093_SR0325

 
                                     LRB093 14384 RAH 20006 r

 1                          SENATE RESOLUTION

 2        WHEREAS, The members  of  the  Senate  of  the  State  of
 3    Illinois  learned  with regret of the passing of Josephine E.
 4    Birkett (nee Keane) of Burr Ridge on October 24, 2003; and

 5        WHEREAS, Born on May 20, 1921, in Decatur,  Mrs.  Birkett
 6    grew   up   in  Chicago,  living  for  years  in  the  Austin
 7    neighborhood on the city's far West Side; and

 8        WHEREAS, After the death of her beloved husband,  Raymond
 9    Birkett,  more  than  35 years ago, Mrs. Birkett successfully
10    raised her 10 children and  guided  her  family  through  the
11    financial and emotional struggles that faced them; her legacy
12    was  the  lesson  she  taught  her sprawling brood, "Families
13    stick together, no matter what happens"; and

14        WHEREAS, Mrs. Birkett enjoyed politics; she played a  key
15    role  in her son Joseph's first run for DuPage County State's
16    Attorney in 1996, recruiting members of the  extended  family
17    to  work  on  his  campaign; she remained active in her son's
18    2002 campaign for Illinois Attorney General; and

19        WHEREAS, Josephine Birkett was a  member  of  the  Screen
20    Actors  Guild  and  appeared on the television shows "Cheers"
21    and "Frazier"; she was  a  lifelong  Cubs  fan  and  an  avid
22    reader;  she was also a member of Our Lady of Peace Church in
23    Darien; and

24        WHEREAS, The passing of Josephine Birkett has been deeply
25    felt by all  who  knew  and  loved  her,  especially  by  her
26    children,  Bernadette (George) Wendt, Robert B. Birkett, John
27    T.  (Alice)  Birkett,  Raymond  B.  (Julie)  Birkett,  Colett
28    Birkett,  Dupage  County  State's  Attorney  Joseph   (Patti)
29    Birkett, Mary Alice (John) Antoniolli, Thomas I. Birkett, and
30    Christopher  J.  (Penny)  Birkett;  her sisters Marie Lawler,
31    Catherine McMahon, Alice  Malone,  Joan  Tuohy,  and  Barbara
 
                            -2-      LRB093 14384 RAH 20006 r
 1    Mesi;  her  32  grandchildren; and her 3 great-grandchildren;
 2    she was preceded in death by her husband, Raymond Birkett and
 3    her son, Daniel Birkett; therefore, be it

 4        RESOLVED, BY  THE  SENATE  OF  THE  NINETY-THIRD  GENERAL
 5    ASSEMBLY  OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn, along with
 6    all who knew her, the death  of  Josephine  Birkett  of  Burr
 7    Ridge; and be it further

 8        RESOLVED,  That  a  suitable  copy  of this resolution be
 9    presented  to  the  family  of  Josephine  Birkett  with  our
10    sincerest condolences.