Full Text of HR0629 103rd General Assembly
HR0629 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY | | | HR0629 | | LRB103 39636 LAW 69996 r |
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| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION | 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | 3 | | Representatives wish to congratulate Lester H. McKeever Jr. on | 4 | | the occasion of being named a 2024 Lincoln Laureate of the | 5 | | Order of Lincoln; and | 6 | | WHEREAS, Established in 1964, the Order of Lincoln is the | 7 | | State's highest civilian honor for professional achievement | 8 | | and public service, honoring Illinois residents whose work | 9 | | uplifts every community in the State; and | 10 | | WHEREAS, Lester McKeever, born and raised in Chicago, made | 11 | | history in 1960 when he became the 60th Black Certified Public | 12 | | Accountant (CPA) in the United States; today, he is a leader | 13 | | across the industries of accounting, business, and finance; | 14 | | and | 15 | | WHEREAS, Lester McKeever began his undergraduate education | 16 | | at the University of Illinois' short-lived Navy Pier satellite | 17 | | campus before transferring to the University of Illinois | 18 | | Urbana-Champaign, where he became a member of the Kappa Alpha | 19 | | Psi Fraternity, Inc. and received his Bachelor of Science in | 20 | | Accounting in 1955; he was drafted into the U.S. Army in 1957, | 21 | | serving for two years; he obtained his CPA license in 1960; he | 22 | | later earned his Juris Doctor from the Illinois Institute of |
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| 1 | | Technology's Chicago-Kent College of Law in 1971; and | 2 | | WHEREAS, Lester McKeever began his accounting career at | 3 | | the Unity Mutual Life Insurance Company and worked as a | 4 | | part-time assistant during tax season for Mary T. Washington, | 5 | | the first Black woman to earn her CPA license, who became his | 6 | | mentor and introduced him to the accounting field; and | 7 | | WHEREAS, After his military service, Lester McKeever | 8 | | returned to accounting, taking a full-time position at Mary | 9 | | Washington's firm, Washington and Pittman, which was | 10 | | eventually renamed Washington, Pittman & McKeever and where he | 11 | | was named managing partner in 1976; and | 12 | | WHEREAS, Lester McKeever was appointed as board chairman | 13 | | of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago in 1997, a position he | 14 | | held until 2001; and | 15 | | WHEREAS, Lester McKeever has been a passionate civic | 16 | | leader and advocate for increasing diversity in the accounting | 17 | | profession, serving on the Finance Committee under Chicago | 18 | | Mayors Harold Washington and Richard M. Daley and holding | 19 | | leadership positions in a number of organizations, including | 20 | | the American Association of Attorney-CPAs (AAA-CPA), the | 21 | | Chicago Urban League, the Commercial Club of Chicago, the | 22 | | Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association, the Illinois CPA |
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| 1 | | Society, the Illinois Institute of Technology, the | 2 | | Metropolitan Planning Council, the National Society of Black | 3 | | CPAs, the University of Illinois Board of Trustees, and the | 4 | | United Way of Metropolitan Chicago; and | 5 | | WHEREAS, Lester McKeever has received a number of | 6 | | accolades during his career, becoming the namesake of the | 7 | | Lester H. McKeever Jr. Advancing Diversity Award by the | 8 | | Illinois CPA Society in 2016 and receiving the Gold Medal | 9 | | Award of Distinction by the American Institute of Certified | 10 | | Public Accountant (AICPA) in 2018; and | 11 | | WHEREAS, Lester McKeever and his fellow 2024 Lincoln | 12 | | Laureates join more than 350 distinguished Illinois residents | 13 | | of the Order of Lincoln since its inception, and they will be | 14 | | honored at the 60th annual Convocation and Investiture at the | 15 | | Chicago History Museum on April 13, 2024; therefore, be it | 16 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | 17 | | HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | 18 | | we congratulate Lester H. McKeever Jr. on being named a 2024 | 19 | | Lincoln Laureate of the Order of Lincoln, and we recognize his | 20 | | service and dedication to the residents of Illinois; and be it | 21 | | further | 22 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be |
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| 1 | | presented to Lester McKeever as an expression of our esteem | 2 | | and respect. |
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