SR0798 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

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SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to learn of the death of former Illinois Senator Virginia Macdonald of Arlington Heights, who passed away on July 12, 2008; and

WHEREAS, Virginia Macdonald was born in El Paso, Texas; she attended the University of New Mexico, where she met her late husband, Alan; the couple moved to Evanston, where she became involved in a number of causes; in 1953, they moved to Arlington Heights, where Mrs. Macdonald found a new calling in politics, volunteering for Dwight Eisenhower's re-election campaign in 1956 and Richard Nixon's presidential campaign in 1960; she also worked on the campaign of Senator Charles Percy and acted as Senator Everett Dirksen's State director of the Women Volunteers for Everett Dirksen during his 1968 bid for the U.S. Senate; and

WHEREAS, Virginia Macdonald had a long and distinguished career in politics; she served as chairperson of the Cook County Republicans; she also served as a delegate to the 1970 Illinois Constitutional Convention, where she was the only woman to be a member of the Bill of Rights Committee, which created the State's Equal Rights provision; and

WHEREAS, Virginia Macdonald served with pride and distinction as a member of the Illinois House of Representatives from 1972 to 1982; she then moved on to the Illinois Senate, serving from 1982 until 1992; a political pioneer in her own right, she was one of just eight women in the then 177-member House and one of 11 women in the 236-member General Assembly in 1973; and

WHEREAS, Virginia Macdonald achieved many accomplishments during her tenure in the Illinois General Assembly, including laws that require hospitals to safely dispose of non-radioactive medical waste and laws for reimbursement for reconstructive breast surgery; in addition, she sponsored bills to bring Lake Michigan water to the Northwest suburbs, decentralize the State's juvenile court system, broaden the State's rape law to include the charge of sexual assault, and create property tax caps for suburban Cook County; she proved to be a popular legislator, achieving high plurality victories during each of her re-election campaigns; and

WHEREAS, Despite her busy career in State politics, Virginia Macdonald always found time to be a dedicated and supportive mother and wife, involving herself with the Girl Scouts, helping to found the St. Simon Episcopal Church in Arlington Heights, cleaning her own house until her latter years, and hosting dinner parties that would include such guests as Donald Rumsfeld; and

WHEREAS, Virginia Macdonald is survived by her daughter, Susan (John) Van Bramer; her son, Alan H. Macdonald Jr.; and her grandchildren, Rebecca, Diana, Michael, and Joseph Van Bramer and Michelle (Christopher) Smudde; and

WHEREAS, Virginia Macdonald will be remembered fondly by all who knew and loved her as a loving, feminine, and nurturing mother and as a talented administrator and public servant who believed in good and honest government; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn, along with her family and friends, the passing of our former colleague, Virginia Macdonald; and be it further

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