SR1006 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR1006 LRB103 40745 ECR 73566 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to learn of the death of James R. Pobiega, who passed away on September 12, 2023 at the age of 73; and

WHEREAS, James Pobiega was born in Oak Park on August 23, 1950 to Michael Pobiega, who drove a milk truck, and Alice Pobiega, who held several jobs including working as a secretary for a roofing company; and

WHEREAS, James Pobiega attended Argo High School in Summit, where he earned the nickname Beowulf due to his large stature, which was later changed to Little Howlin Wolf by passersby who would toss money in his saxophone case as he played music on the Michigan Avenue bridge; and

WHEREAS, James Pobiega, a self-taught saxophonist, began busking at Chicago's Old Maxwell Street Market as he graduated high school in 1968; and

WHEREAS, James Pobiega studied acting at the Goodman School of Drama and joined his instructor, Patrick Henry, and several classmates to form the Free Street Theater in 1969, which performed around Chicago and the Midwest region; and

WHEREAS, James Pobiega worked as Santa Claus at Water Tower Place in Chicago; he enjoyed scuba diving as a hobby and as an instructor and had bit parts in a few productions, including a goofy music video with Tim Kazurinsky and the Chevy Chase movie Bad Meat; and

WHEREAS, James Pobiega's true passion was music, and he self-released dozens of singles and three albums, two in the 1980s and one in 2005; although his music was never commercially successful, it found a wider audience in the early 2000s after Twig Harper, a musician who was working at an antique store in Wicker Park, bought one of his self-released albums at a Chicago Thrift shop and circulated it among friends in the underground experimental music scene; and

WHEREAS, James Pobiega was preceded in death by his parents; and

WHEREAS, At the time of his passing, James Pobiega was survived by his sister, Patricia Pobiega; his cousins, Kathleen Rehr and Bobby Pobiega; and numerous friends; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of James Pobiega and extend our sincere condolences to his family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the family of James Pobiega as an expression of our deepest sympathy.