Full Text of SR0262 101st General Assembly
SR0262 101ST 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 William F. "Bill" Merna of Canton, who | 4 | | passed away on March 16, 2019; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, Bill Merna was born in Bloomington to William R. | 6 | | and Lida M. (Whittington) Merna; he graduated from the Spalding | 7 | | Institute in Peoria and married Della Lou DeWitt in Peoria on | 8 | | September 3, 1949; and
| 9 | | WHEREAS, Bill Merna retired from Nabisco in 1988 after a | 10 | | 43-year career; he was a popular salesperson, affectionately | 11 | | known as the "Cookie Man"; and
| 12 | | WHEREAS, Bill Merna was a 60-year member of the Knights of | 13 | | Columbus; he was a past Grand Knight of the St. George Council | 14 | | 3934 in Canton; he was a 3rd and 4th Degree Knight, working | 15 | | both the Tootsie Roll Drive and the weekly Bingo game; he | 16 | | enjoyed camping and attending the Knights of Columbus | 17 | | International Camporee, which he and his wife even hosted once; | 18 | | they also enjoyed camping at the Illinois State Fair; and | 19 | | WHEREAS, Bill Merna liked to walk in the woods, searching | 20 | | for mushrooms; he also liked deer and squirrel hunting trips; | 21 | | and |
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, Bill Merna was a member of St. Mary's Catholic | 2 | | Church in Canton; he volunteered for funeral dinners and the | 3 | | food pantry; he spent many hours helping as a committee member | 4 | | and leader of the St. Joseph's Cemetery Committee; he also | 5 | | cheerfully delivered Meals on Wheels; and | 6 | | WHEREAS, Bill Merna was known as "Uncle Bill" to countless | 7 | | nieces, nephews, and cousins, some of whom were two and three | 8 | | times removed; he was a mentor, role model, and dear friend to | 9 | | so many more; he was devoted to his family and attended all the | 10 | | events he could; and
| 11 | | WHEREAS, Bill Merna was preceded in death by his parents; | 12 | | his wife of nearly 60 years, Della; his grandson, Adam Hindle; | 13 | | and his sisters, Mary (Dick) Koehne and Eleanor (Jerry) Menke; | 14 | | and
| 15 | | WHEREAS, Bill Merna is survived by his children, William M. | 16 | | Merna, Nancy (Larry) Hindle, Phyllis (Lynn) Jarvis, Timothy A. | 17 | | (Carol) Merna, and Thomas E. (Alisa) Merna; 13 grandchildren; | 18 | | 21 great-grandchildren; his sister-in-law, Eva Gilchrist; his | 19 | | brother-in-law, Frank (Joyce) DeWitt; and his sister-in-law, | 20 | | Marian DeWitt; therefore, be it
| 21 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL |
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| 1 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of | 2 | | William F. "Bill" Merna and extend our sincere condolences to | 3 | | his family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be it | 4 | | further
| 5 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 6 | | presented to the family of Bill Merna as an expression of our | 7 | | deepest sympathy.
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