Full Text of SR1098 96th General Assembly
SR1098 96TH 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 Lonnie E. Clark Sr. of Urbana; and
| 4 | | WHEREAS, Lonnie E. Clark Sr. was born May 18, 1940, in | 5 | | Champaign, to the union of the Reverend Jesse D. Clark and Erma | 6 | | D. Luter Clark; he married Joan Graham on July 21, 1962;
Lonnie | 7 | | accepted Christ at an early age under the leadership of the | 8 | | Reverend E. Kilgore; and | 9 | | WHEREAS, He attended Champaign schools and graduated from | 10 | | Champaign High School in 1959; he accepted a scholarship to | 11 | | play football and run track at St. Augustine's College in | 12 | | Raleigh, North Carolina, and completed additional advanced | 13 | | coursework at the Institute of Labor and Industry at the | 14 | | University of Illinois; he later received a degree in political | 15 | | science at Eastern Illinois University; and | 16 | | WHEREAS, During the 1960s, when local Champaign residents | 17 | | were picketing certain businesses that refused to hire blacks | 18 | | in prominent positions, he participated in the protests; as a | 19 | | result, Lonnie was the first African-American hired at | 20 | | Goldblatt's Department Store and within six months was promoted | 21 | | to the position of manager of the men's clothing department; | 22 | | and
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, With a growing interest in the plight of his | 2 | | community and various civic concerns, he entered the public | 3 | | arena as an advocate for human rights and had the following | 4 | | achievements: he was one of the founders of the Frances Nelson | 5 | | Health Center; he was chairman of the board of directors for | 6 | | Opportunities Industrialization Center, founded by the late | 7 | | Dr. Leon Sullivan; he was a member of the committee to | 8 | | establish the first "Black Mom's Day" weekend at the University | 9 | | of Illinois; he assisted in the programming for students in the | 10 | | initial Project 500 EOP Program at the University of Illinois; | 11 | | he was a member of the Douglas Center Advisory Committee; he | 12 | | was elected president of the Illinois Affirmative Action | 13 | | Association for the State of Illinois; he was the first | 14 | | African-American appointed to the Urbana Plan Commission; he | 15 | | served two four-year elected terms on the Urbana City Council | 16 | | representing Ward 3, and as alderman introduced legislation to | 17 | | designate Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday as a holiday for | 18 | | the City of Urbana; and
| 19 | | WHEREAS, In addition, he successfully led the | 20 | | demonstration to close an adult bookstore at Goodwin and | 21 | | University Avenues in proximity to a day care center and King | 22 | | School; and in 2002 he was selected by The News-Gazette as one | 23 | | of the "150 Most Important People in Champaign County"; and |
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, Lonnie Clark was president and co-owner, with J.W. | 2 | | Pirtle, treasurer, of WBCP 1580 AM, East Central Illinois' | 3 | | first African-American-owned radio station; he was also active | 4 | | in the following affiliations: the DUC Golf Club; the Community | 5 | | Reinvestment Act Advisory Board to Busey Bank; the Board of | 6 | | Directors of Champaign County Crimestoppers; the National | 7 | | Association for the Advancement of Colored People; the Urban | 8 | | League of Champaign County; the Foundation for Provena Covenant | 9 | | Medical Center; and the Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity as a life | 10 | | member of the organization; and | 11 | | WHEREAS, He retired from the University of Illinois after | 12 | | 33 years as a labor relations specialist, and remained active | 13 | | in his quest for equal opportunities in his community; he had a | 14 | | passion for golf; and he loved sports, dance, and music, | 15 | | particularly smooth jazz; and
| 16 | | WHEREAS, He was preceded in death by his parents; his five | 17 | | sisters, Rosalee Virginia Clark, Imogene Casmer, Carolyne | 18 | | Wilson, Ruth DeShong, and Lucille Roberts; and his brother, | 19 | | Marvin Clark; and
| 20 | | WHEREAS, Lonnie Clark leaves to cherish his memories his | 21 | | wife and children, Jeffrey L. (Bernita) Clark and Lonnie E. | 22 | | Clark II; his brothers, Jesse D. (Lucille) Clark and Clyde | 23 | | Warren (Isola) Clark; his lifelong friend, Thomas Brown; and a |
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| 1 | | host of relatives and friends; therefore, be it
| 2 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-SIXTH GENERAL | 3 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn, along with | 4 | | his family, friends, and the many people whose lives he | 5 | | touched, the passing of Lonnie Clark; and be it further
| 6 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 7 | | presented to the family of Lonnie Clark as a symbol of our | 8 | | sincere sympathy.
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