Full Text of SR0678 94th General Assembly
SR0678 94TH 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 regret of the death of Kirby Puckett of | 4 |
| Scottsdale, Arizona, formerly of Chicago, on Monday, March 6, | 5 |
| 2006; and
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| WHEREAS, Mr. Puckett was born on March 14, 1960, and grew | 7 |
| up in the Robert Taylor Homes, a housing project on Chicago's | 8 |
| South Side; he received no scholarship offers, so he went to | 9 |
| work after high school on an assembly line for Ford Motor Co.; | 10 |
| and
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| WHEREAS, The Minnesota Twins drafted him in 1982, and he | 12 |
| reached the big leagues on May 8, 1984; he celebrated his | 13 |
| arrival by getting four hits against the California Angels; he | 14 |
| led the Twins to the World Series in 1987 and 1991, leaping | 15 |
| into walls as their center fielder and swinging the bat with | 16 |
| power; in the 11th inning of game six of the 1991 World Series | 17 |
| against the Atlanta Braves, Mr. Puckett became the ninth player | 18 |
| in major league history to win a World Series game with a home | 19 |
| run, hitting a change up from Charlie Leibrandt over the | 20 |
| outfield wall and pumping his arms in celebration as he rounded | 21 |
| the bases; and
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| WHEREAS, He was known for his energetic style and the smile | 23 |
| he always wore; he often said that he played every game as if | 24 |
| it were his last; he is remembered for his ability to make the | 25 |
| players around him better and for his winning personality; for | 26 |
| several years after his retirement, he continued to work with | 27 |
| the Minnesota Twins organization as executive vice president in | 28 |
| an ambassadorial role; and
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| WHEREAS, On January 17, 2001, he became a first-ballot | 30 |
| inductee into the Baseball Hall of Fame; he was a 10-time | 31 |
| All-Star with a .318 career average and played his entire |
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LRB094 19974 HSS 57377 r |
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| 12-year career with Minnesota, winning the 1989 American League | 2 |
| batting title with a .339 average and claiming six Gold Gloves | 3 |
| for his fielding; his 2,040 hits in his first 10 seasons are | 4 |
| the most in major league history; and
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| WHEREAS, The passing of Kirby Puckett has been deeply felt | 6 |
| by many, especially his daughter, Catherine Puckett; his son, | 7 |
| Kirby Puckett, Jr.; his fiancée, Jodi Olson, and her son, | 8 |
| Cameron; his brothers, Charles Puckett, William L. Puckett, and | 9 |
| Ronnie (Melva) Puckett; his sisters, June (Tommy) Sinkfield, | 10 |
| Frances Hunter, and Jacqueline (George) Moore; his aunt, | 11 |
| Salitha Smith; his lifelong friend, Darryl Hughes; and his many | 12 |
| nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends; he was preceded in death | 13 |
| by his father, William A. Puckett; his mother, Catherine M. | 14 |
| Puckett; and his brothers, Donnie and Spencer Puckett; | 15 |
| therefore, be it
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| RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL | 17 |
| ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of | 18 |
| baseball great Kirby Puckett, and we extend our sincere | 19 |
| condolences to his family, friends, fans, and all who knew and | 20 |
| loved him; and be it further
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| RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 22 |
| presented to his family as an expression of our deepest | 23 |
| sympathy.
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