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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

  
 
2    WHEREAS, Chicago-born Frank Avila met Peoria-born Sherry 
3Hooste at Esther Hall, a Methodist girls club, in Chicago in 
41961; and
  
 
5    WHEREAS, Frank Avila received his Bachelor's Degree in 
6Civil Engineering in January of 1961; Sherry Avila received her 
7Bachelor's Degree in Education in January of 1966 from the 
8University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; and
  
 
9    WHEREAS, Frank and Sherry Avila were married on November 
1027, 1965 at the Broadway United Methodist Church in Chicago; 
11and
  
 
12    WHEREAS, From 1966 to 1968, Frank and Sherry Avila lived in 
13Tucson, Arizona, where Frank completed his Master's Degree in 
14Finance at the University of Arizona in 1968; for 48 of the 50 
15years of their marriage, Frank and Sherry have lived in 
16Chicago; and
  
 
17    WHEREAS, Frank and Sherry Avila have been very blessed with 
183 wonderful children, Frank (Rachel), Quinn (Jackie), and 
19Audrey, and 2 wonderful grandchildren, Clarence and Thalia; and
  
 
20    WHEREAS, Frank Avila was the owner and operator of Avila & 
 
 
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1Associates, Inc., a consulting engineering company, for about 
227 years; and
  
 
3    WHEREAS, Together, Frank and Sherry Avila collected 17,000 
4signatures to get Frank on the ballot as Commissioner of the 
5Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago for 
6the third time; he finally won the third election in 2002, 
7followed by victories in his fourth election in 2008 and his 
8fifth election in 2014; and
 
9    WHEREAS, Frank Avila serves as Chairman of Finance on the 
10Board of Commissioners of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation 
11District of Greater Chicago, and he has received numerous 
12awards for his work; and
  
 
13    WHEREAS, Frank and Sherry Avila produced numerous CAN-TV 
14shows, including "Commissioner Frank Avila Speaks...", many TV 
15shows about the environment, and Sherry's "Avila Fine Arts" and 
16"Avila Making A Difference"; many of these shows are featured 
17on YouTube and other websites; and
  
 
18    WHEREAS, Frank and Sherry Avila have travelled together to 
19many places all over the world, including China, Russia, 
20Ireland, Italy, Greece, Spain, Gibraltar, Costa Rica, Turkey, 
21the Canary Islands, Canada, Mexico, Costa Rica, the Dominican 
22Republic, Puerto Rico, and about 35 of the 50 U.S. states, 
 
 
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1including Hawaii and Alaska; and
 
2    WHEREAS, Frank and Sherry Avila celebrated their 50th 
3wedding anniversary with a trip to Belgium and the Netherlands; 
4and
  
 
5    WHEREAS, Frank and Sherry Avila shared the trials and 
6triumphs of five decades together with commitment, 
7perseverance, and unyielding strength; they attribute the 
8success of their marriage to sharing an intense love of family, 
9religion, laughter, education, health, the world, travel, and 
10the fine arts; therefore, be it
  
 
11    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE 
12NINETY-NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we 
13congratulate Frank and Sherry Avila on the occasion of their 
1450th anniversary on November 27, 2015 and wish them great 
15health and happiness in the future; and be it further
  
 
16    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be 
17presented to Frank and Sherry Avila as a symbol of our esteem 
18and respect.