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1
SENATE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to
3learn of the death of J.W. Pirtle, who passed away on June 15,
42019; and
 
5    WHEREAS, J. W. Pirtle was born in Bolivar, Tennessee to
6Will and Nishie Pirtle on December 22, 1931; he graduated from
7Bruce High School in Dyersburg, Tennessee in 1949; during the
8summer of 1951, he moved to Champaign; in 1952, he joined the
9United States Army, where he oversaw the U.S. Base Motor Pool,
10and served honorably; he married Alice Burge in 1961; and
 
11    WHEREAS, Upon completion of his tour of duty, J.W. Pirtle
12began working as a body and fender repairman at the Danna
13Huddlerson Ford Company; he then realized he needed more formal
14training and enrolled in Greenleaf Trade School in Chicago,
15where he studied auto mechanics and management; he also
16completed a 12-month program in body and fender repair; in
171956, he purchased property and established his business as the
18first Black man in Champaign to own and operate a Shell Gas
19Station; in 1963, he opened Pirtle's Restaurant; in 1967, he
20opened the Central Cab Company and a body and fender shop at
21the same location; he was the first Black man to own limousines
22in Champaign, as well as the first taxi service to utilize
23station wagons and vans; in 1976, he began working for the

 

 

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1State in the Department of Central Management Services as
2Manager, State of Illinois Motor Pool; he retired from that
3position in 2000; and
 
4    WHEREAS, In 1989, J.W. Pirtle became a co-owner of the
5radio station WBCP Soul, which was the only Black-owned station
6East of the Mississippi River and South of Kankakee; WBCP Radio
7was nominated for a Stellar Award in the Small Market Radio
8Group in 2016; and
 
9    WHEREAS, J.W. Pirtle was a pitcher in the National Negro
10Baseball League with the Minor League Champaign Eagles; he
11often spoke about how, as baseball players, their teams were
12welcomed at the Chicago White Sox stadium during the Civil
13Rights Movement; he continued to be an avid lover of the sport;
14and
 
15    WHEREAS, J.W. Pirtle was a member of St. Luke CME Church
16for more than 50 years and served as the Senior Usher on the
17Usher Board and as a member of the board of trustees; he was a
18devoted husband and father; and
 
19    WHEREAS, J.W. Pirtle was preceded in death by his parents;
20his wife, Alice; his son, Michael Pirtle; his brothers, Alvin
21LaSalle and James Edward Pirtle; and his sister, Lue Lena
22Pirtle McDaniel; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, J.W. Pirtle is survived by his children and
2grandchildren, Justin Michael (Michael), Terrence Aljay
3(Yvette), Alliyah Lee (Eric), and Jaelyn Alyssa (Pamela); his
4sisters, Lois Pirtle, Ether Made Huffman, Katherine McKutchen,
5and Marvarine Pirtle; and several nieces, nephews, other family
6members, and friends; therefore, be it
 
7    RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL
8ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of
9J.W. Pirtle and extend our sincere condolences to his family,
10friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be it further
 
11    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
12presented to the family of J.W. Pirtle as an expression of our
13deepest sympathy.