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| 1 | SENATE RESOLUTION | ||||||
| 2 | WHEREAS, Parks and recreation programs are an integral | ||||||
| 3 | part of communities throughout this country, including the | ||||||
| 4 | State of Illinois; and | ||||||
| 5 | WHEREAS, Parks and recreation are vitally important to | ||||||
| 6 | establishing and maintaining the quality of life in | ||||||
| 7 | communities, ensuring the health of all citizens, and | ||||||
| 8 | contributing to the economic and environmental well-being of a | ||||||
| 9 | community and region; and | ||||||
| 10 | WHEREAS, Parks and recreation programs build healthy, | ||||||
| 11 | active communities that aid in the prevention of chronic | ||||||
| 12 | disease, provide therapeutic recreation services for those who | ||||||
| 13 | are mentally or physically disabled, and also improve the | ||||||
| 14 | mental and emotional health of all citizens; and | ||||||
| 15 | WHEREAS, Parks and recreation programs increase a | ||||||
| 16 | community's economic prosperity through increased property | ||||||
| 17 | values, expansion of the local tax base, increased tourism, | ||||||
| 18 | the attraction and retention of businesses, and crime | ||||||
| 19 | reduction; and | ||||||
| 20 | WHEREAS, Park districts, forest preserves, and | ||||||
| 21 | conservation, recreation, and special recreation agencies are | ||||||
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| 1 | significant statewide employers of youth, with more than half | ||||||
| 2 | of their nearly 57,000 employees being under the age of 25; and | ||||||
| 3 | WHEREAS, Parks and recreation areas are fundamental to the | ||||||
| 4 | environmental well-being of our communities; and | ||||||
| 5 | WHEREAS, Parks and natural recreation areas improve water | ||||||
| 6 | quality, protect groundwater, prevent flooding, improve the | ||||||
| 7 | quality of the air we breathe, provide vegetative buffers to | ||||||
| 8 | development, and produce habitat for wildlife; and | ||||||
| 9 | WHEREAS, Our parks and natural recreation areas ensure the | ||||||
| 10 | ecological beauty of our communities and provide a place for | ||||||
| 11 | children and adults to connect with nature and recreate | ||||||
| 12 | outdoors; therefore, be it | ||||||
| 13 | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL | ||||||
| 14 | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we declare July 2024 as | ||||||
| 15 | Parks and Recreation Month; and be it further | ||||||
| 16 | RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be | ||||||
| 17 | delivered to the Illinois Association of Park Districts, the | ||||||
| 18 | Illinois Park and Recreation Association, the National | ||||||
| 19 | Recreation and Park Association, and the Illinois Department | ||||||
| 20 | of National Resources. | ||||||