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| | SR0341 | | LRB103 32640 MST 62309 r |
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1 | | SENATE RESOLUTION
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2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened |
3 | | to learn of the death of James Cole of Chicago, who passed away |
4 | | on July 11, 2022 at the age of 78; and
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5 | | WHEREAS, James Cole was born in Humboldt, Tennessee to |
6 | | Gertie and Vernon Cole, who were both sharecroppers; and
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7 | | WHEREAS, James Cole arrived on the West Side of Chicago as |
8 | | a ninth grader and attended Marshall High School; and |
9 | | WHEREAS, During his early adult life, James Cole worked in |
10 | | welding and at the Ford Motor Company assembly plant on |
11 | | Chicago's South Side; and |
12 | | WHEREAS, Outside of a pool hall on Madison Street and |
13 | | Kedzie Avenue, James Cole began to shine shoes and used his |
14 | | earnings to play a game or two inside; and |
15 | | WHEREAS, Before long, shoe shining became more lucrative |
16 | | for James Cole than his daily 9 to 5 job; at a stand outside of |
17 | | a West Side record store, he turned his hobby into a |
18 | | professional business; ultimately, he took the lease for the |
19 | | entire building; and |
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| | SR0341 | - 2 - | LRB103 32640 MST 62309 r |
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1 | | WHEREAS, In 1968, James Cole expanded Shine King to its |
2 | | current location on Central Avenue and Lake Street; from 1970 |
3 | | to 2003, he also ran a separate site at 3954 W. Madison Street; |
4 | | and |
5 | | WHEREAS, For nearly 60 years, James Cole offered |
6 | | employment at Shine King to at-risk youth and the formerly |
7 | | incarcerated; in turn, these employees provided quality |
8 | | service to prominent individuals such as bluesman Little |
9 | | Milton, R&B singer Johnnie Taylor, Chicago Mayors Harold |
10 | | Washington and Lori Lightfoot, and soon-to-be U.S. Senator and |
11 | | President, Barack Obama; and |
12 | | WHEREAS, James Cole parlayed the success of Shine King |
13 | | into additional business ventures that included real estate, |
14 | | roofing, and tailoring; and |
15 | | WHEREAS, Two of James Coles's favorite music genres were |
16 | | blues and gospel; during business hours at Shine King, songs |
17 | | by The Caravans, James Cleveland, and the Mighty Clouds of Joy |
18 | | were played in heavy rotation; and
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19 | | WHEREAS, James Cole was a loyal Chicago Bulls fan; as a |
20 | | 25-year season ticket holder, he witnessed six championships |
21 | | firsthand; and
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| | SR0341 | - 3 - | LRB103 32640 MST 62309 r |
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1 | | WHEREAS, James Cole was preceded in death by his parents, |
2 | | Gertie and Vernon; and
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3 | | WHEREAS, James Cole is survived by his children, Vernon, |
4 | | Steve, Jameson, Karen, Darlene, and Ariel; 25 grandchildren; |
5 | | and his great-grandchildren; therefore, be it
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6 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL |
7 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of |
8 | | James Cole and extend our sincere condolences to his family, |
9 | | friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be it further
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10 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be |
11 | | presented to the family of James Cole as an expression of our |
12 | | deepest sympathy.
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