Full Text of SR0176 98th General Assembly
SR0176 98TH 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 Ernie Russell; and
| 4 | | WHEREAS, Ernie Russell was born on July 20, 1938, in | 5 | | Peoria; his parents were Earl W. and Mary Jane Moore Russell; | 6 | | he married Sara Warrington in Peoria in 1961; and
| 7 | | WHEREAS, Ernie Russell was raised in Lacon and graduated | 8 | | from Mid-County High School in Varna; and
| 9 | | WHEREAS, Ernie Russell served in the United States Navy at | 10 | | the Naval Hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania as a corpsman | 11 | | from 1956 to 1959; and
| 12 | | WHEREAS, Ernie Russell earned his bachelor's degree in | 13 | | political science from Illinois State University in 1973 and | 14 | | his master's degree in public administration from Sangamon | 15 | | State University in 1975; he also earned his associate's degree | 16 | | in fire science from Illinois Central College; and
| 17 | | WHEREAS, Ernie Russell was a proud member of the Peoria | 18 | | Firefighters IAFF Local 50 before being promoted through the | 19 | | ranks to the Peoria Fire Department Administration; he | 20 | | ultimately served as Chief of the Peoria Fire Department; and |
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, Ernie Russell served as the city liaison during | 2 | | the construction of the Fire Training Academy on Galena Road | 3 | | and the construction of the Fire Central Station at Bryant and | 4 | | Monroe in Peoria; he served as Training Chief and Fire | 5 | | Prevention Chief during his tenure; he was named Chief of the | 6 | | Peoria Fire Department in 1994, where he remained until 2001, | 7 | | when he was appointed to the position of State Fire Marshal by | 8 | | the Governor of Illinois; he subsequently worked for many years | 9 | | as a consultant with Resource Management Associates of Tinley | 10 | | Park before being hired as the interim Fire Chief of the | 11 | | Village of Oak Lawn in August of 2008, where he served through | 12 | | July of 2009; he later served as the interim Fire Chief in | 13 | | Canton from November of 2010 through June of 2011; and
| 14 | | WHEREAS, In October 2011, Ernie Russell was honored with | 15 | | the title of Fire Chief Emeritus; this title is reserved for | 16 | | retired chiefs who have had distinguished careers and who have | 17 | | made significant contributions that set them apart from their | 18 | | peers; and | 19 | | WHEREAS, Ernie Russell ran for election in the Illinois | 20 | | State Senate in the 46th District in 2006; and
| 21 | | WHEREAS, Ernie Russell served on numerous boards and | 22 | | committees in Peoria, including the American Red Cross and the |
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| 1 | | Boys and Girls Club of Peoria, where he also served as | 2 | | president; and | 3 | | WHEREAS, Ernie Russell was a board member of the Peoria | 4 | | Area Labor Management Council and invested much of his | 5 | | professional career fostering relationships between labor and | 6 | | management to provide topnotch emergency services not only in | 7 | | Peoria, but in communities across Illinois, making Illinois a | 8 | | safer place to live; and | 9 | | WHEREAS, Ernie Russell is survived by his wife, Sara; his | 10 | | daughters, Kelley Russell and Joan Ott; his sons-in-law, Bill | 11 | | Ott and Jay Duke; his granddaughters, Katherine Taylor Duke and | 12 | | Isabella Maree Ott; his grandson, Jeremy Russell Ott; his | 13 | | brothers, Raymond Russell and Robert (Jackie) Grieves; his | 14 | | sisters, Crystal Russell and Melody Grieves; and his many | 15 | | cousins, nieces, and nephews; therefore, be it
| 16 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL | 17 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn, along with | 18 | | his family and friends, the passing of Ernie Russell; and be it | 19 | | further
| 20 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 21 | | presented to the family of Ernie Russell as an expression of | 22 | | our sympathy.
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