HR0749 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0749 LRB102 26870 LAW 37933 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives wish to congratulate State Farm on the occasion of its 100th anniversary; and

WHEREAS, One of America's premier financial service firms with a countrywide presence, State Farm is headquartered in the city of Bloomington; and

WHEREAS, When Henry Ford led the invention of America's first mass-produced, gasoline-powered motor vehicles, the millions of motor cars that streamed onto America's roads and highways created a new way of life and new challenges for the people of Illinois; and

WHEREAS, Middle-class farmer George J. "G.J." Mecherle, born in Merna in rural McLean County east of Normal, became familiar with the new gasoline-powered engines and became an active and successful Central Illinois tractor salesman; and

WHEREAS, Familiar with Illinois rural life and rural roads, G.J. Mecherle realized that automobile insurance rates being offered by insurers to Central Illinois automobile owners did not reflect the true risks of the region; he believed Central Illinoisans deserved to have less expensive insurance if they banded together to insure themselves "mutually" as policyholders; and

WHEREAS, In 1922, G.J. Mecherle circulated a proposal for members of farm mutuals who owned cars to pay a supplement to their dues to win the right to insure their cars for less money; and

WHEREAS, After many Illinoisans responded with great interest, and after licensure by the State of Illinois, the State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company opened its doors in Bloomington on June 8, 1922; and

WHEREAS, This financially pioneering market entry broke new ground in the U.S. insurance industry and paved the way for State Farm to expand into new customer bases and into many separate forms of financial protection and security, creating the State Farm of today, a family of financial service affiliates owned by State Farm Mutual; and

WHEREAS, As a provider of a large suite of financial service products, State Farm, along with its licensed agents, helps support household financial stability and economic growth in the communities it serves, and this is the source of State Farm's identity statement, "Like a Good Neighbor"; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate State Farm on the 100th anniversary of its commencement of business; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we congratulate State Farm's personnel, retirees, and licensed agents, who are all essential elements in State Farm's identity as a "Good Neighbor"; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we wish State Farm many more centuries of good neighborship to come; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to State Farm Chief Executive Officer Michael Tipsord as an expression of our esteem and respect.