Full Text of HR0900 97th General Assembly
HR0900 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans | 3 | | will present the
annual "Dante Award" on May 17, 2012 to Stella | 4 | | Foster, columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, "Stella's Column," which debuted in the Chicago | 6 | | Sun-Times on December 2, 2003, is one of the newspaper's most | 7 | | popular columns; the column's popularity is a testimony to its | 8 | | writer, Chicago journalist Stella Foster, who has enjoyed a | 9 | | career as a writer, broadcaster, and as the long-time assistant | 10 | | to the late Irv Kupcinet; "Stella's Column," which runs every | 11 | | Tuesday and Thursday, reflects Stella's personality, zest for | 12 | | life, compassion, and love of people; and
| 13 | | WHEREAS, The column is multiethnic, multigenerational, and | 14 | | covers a broad interest base; it also publicizes charitable | 15 | | events, particularly those that benefit causes that are close | 16 | | to her heart, like child abuse, teenage pregnancy, and women's | 17 | | issues; and | 18 | | WHEREAS, Her current status as a highly-respected | 19 | | journalist began in August of 1969 when her sister told her | 20 | | that the legendary Irv Kupcinet was looking for a new | 21 | | secretary; she interviewed for the position and was hired; and
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, For 34 years, she was Kup's assistant, confidante, | 2 | | organizer, and the glue that kept the column alive and vibrant; | 3 | | her writing career was officially launched in the mid 1980s, | 4 | | when her brother-in-law approached her about writing for Sister | 5 | | 2 Sister, a national entertainment magazine; without the | 6 | | benefit of formal journalistic training, she penned the monthly | 7 | | entertainment column titled "Starlights by Stella" that | 8 | | featured celebrity news; and
| 9 | | WHEREAS, When the Sun-Times' editorial page featured | 10 | | Personal Views, she contributed and expounded on a variety of | 11 | | topics that piqued readers' curiosity and elicited diverse | 12 | | opinions; she took her "act" to television when Fox News | 13 | | approached her about being a morning commentator; the weekly | 14 | | segment, titled, "Stella Sez," featured a mix of newsy nuggets | 15 | | that captivated viewers during the year it was on the air; and | 16 | | WHEREAS, As Kup began to age, his health began to | 17 | | deteriorate and he was in the office less frequently; to keep | 18 | | the column alive, she began assuming the bulk of the writing | 19 | | duties; the Sun-Times recognized her contribution by giving her | 20 | | a byline at the end of the column, and eventually gave her | 21 | | co-writing credits; when Kup died on November 10, 2003, she was | 22 | | widely heralded as one of the women behind his success; and | 23 | | WHEREAS, She is a humanitarian who promotes organizations |
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| 1 | | whose missions parallel causes that are dear to her heart; she | 2 | | uses the power and pull of her column to galvanize her readers | 3 | | and friends around these issues; she has been profiled in | 4 | | Chicago Magazine, Today's Chicago Woman, N'Digo Magapaper, | 5 | | Rolling Out, and the Chicago Defender; and | 6 | | WHEREAS, She is the recipient of numerous awards including | 7 | | the "Promises Fulfilled Award" from South Central Community | 8 | | Services, a Communications Award from the 100 Black Men of | 9 | | Chicago, the Archibald Motley Excellence in Arts Award from the | 10 | | Englewood Committee, Mt. Sinai's Parenting Institute's African | 11 | | Village Award, the Torch for Journalism from Sigma Gamma Rho | 12 | | Sorority, the "Making A Difference Award" from the Rainbow PUSH | 13 | | Coalition as a Woman of Distinction, the State of Illinois | 14 | | African-American Media Award from the Illinois Secretary of | 15 | | State's Office, the African-American History Service Award | 16 | | from Sixth Grace Presbyterian Church, the A. Philip Randolph | 17 | | Gentle Warrior Award, and the "Shero" Award for Career | 18 | | Achievement from NABFEME; and | 19 | | WHEREAS, She has been saluted by the Midwest Radio and | 20 | | Music Association, hailed as a "Phenomenal Woman" by the Expo | 21 | | for Today's Black Woman, and earned awards from the Chicago | 22 | | Black Public Relations Society and the National Council of | 23 | | Negro Women; she was also presented the Irv Kupcinet Media | 24 | | Giant Award, named in honor of her late friend and mentor; and
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, She is a member of the Chicago Association of | 2 | | Black Journalists, the Association of Women Journalists, the | 3 | | Press Club, the Chicago Journalists Association, and the | 4 | | Chicago Press Veterans; she has appeared on WVON, and has been | 5 | | a guest on numerous other media outlets; she enjoys reading, | 6 | | watching television, dancing, and listening to rhythm and | 7 | | blues; she also enjoys downtime with her family, whom she | 8 | | values and cherishes; therefore, be it
| 9 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | 10 | | NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | 11 | | we congratulate Stella Foster on being named the recipient of | 12 | | the 2012 Dante Award, presented by the Joint Civic Committee of | 13 | | Italian Americans, for her dedication, service, and | 14 | | inspiration in the field of reporting; and be it further
| 15 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 16 | | presented to Stella Foster
as a symbol our respect and esteem.
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