. Beckman has been deeply felt by |
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| many, especially his large, loving family, including his wife, | 2 |
| Julia Kennedy Beckman; his former wife, Lily Knott Beckman; his | 3 |
| children, Margaret Alvarez (Frank), Kathryn Goldberg (Michael | 4 |
| Notaro), Dr. Jeanne Beckman (William Barasa), John L. (Sherry), | 5 |
| James, Carolyn Binkley (Dale Mason), and Julia R.; his | 6 |
| stepchildren, Benjamin Blume (Christiane Saada), Alec Blume | 7 |
| (Gina Taylor), and Dr. Eileen Gavin (James); his nine | 8 |
| grandchildren; his seven step-grandchildren; his sisters, Mary | 9 |
| Jane Rice (Leo, deceased) and Beverly Lauder (Calvin); and his | 10 |
| brothers, Daniel (Eva) and Michael (Alma Jean); therefore, be | 11 |
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| RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-THIRD GENERAL | 13 |
| ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of | 14 |
| John Heller Beckman, and we extend our deepest sympathy to his | 15 |
| family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be it | 16 |
| further
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| RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 18 |
| presented to the family of John Heller Beckman as an expression | 19 |
| of our sincere condolences.
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