Full Text of SR1333 100th General Assembly
SR1333 100TH 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 Ronnie Taylor, affectionately known as | 4 | | "Pastor Ron," of Chicago, who passed away on January 20, 2018; | 5 | | and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, Pastor Ron was born in Chicago to Leroy and Ruth | 7 | | Brown-Taylor on July 31, 1957; the youngest boy of seven | 8 | | children, he dedicated his life to his faith at the age of 15, | 9 | | while attending Hope Deliverance Tabernacle under the | 10 | | direction of Pastor Jackie Jordan; it was here he also received | 11 | | his first ordination as a minister and met the love of his | 12 | | life, Johnnie Mae Jewett; he graduated from Farragut High | 13 | | School in 1975 and married Johnnie Mae in July 1977; and
| 14 | | WHEREAS, After graduation, Pastor Ron immediately entered | 15 | | the workforce and had positions with the United States Post | 16 | | Office, Wells Manufacturing Co., Sears Roebuck and Co., and RR | 17 | | Donnelly and Sons Printing Co., where he remained for 25 years | 18 | | until he retired in 2003 to dedicate his life to full-time | 19 | | ministry; and
| 20 | | WHEREAS, In 1991, Pastor Ron and Sister Taylor joined Truth | 21 | | Triumphant ministry under the leadership of Pastor Gary Brown; | 22 | | because his integrity and humility were noticed, Pastor Ron |
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| 1 | | served on the Board of Trustees; he also served as an Elder, a | 2 | | leader over the Men's Ministries, and a Sunday School teacher; | 3 | | under Pastor Brown's leadership, he was ordained as a pastor | 4 | | and served as the first Associate Pastor of the church; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, In June of 1997, Pastor Ron invited 17 men and | 6 | | women of faith to discuss developing a ministry to meet the | 7 | | needs of hurting people; he accepted a call to pastor, and this | 8 | | small group became the incorporators of the Disciples for | 9 | | Christ Outreach Ministries (DFC); to enhance his knowledge, he | 10 | | took several courses at Moody Bible Institute; the first | 11 | | service was held in the basement of Pastor Ron's home, and | 12 | | other services were held in the homes of other members; the | 13 | | first public service was held in ministry rental space provided | 14 | | by AFC World Outreach Ministry in August 1998; DFC remained | 15 | | there for three years, until a permanent church building, | 16 | | located in Oak Lawn, was purchased in 2000; and
| 17 | | WHEREAS, Pastor Ron knew that his calling to ministry was | 18 | | beyond the "four walls" of the church; he knew that he was | 19 | | called to minister to those who were hurting and broken by | 20 | | unjust systems and structural racism, who would probably never | 21 | | walk into a church building; for nine years, he served as the | 22 | | Vice Chairman on the Board of Directors for Target Area | 23 | | Development Corporation; an active board member, he served on | 24 | | various committees and campaigns to eliminate barriers to |
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| 1 | | poverty in communities of color; he also pursued additional | 2 | | educational opportunities; he obtained a certificate of | 3 | | business management from Kellogg School of Management and | 4 | | pursued his bachelor's degree in business from Capella | 5 | | University; he later joined the staff of Target Area | 6 | | Development and served as the Director of Coalitions and | 7 | | Organizing for four years and the Director of Reentry Programs | 8 | | for three years; and
| 9 | | WHEREAS, In 2005, Pastor Ron and close colleagues in the | 10 | | social justice field founded the United Congress of Community | 11 | | and Religious Organizations (UCCRO); he served as an Executive | 12 | | Council Board Member for nine years and played a significant | 13 | | role as a member of the UCCRO Advocacy Team; in 2013, after | 14 | | vacating the position of Executive Director in order to pursue | 15 | | public office, Josina Morita and the Executive Council | 16 | | specifically identified Pastor Ron as a trusted leader who | 17 | | could continue building the work of the coalition; and
| 18 | | WHEREAS, Pastor Ron was involved with several | 19 | | organizations, including Communities United, Enlace Chicago, | 20 | | the Inner-City Muslim Action Network (IMAN), the Kenwood | 21 | | Oakland Community Center (KOCO),the Korean Resource Cultural | 22 | | Center (KRCC), the Lugenia Burns Hope Center, and the West | 23 | | Suburban Action Project (PASO); and
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, Pastor Ron gained local and national recognition | 2 | | for his work in the area of social justice; his hard work, | 3 | | commitment, wisdom, and integrity were unmatched; and
| 4 | | WHEREAS, Pastor Ron was preceded in death by his parents; | 5 | | and his brother, Charley Harris; and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, Pastor Ron is survived by his wife of 40 years, | 7 | | Johnnie Mae Taylor; his daughter, Rebecca Taylor; his | 8 | | granddaughter, Harmony Taylor-Warrensby; his siblings, Larryne | 9 | | Ghoston (Vance), Phillystine Moore, Larry Taylor (Deborah), | 10 | | Sharon Butler (David), Rochelle Taylor, Lethette Taylor, | 11 | | Charlene Harris; his mother-in-love, Edith Richardson; and his | 12 | | many aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, cousins, friends, and | 13 | | colleagues; therefore, be it
| 14 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDREDTH GENERAL | 15 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of | 16 | | Ronnie "Pastor Ron" Taylor and extend our sincere condolences | 17 | | to his family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be | 18 | | it further
| 19 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 20 | | presented to the family of Pastor Ron as an expression of our | 21 | | deepest sympathy.
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