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1
SENATE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to
3learn of the death of Joan Johnson-Blackwell of Lewistown, who
4passed away on April 2, 2012; and
 
5    WHEREAS, She was born January 3, 1944, to John Sprague
6Stout and Nancy Jane Halstead Stout in Springfield; at a young
7age, she became attracted to poetry by Edgar Guest and the
8Edgar Lee Masters poem "Anne Rutledge"; and
 
9    WHEREAS, She graduated from Glenwood High School in Chatham
10and from Western Illinois University in Macomb; she married
11Randle Ray Johnson on November 7, 1964, in Chatham; he passed
12away on June 22, 1986; she then married Robert B. Blackwell on
13September 1, 1989, in Lewistown; and
 
14    WHEREAS, She taught gifted classes at Lewistown McNally
15School and she taught English, speech, and drama at Lewistown
16Community High School; and
 
17    WHEREAS, She devoted her life to culture and tourism in
18Fulton County; she helped to organize the Fulton County Tourism
19Council and served 8 years as its secretary and then president;
20she was one of the driving forces behind the Spoon River Drive,
21helping organize and promote its activities; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, She enjoyed being a producer and reader for local
2performances of Masters poetry at Oak Hill Cemetery on Masters
3Day for 21 years and the Spoon River Valley Scenic Drive for
4over 20 years; she wrote poetry and free-lance feature articles
5especially on history, travel, collectibles, and Spoon River
6Scenic Drive folks and events; she was a publicist for Spoon
7River Valley Scenic Drive Associates for nearly 28 years; and
 
8    WHEREAS, She enjoyed writing and taking photos for the
9Spoon River Valley Scenic Drive program books, cookbooks, and
10publicity; she served several terms as a director for the
11Fulton County Arts Council and volunteered at the Fulton-Mason
12Crisis Center and the Lewistown Food Pantry; and
 
13    WHEREAS, She was a member of the Lewistown United Methodist
14Church, where she served as a Sunday School teacher, United
15Methodist lay speaker, historian, Ruth Circle member, and
16chairperson for the church's 175th anniversary; she also
17enjoyed reading, sewing, antiques, and traveling; and
 
18    WHEREAS, She worked as a real estate broker/appraiser since
191975; she served as an officer of the Fulton County Board of
20Realtors and MLS and as a real estate instructor; she and her
21first husband formed Farm & Home Realty of Lewistown in 1975
22and were members of the Lewistown Chamber of Commerce; she used

 

 

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1her appraisal experience and medical training as an Illinois
2disability adjudicator in Springfield; and
 
3    WHEREAS, She was a past member of the Spoon River
4Professional Women and the Lewistown Eastern Star; she helped
5to organize the Spoon River Writer's Guild in 1970s; in
6retirement, she added a new circle of poet-friends in the
7Peoria Poetry Club and served as its president since 2006; and
 
8    WHEREAS, Joan Johnson-Blackwell is survived by her
9husband, Robert; her sisters, Phyllis Stout, Melissa Stout, and
10Janifer Day; her daughter, Jo Ellen Johnson; her son, Andrewe
11William (Stephanie) Johnson; her stepsons, Steve (Pam)
12Blackwell and Barry (Terresa) Blackwell; her grandchildren,
13Riley and Morgan Johnson; her grandcats, Big Ed, Shadow,
14Moonlight, and Culver; her step-grandchildren, Cara and
15Christopher Blackwell, Megan Blackwell, and Rob Blackwell; and
16several nieces and nephews; therefore, be it
 
17    RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL
18ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn, along with
19her family and friends, the passing of Joan-Johnson-Blackwell;
20we celebrate her love of life and her boundless energy and
21enthusiasm; and be it further
 
22    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be

 

 

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1presented to the family of Joan Johnson-Blackwell as a symbol
2of our sincere sympathy.