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1 | SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION
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2 | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois General Assembly join | ||||||
3 | together in honoring the memory of Donald E. Stephens, Mayor of | ||||||
4 | the Village of Rosemont, who passed away on April 18, 2007; and
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5 | WHEREAS, Donald Stephens was the first and only chief | ||||||
6 | executive of Rosemont; he was serving his 13th term as mayor, | ||||||
7 | believed to be the longest serving incumbent mayor in the | ||||||
8 | country; under his leadership the Rosemont community became one | ||||||
9 | of the most progressive and successful municipalities in the | ||||||
10 | State of Illinois; and
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11 | WHEREAS, Donald Stephens was elected president of the | ||||||
12 | homeowner's association in the 1950s and began to see the | ||||||
13 | potential in living close to O'Hare Airport; he was able to | ||||||
14 | incorporate the village in 1956; and
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15 | WHEREAS, He oversaw the building of one of the first Hyatt | ||||||
16 | Regency hotels in his community; eventually 14 hotels would | ||||||
17 | make Rosemont their home; he oversaw the creation of the O'Hare | ||||||
18 | Exposition Center in 1975 (changed in 2000 to the Donald E. | ||||||
19 | Stephens Convention and Conference Center), now one of the top | ||||||
20 | ten centers in the country, the Rosemont Horizon in 1980 (now | ||||||
21 | the Allstate Arena), home to the DePaul Blue Demons, the | ||||||
22 | Chicago Wolves, and the Chicago Rush sports teams, as well as a |
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1 | venue for major music concerts and festivals, and the Rosemont | ||||||
2 | Theatre, a 4,000 seat venue that is home to the Chicagoland | ||||||
3 | Pops Orchestra of Rosemont; and
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4 | WHEREAS, At the time of his passing Mayor Stephens was | ||||||
5 | creating Rosemont Walk, a $500 million entertainment district | ||||||
6 | that will include a movie theatre megaplex, three new hotels, | ||||||
7 | the biggest water park in the State, nationally famous | ||||||
8 | restaurants, and many more businesses for the community; and
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9 | WHEREAS, The passing of Mayor Donald Stephens will be | ||||||
10 | deeply felt by those who knew and loved him, especially his | ||||||
11 | wife, Katherine; his brother, Arthur; his son, Donald E. | ||||||
12 | Stephens II, his son, Mark Stephens; his daughter, Gail | ||||||
13 | Stephens; his son, Bradley Stephens; his grandchildren, Donald | ||||||
14 | E. Stephens III, Christopher R. Stephens, Bradley Stephens, | ||||||
15 | Jr., Brittany Rosemont, Jacqueline, Michelle, Kaila, Tiana, | ||||||
16 | Racquel, Mark Richard, Mark Donald, and Danny; therefore, be it
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17 | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL | ||||||
18 | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES | ||||||
19 | CONCURRING HEREIN, that we mourn, along with his family, | ||||||
20 | friends, and the Rosemont community, the passing of Mayor | ||||||
21 | Donald E. Stephens; and be it further
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22 | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be |
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1 | presented to the family of Mayor Donald E. Stephens as a symbol | ||||||
2 | of our sympathy.
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