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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

  
 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of 
3Representatives wish to congratulate our colleague, State 
4Representative Keith Sommer, on the occasion of his retirement 
5from the General Assembly after 24 years of service; and
  
 
6    WHEREAS, Rep. Sommer joined the House of Representatives 
7in January 1999, but his service to the people of his district 
8stretches back almost half a century; and
  
 
9    WHEREAS, Before he came to Springfield, Rep. Sommer served 
10on the Tazewell County Board and the Morton Village Board; he 
11also served as the recorder of Tazewell County and chaired his 
12local regional planning commission; and
  
 
13    WHEREAS, Rep. Sommer was a tireless advocate for adoptive 
14families in Illinois, passing a historic adoption reform bill 
15in 2015 that eased the process of international adoptions for 
16Illinois families; and
  
 
17    WHEREAS, Rep. Sommer opened  educational opportunities for 
18dyslexic children in Illinois through legislation that created 
19a guide for school personnel to identify signs of dyslexia and 
20to help them improve their dyslexic students' academic 
21performance; and
  
 
 
 
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1    WHEREAS, Rep. Sommer aligned his legislative record with 
2his style as an elected official; when someone came to him for 
3help, he listened and then developed a way to assist them, not 
4stopping until the solution became a reality; despite the 
5bills he championed not always representing high profile 
6issues with headline-grabbing attention, he worked diligently 
7to pass  them as he understood their importance to the families 
8they directly impacted; and
  
 
9    WHEREAS, Rep. Sommer has also left an indelible mark on 
10the State of Illinois through successful designation of the 
11pumpkin pie as  our state pie, which honors his hometown of 
12Morton, the pumpkin capital of the world; and
  
 
13    WHEREAS, Rep. Sommer spent almost a quarter of a century 
14in service to the people of Illinois as an advocate for lower 
15taxes, local control, Second Amendment rights, and small 
16businesses; and
  
 
17    WHEREAS, Rep. Sommer will leave the General Assembly for a 
18much-deserved retirement; therefore, be it
  
 
19    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE 
20HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that 
21we thank Representative Keith Sommer for his many years of 
 
 
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1service to the people of his district and the State of 
2Illinois; and be it further
  
 
3    RESOLVED, That we wish him, his wife, Deb, and their two 
4daughters all the best in the years to come; and be it further
  
 
5    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be 
6presented to Rep. Sommer as an expression of our esteem and 
7respect.