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1
SENATE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened
3to learn of the death of James Cole of Chicago, who passed away
4on July 11, 2022 at the age of 78; and
 
5    WHEREAS, James Cole was born in Humboldt, Tennessee to
6Gertie and Vernon Cole, who were both sharecroppers; and
 
7    WHEREAS, James Cole arrived on the West Side of Chicago as
8a ninth grader and attended Marshall High School; and
 
9    WHEREAS, During his early adult life, James Cole worked in
10welding and at the Ford Motor Company assembly plant on
11Chicago's South Side; and
 
12    WHEREAS, Outside of a pool hall on Madison Street and
13Kedzie Avenue, James Cole began to shine shoes and used his
14earnings to play a game or two inside; and
 
15    WHEREAS, Before long, shoe shining became more lucrative
16for James Cole than his daily 9 to 5 job; at a stand outside of
17a West Side record store, he turned his hobby into a
18professional business; ultimately, he took the lease for the
19entire building; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, In 1968, James Cole expanded Shine King to its
2current location on Central Avenue and Lake Street; from 1970
3to 2003, he also ran a separate site at 3954 W. Madison Street;
4and
 
5    WHEREAS, For nearly 60 years, James Cole offered
6employment at Shine King to at-risk youth and the formerly
7incarcerated; in turn, these employees provided quality
8service to prominent individuals such as bluesman Little
9Milton, R&B singer Johnnie Taylor, Chicago Mayors Harold
10Washington and Lori Lightfoot, and soon-to-be U.S. Senator and
11President, Barack Obama; and
 
12    WHEREAS, James Cole parlayed the success of Shine King
13into additional business ventures that included real estate,
14roofing, and tailoring; and
 
15    WHEREAS, Two of James Coles's favorite music genres were
16blues and gospel; during business hours at Shine King, songs
17by The Caravans, James Cleveland, and the Mighty Clouds of Joy
18were played in heavy rotation; and
 
19    WHEREAS, James Cole was a loyal Chicago Bulls fan; as a
2025-year season ticket holder, he witnessed six championships
21firsthand; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, James Cole was preceded in death by his parents,
2Gertie and Vernon; and
 
3    WHEREAS, James Cole is survived by his children, Vernon,
4Steve, Jameson, Karen, Darlene, and Ariel; 25 grandchildren;
5and his great-grandchildren; therefore, be it
 
6    RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL
7ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of
8James Cole and extend our sincere condolences to his family,
9friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be it further
 
10    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
11presented to the family of James Cole as an expression of our
12deepest sympathy.