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HR0728 |
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LRB094 15076 RAS 50239 r |
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| HOUSE RESOLUTION
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| WHEREAS, The Amity Society (Amity) of Freeport is |
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| celebrating its 125th anniversary this year; and
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| WHEREAS, Amity, which has the distinction of being the |
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| oldest charitable institution in Freeport, was founded in 1880 |
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| to dispense food and clothing to the needy; this was many years |
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| before there were governmental agencies offering such help; and
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| WHEREAS, Amity was started by four women, Misses Isabel |
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| Fry, Jessie Snyder, Jennie Stearns, and Mrs. W.E. Boyington, at |
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| the First Presbyterian Church with the assistance of their |
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| pastor, Dr. H.D. Jenkins; the Society later became a |
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| non-sectarian organization; and
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| WHEREAS, During World War I, when many men were rejected |
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| for service because of nutritional defects caused in childhood, |
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| Amity began working toward a goal of healthy children in the |
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| community; a community-wide welfare program was carried on with |
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| the help of an Amity nurse; for years, that nurse was Mary |
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| Coomber and the visiting nurse was Genevieve Steinmetz; and
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| WHEREAS, The organization foresaw the need for an |
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| orthopedic clinic where children with defects of bone or muscle |
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| or children crippled by polio could be cared for by |
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| specialists; the Elks Club co-sponsored the clinic; and
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| WHEREAS, Amity and Junior Amity worked with expectant |
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| mothers, babies, and toddlers; Junior Amity stepped in and |
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| cared for children up to preschool age; and
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| WHEREAS, Amity added a visiting nurse to help families care |
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| for patients at home who might otherwise have to go to a |
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| nursing home or hospital; Amity reports show that the visiting |
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| nurse made over one hundred calls per month; and
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