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1
SENATE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened
3to learn of the death of Thomas A. Oakley of Quincy, who passed
4away on April 13, 2022; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Thomas Oakley was born to Thomas C. and Mary
6Susan Sullivan Oakley in Quincy on June 24, 1932; he attended
7Quincy public schools and graduated from Quincy High School in
81950; he graduated from Duke University in 1954 with a
9bachelor's degree in Economics; following graduation, he
10served in the Air Force Strategic Air Command as a pilot; he
11married Anne McDonald in Raleigh, North Carolina on December
1222, 1954, and she preceded him in death in 2015; and
 
13    WHEREAS, In 1958, Thomas Oakley returned to Quincy to
14re-enter the family business of Quincy Newspapers, Inc., now
15Quincy Media, Inc., as a fourth generation family member; in
161968, he became president of the company following the death
17of his father; as president/CEO from 1969 to 2008, he led the
18company's growth from owning and operating the Quincy
19Herald-Whig and WGEM AM-FM-TV to adding television stations in
20several markets and one additional newspaper; he resigned as
21president/CEO in 2008 but remained active in the company as
22publisher of the Herald-Whig until 2017 and as a member of the
23board of directors of Quincy Media until it sold its

 

 

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1television and radio stations to Gray Media and its newspapers
2to Phillips Media in 2021; and
 
3    WHEREAS, Thomas Oakley served on an untold number of
4committees and organizations throughout his life; notably, he
5helped found the Joint Industrial Development Commission
6(JIDC), which was the predecessor organization to the Great
7River Economic Development Foundation (GREDF); he was a member
8of the Quincy University Board of Trustees and a member of the
9National Association of Broadcasters' Board of Directors; he
10served as a chairman of the Television Bureau of Advertising
11and on a newspaper industry committee dealing with cross
12ownership of television stations and newspapers; he also
13served for over 40 years on the USGA Greens Section Committee;
14and
 
15    WHEREAS, Thomas Oakley was a strong advocate for the
16United Way and for the construction of a new YMCA building in
171970; he was also an active supporter of the Community
18Foundation of Western Illinois and Northeast Missouri; and
 
19    WHEREAS, Thomas Oakley spent over 60 years working on
20highway development for the Tri-States as the region was
21bypassed in the formation of the country's interstate system
22in 1956; through his involvement and leadership, the region
23ultimately has become the crossroads of three major highways

 

 

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1linking the tri-state region to the rest of the country; he
2recently donated one million dollars to fund the Tri-State
3Development Summit at Culver Stockton College to foster
4further, ongoing regional development work; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Thomas Oakley was recognized with many awards for
6his community service, including being inducted into the
7Quincy Area Chamber of Commerce Hall of Fame and being the
8first recipient of the annual Boy Scout community service
9award; he received lifetime awards from the Midwest Chapter of
10the National Television Arts and Sciences, the Broadcasters
11Foundation of America, the National Association of
12Broadcasters, the Illinois Broadcasters Association, and the
13Illinois Press Association; he was awarded an honorary degree
14from Quincy University in 1975; a portion of the Chicago to
15Kansas City Expressway was named the Thomas A. Oakley Highway
16in 2009; and
 
17    WHEREAS, Thomas Oakley loved spending time with his
18family, especially at family events in Florida, Quincy, and
19the upper peninsula of Michigan; he was an avid golfer who
20traveled all over the world to play, including 20 years of
21trips to Scotland; he was also a frequent hunter and boater;
22and
 
23    WHEREAS, Thomas Oakley was preceded in death by his

 

 

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1parents; his wife; his son, Thomas C. Oakley II; his
2son-in-law, Stephen Winters; his daughter-in-law, Lisa Smith
3Oakley; and his two brothers, Peter A. and David R. Oakley; and
 
4    WHEREAS, Thomas Oakley is survived by his son, Ralph; his
5daughter, Mary; his grandchildren, Tom (Lesley) Van Ness, Ben
6(Amanda) Van Ness, Allison (Dustin) Oakley Hall, Jonathan
7(Mark Peacock) Van Ness, and Sullivan Oakley (Joseph Burg);
8his step-grandchild, Jennifer Reekie (Don Krutmeier); his
9great-grandchildren, Olivia Van Ness, Liam Hall, Sterling Van
10Ness, Cameron Van Ness, Anne Hall, Emma Van Ness, and Oliver
11Hall; his step-great-grandchildren, Isla, Campbell, Cora, and
12Ailsa Reekie and Brynn and Carter Krutmeier; his
13sisters-in-law, Mary Oakley, Signe Oakley, and Mabel McDonald;
14his brother-in-law, Ralph McDonald (Meg McLaurin); and several
15cousins, nieces, and nephews; therefore, be it
 
16    RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL
17ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of
18Thomas A. Oakley and extend our sincere condolences to his
19family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be it
20further
 
21    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
22presented to the family of Thomas Oakley as an expression of
23our deepest sympathy.