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1
SENATE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, Parks and recreation programs are an integral
3part of communities throughout this country, including the
4State of Illinois; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Parks and recreation are vitally important to
6establishing and maintaining the quality of life in
7communities, ensuring the health of all citizens, and
8contributing to the economic and environmental well-being of a
9community and region; and
 
10    WHEREAS, Parks and recreation programs build healthy,
11active communities that aid in the prevention of chronic
12disease, provide therapeutic recreation services for those who
13are mentally or physically disabled, and also improve the
14mental and emotional health of all citizens; and
 
15    WHEREAS, Parks and recreation programs increase a
16community's economic prosperity through increased property
17values, expansion of the local tax base, increased tourism,
18the attraction and retention of businesses, and crime
19reduction; and
 
20    WHEREAS, Park districts, forest preserves, and
21conservation, recreation, and special recreation agencies are

 

 

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1significant statewide employers of youth, with more than half
2of their nearly 57,000 employees being under the age of 25; and
 
3    WHEREAS, Parks and recreation areas are fundamental to the
4environmental well-being of our communities; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Parks and natural recreation areas improve water
6quality, protect groundwater, prevent flooding, improve the
7quality of the air we breathe, provide vegetative buffers to
8development, and produce habitat for wildlife; and
 
9    WHEREAS, Our parks and natural recreation areas ensure the
10ecological beauty of our communities and provide a place for
11children and adults to connect with nature and recreate
12outdoors; therefore, be it
 
13    RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL
14ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we declare July 2024 as
15Parks and Recreation Month; and be it further
 
16    RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be
17delivered to the Illinois Association of Park Districts, the
18Illinois Park and Recreation Association, the National
19Recreation and Park Association, and the Illinois Department
20of National Resources.