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| 1 | HOUSE RESOLUTION
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| 2 | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | ||||||
| 3 | Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of William | ||||||
| 4 | Allen "Al" Kolkman of Naperville, who passed away on February | ||||||
| 5 | 5, 2020; and
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| 6 | WHEREAS, The United States of America and the State of | ||||||
| 7 | Illinois have been blessed with an abundance of men and women | ||||||
| 8 | who proudly and bravely serve our country, sacrificing a great | ||||||
| 9 | deal to defend the cherished causes of democracy and freedom; | ||||||
| 10 | and
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| 11 | WHEREAS, It is an extraordinary person who selflessly | ||||||
| 12 | serves and protects others and willingly steps into harm's way | ||||||
| 13 | to defend our freedom; Al Kolkman was such a person; and
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| 14 | WHEREAS, Al Kolkman was born in Burlington, Iowa on June | ||||||
| 15 | 26, 1931; he graduated from Burlington High School in 1950; he | ||||||
| 16 | attended Olivet Nazarene University in Bourbonnais; he married | ||||||
| 17 | Ardell H. "Dell" Jones on May 16, 1969; and
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| 18 | WHEREAS, Al Kolkman was an active resident of the State of | ||||||
| 19 | Illinois since 1953, living for a time in Chicago, Kankakee, | ||||||
| 20 | and Bourbonnais, residing in Naperville from 1969 to 1999, and | ||||||
| 21 | living for a short time in Glen Ellyn, Plainfield, and Aurora; | ||||||
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| 1 | and
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| 2 | WHEREAS, Al Kolkman honorably served in the U.S. Army from | ||||||
| 3 | January 16, 1951 to January 15, 1954; he served in the Korean | ||||||
| 4 | War from June 1951 until April 1952; and
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| 5 | WHEREAS, Al Kolkman earned the Korean Service Ribbon for | ||||||
| 6 | duty performed in the Republic of Korea; he displayed | ||||||
| 7 | Meritorious Service in a combat zone and Heroic Achievement | ||||||
| 8 | during combat operations against the enemy and was thereby | ||||||
| 9 | awarded three Bronze Stars; he earned the commendation of the | ||||||
| 10 | United Nations Service Medal for serving in a peacekeeping | ||||||
| 11 | effort in the Republic of Korea for 10 months and 17 days; he | ||||||
| 12 | was duly decorated with the National Defense Service Medal for | ||||||
| 13 | his distinguished and honorable service as an active member of | ||||||
| 14 | the Armed Forces between 1951 and 1954; and
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| 15 | WHEREAS, Al Kolkman knew the worth of defending liberty | ||||||
| 16 | around the world and at home; he lived his life with a can-do | ||||||
| 17 | attitude and knew that tough times never last, tough people do; | ||||||
| 18 | and
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| 19 | WHEREAS, Al Kolkman faithfully served for the sake of | ||||||
| 20 | others in the relationships he pursued in business, in service | ||||||
| 21 | to his community, in his faith while leading his local church, | ||||||
| 22 | and while serving as a loving son, dutiful husband, patient | ||||||
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| 1 | father, generous uncle, and faithful friend; therefore, be it
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| 2 | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | ||||||
| 3 | HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | ||||||
| 4 | we mourn the passing of William Allen "Al" Kolkman and extend | ||||||
| 5 | our sincere condolences to his family, friends, and all who | ||||||
| 6 | knew and loved him; and be it further
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| 7 | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | ||||||
| 8 | presented to the family of Al Kolkman as an expression of our | ||||||
| 9 | deepest sympathy.
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