State of Illinois
92nd General Assembly
Legislation

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92_HR0917

 
                                              LRB9216882RHrhA

 1                          HOUSE RESOLUTION

 2        WHEREAS, On June 26, 1960, a rookie ball  player  trotted
 3    out  onto  the  field  and played his first game as a Chicago
 4    Cub; it was a double header, and the Cubs won both games; Ron
 5    Santo was new to the team, but already  he  was  contributing
 6    his  positive  spirit  and  his determination to overcome all
 7    challenges; and

 8        WHEREAS, Ron Santo was, in fact,  facing  challenges  not
 9    even  the  Cubs  knew  about;  two  years before Ron had been
10    diagnosed  with  type  1  (juvenile)  diabetes;  although  he
11    struggled daily with the constant insulin injections and  the
12    endless  struggle  to balance his exercise and diet, Ron kept
13    this to himself while his talent at third base  led  to  five
14    Gold Glove Awards; this, coupled with a career 342 home runs,
15    1,331  RBI's and an overall batting average of .277, took Ron
16    to nine Major League all-star games; and

17        WHEREAS, That spirit of determination has  never  wavered
18    in Ron Santo; after a brilliant fourteen-year career with the
19    Chicago  Cubs, he launched a highly successful career dealing
20    in oil, the food industry, and fried chicken; because of  his
21    successes as a ballplayer, he remained immensely popular with
22    the  Chicagoland  public,  and  when the then-fledgling local
23    chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes  Foundation  approached  him
24    about  lending  his name to its annual Walk to Cure Diabetes,
25    he didn't hesitate; and

26        WHEREAS, The rest, as they say, is  history;  with  Ron's
27    involvement the Walk was able to garner tremendous support in
28    its  first  year  and  tap  into  donations  of food, prizes,
29    printing etc. that raised $53,000 and included 1,000  people;
30    he   did   the  talk  show  circuit,  signed  every  t-shirt,
31    participated in publicity efforts, and was on  hand  on  Walk
32    day to welcome and thank participants; and
 
                            -2-               LRB9216882RHrhA
 1        WHEREAS,  Twenty-four  years later, Ron Santo is still at
 2    the forefront of the Juvenile  Diabetes  Research  Foundation
 3    Walk  to  Cure Diabetes here in Chicago, and with his help it
 4    has become the most successful of Juvenile Diabetes  Research
 5    Foundation  Walks  in  the  country;  from  1,000 walkers and
 6    $53,000 it has  grown  to  incorporate  three  sites,  14,000
 7    people,  and  $4.1  million; since its inception, the Walk in
 8    Chicago has raised $20 million for diabetes research; and

 9        WHEREAS, If Ron Santo's involvement had stopped there  he
10    would  still be a worthy recipient of the Chapter's Person of
11    the Year Award;  he  has  done  so  much  more  for  Juvenile
12    Diabetes  while  facing his own, serious challenges in living
13    with diabetes; and

14        WHEREAS, Year  in,  year  out  Ron  Santo  has  supported
15    Juvenile  Diabetes  Research  Foundation in every conceivable
16    way; from pulling  the  winning  sweepstakes  ticket  at  the
17    Chapter's  Chance  of  a Lifetime Gala to testifying numerous
18    times before Congress on  behalf  of  the  Juvenile  Diabetes
19    Research Foundation to encourage increased federal funding of
20    diabetes  research; Mr. Santo has been a tireless advocate on
21    behalf of the millions living with diabetes, making  personal
22    visits   to   legislators,  making  personal  appearances  at
23    diabetes-related events, helping to secure other  celebrities
24    to  boost  attendance  and  revenue at events, and  recently,
25    writing to President Bush to advocate for stem cell research;
26    and

27        WHEREAS, In 1990, Ron Santo entered a new  phase  of  his
28    career  when  he  brought  his  baseball expertise to the WGN
29    Radio 720 Cubs broadcast booth where  he  can  now  be  heard
30    providing   the   Cubs  color  commentary  coupled  with  the
31    knowledge and professionalism  of  Radio  720's  play-by-play
32    announcer,  Pat  Hughes; but Mr. Santo's new role didn't slow
33    him down  one  bit  as  far  as  Juvenile  Diabetes  Research
 
                            -3-               LRB9216882RHrhA
 1    Foundation  was  concerned;  in  fact,  he has frequently and
 2    repeatedly used his public status to educate the public about
 3    diabetes  and  the  need  for  a  cure   and   to   encourage
 4    participation   in   Juvenile  Diabetes  Research  Foundation
 5    events; in 1997, Ron began hosting his annual Ron Santo  Golf
 6    Experience,  an  event that has raised more than $970,000 for
 7    Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation  since  its  inception;
 8    and

 9        WHEREAS,  Ron Santo has frequently provided encouragement
10    and support for those who live  with  diabetes,  and  he  has
11    acted  as  a  role model for thousands of people; he has made
12    hundreds  of  calls  and   visits   to   hospitals   offering
13    encouragement and hope to newly diagnosed families and brings
14    hope to so many; and

15        WHEREAS,  In  December  2001,  Ron Santo lost part of his
16    right leg to diabetes-related complications;  after  so  many
17    years,  the role model, the beacon of hope, might have needed
18    encouragement himself; but once again his  determination  and
19    optimism  to  overcome  challenges added to his motivation to
20    get "on his feet" again in order to continue his  role  as  a
21    true  crusader for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation;
22    and

23        WHEREAS, Ron Santo is a Lifetime  Board  Member  for  the
24    Juvenile   Diabetes   Research   Foundation  Greater  Chicago
25    Chapter; and

26        WHEREAS, Clearly, there could be no more dedicated  "team
27    player" than Ron Santo; to honor him as the Juvenile Diabetes
28    Research  Foundation  Greater  Chicago Chapter 2002 Person of
29    the Year is only to recognize the obvious, that  Ron  is  not
30    only  a  person of the year, but a Juvenile Diabetes Research
31    Foundation champion for all seasons and all years; therefore,
32    be it
 
                            -4-               LRB9216882RHrhA
 1        RESOLVED,  BY  THE  HOUSE  OF  REPRESENTATIVES   OF   THE
 2    NINETY-SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
 3    we  congratulate  Ron  Santo for being chosen as the Juvenile
 4    Diabetes Research Foundation Person of the Year;  and  be  it
 5    further

 6        RESOLVED,  That  a  suitable  copy  of this resolution be
 7    given to Ron Santo as an expression of our esteem.

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