HR1389 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR1389 LRB097 23869 MST 73152 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives wish to congratulate Representative Sidney Mathias on his distinguished service to the Illinois 51st and 53rd Legislative Districts and the people of the State of Illinois; and

WHEREAS, Representative Mathias has been a member of the Illinois House since 1999 and has served this body with honor and distinction; and

WHEREAS, Representative Mathias graduated from South Shore High School in 1962, earned a bachelor of science degree in Mathematics from Roosevelt University in 1966, and a juris doctorate degree from DePaul University's College of Law in 1968; and

WHEREAS, Representative Mathias is a recently-retired attorney who practiced in Arlington Heights for 40 years; and

WHEREAS, Representative Mathias has been married to his wife, Rita for 40 years, and has two adult sons, Rabbi Elliot and Rabbi Scott, and has 6 grandchildren; and

WHEREAS, Representative Mathias began his 30-years of community service in 1983 as a member of the Buffalo Grove Zoning Board of Appeals; and

WHEREAS, Representative Mathias continued his community service as a village trustee in Buffalo Grove from 1988-1991; and

WHEREAS, Representative Mathias was elected by the people of Buffalo Grove to serve as their village president from 1991-1999, where he became a leading voice on transportation issues and was a driving force behind bringing the North Central Line and the Sidney H. Mathias Transit Center to Buffalo Grove; and

WHEREAS, Representative Mathias was first elected to the Illinois House in 1998 and is completing 7 consecutive two-year terms in office; and

WHEREAS, Representative Mathias has represented with distinction the people of Cook and Lake Counties in the communities of Arlington Heights, Buffalo Grove, Wheeling, Mount Prospect, Prospect Heights, Palatine, Long Grove, Deer Park, Hawthorn Woods, Lake Zurich, Barrington, Hoffman Estates, Mundelein, Vernon Hills, Kildeer, and Inverness; and

WHEREAS, Since being elected to the House of Representatives, Representative Mathias has served with distinction on the Mass Transit committee as the Republican Spokesperson, the Local Government committee as the Republican Spokesperson, the Cities & Villages committee as the Republican Spokesperson, the Tollway Oversight committee as the Republican Spokesperson, and the Mass Transit for Northeastern Illinois committee as the Republican Spokesperson; and

WHEREAS, Representative Mathias has also served as a member in good standing of the Judiciary I-Civil Law committee, the State Government Administration committee, the Select Committee on Discipline, the Appropriations-General Service committee, the Railroad Industry committee, the Health Care Availability Access committee, the Transportation & Motor Vehicles committee, the subcommittee on Railroads, the Adoption Reform committee, the Transit Management and Performance committee, the Appropriations-Public Safety committee, the Aging committee, the Financial Institutions committee, the Airports committee, and the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority committee; and

WHEREAS, During his 14-year term as a State Representative Mathias served as a chief sponsor of more than 120 public acts and as a chief co-sponsor or co-sponsor of hundreds of additional public acts; and

WHEREAS, Representative Mathias has been a vocal opponent of tax increases during his 14 years in office; and

WHEREAS, Representative Mathias has been a tireless advocate for children and adults with disabilities as well as special needs children; and

WHEREAS, Representative Mathias had a key role in reforming the State's Regional Transportation Authority by helping to bring financial stability and continuity of service to CTA, Metra and Pace; and

WHEREAS, Representative Mathias was deeply involved with bringing significant transportation improvements to his region, including the Route 22 bypass in Lake Zurich; and

WHEREAS, Representative Mathias fought with determination for the extension of Route 53 into Lake County by bringing key decision-makers together to build consensus for the project; he has also served on various councils instrumental in determining the feasibility for the extension of Route 53; and

WHEREAS, Representative Mathias has made other innumerable contributions to the public good through his service to the Northwest Municipal Conference, the Northwest Council of Mayors, the Illinois Alzheimer's Legislators Alliance, the Illinois Holocaust and Genocide Commission, the Lake County Municipal League, the Illinois Municipal League, the North Central Metra Service Mayoral Task Force, the Corridor Planning Council of Central Lake County, the National Conference of State Legislatures Transportation committee, the National League of Cities Transportation & Communications committees, the Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission, the Solid Waste Agency of Northern Cook County, the Cook County Circuit Court, the College of Lake County's Southeast Regional Planning Council, Roosevelt University's Community Advisory Board, the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago, the Northwest Suburban Jewish Community Center, and to the Buffalo Grove Park District; and

WHEREAS, Representative Mathias has been a long-standing member of the Buffalo Grove, Arlington Heights, and Wheeling/Prospect Heights Chambers of Commerce; and

WHEREAS, Representative Mathias has received numerous awards and recognitions, including the Outstanding Legislator of the Year Award and the Community Service Award from the Illinois Association of Park Districts, the Friend of Agriculture Award from the Lake County Farm Bureau, the Legislator of the Year Award from the Illinois Psychological Association, the Lung Health Champion Award from the Respiratory Health Association, and Legislator of the Year from the Illinois Child Care Association; and

WHEREAS, Representative Mathias traveled to Israel in 2012 as part of a delegation of Illinois leaders to advance the economic and cultural ties between Illinois and Israel; and

WHEREAS, Representative Mathias and his family understand firsthand the suffering and challenges faced by the Jewish community; his father, Ernest Mathias, was a Holocaust survivor who was arrested on Kristallnacht (Night of Broken Glass) in Germany and sent to the Buchenwald concentration camp; his father was able to secure safe passage to America where he worked in Chicago stockyards until becoming a business owner; tragically, Ernest Mathias' parents and 3 sisters were murdered in concentration camps during World War II; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we wish Representative Mathias all the best in his future endeavors and congratulate him on a job well done in the General Assembly; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to Representative Mathias, his wife Rita, and their family, as an expression of our esteem and respect for our colleague and friend.