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1
SENATE RESOLUTION

 
2     WHEREAS, The members of the Senate of the State of Illinois
3 learned with regret of the passing of Margaret "Peggy" Roach on
4 Thursday, April 13, 2006; and
 
5     WHEREAS, Ms. Roach dedicated her adult life the causes of
6 civil and human rights; and
 
7     WHEREAS, Ms. Roach was best known for her co-ministry with
8 Msgr. John Egan but was active in the field of civil rights
9 even before her alliance with Msgr. Egan; and
 
10     WHEREAS, Ms. Roach traveled to Meridian, Mississippi in
11 July of 1964 in support of the Mississippi Summer Project, a
12 trip that many considered dangerous; and
 
13     WHEREAS, Ms. Roach also worked for the Catholic Interracial
14 Council of Chicago and the National Council of Catholic Women;
15 and
 
16     WHEREAS, Ms. Roach helped to organize the 1963 National
17 Council on Religion and Race, a groundbreaking conference that
18 brought Dr. Martin Luther King to Chicago and cemented the
19 formal cooperation of all major faith groups in the fight to
20 end racial prejudice and segregation, and she also helped to
21 organize the National Council for Interracial Justice; and
 
22     WHEREAS, Ms. Roach marched in Selma, Alabama in 1965; and
 
23     WHEREAS, In 1966, Ms. Roach began assisting Msgr. John Egan
24 with the Contract Buyers League, a program that helped black
25 homeowners in the Lawndale neighborhood renegotiate highly
26 inflated purchase contracts for their homes; and
 
27     WHEREAS, Ms. Roach and Msgr. Egan spent a decade at Notre

 

 

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1 Dame University, where they continued their efforts toward
2 social justice through the Catholic Committee on Urban Ministry
3 and the Center for Pastoral and Social Ministry; and
 
4     WHEREAS, Upon returning to Chicago, Ms. Roach was
5 instrumental in her support of the Industrial Areas Foundation
6 and the founding of the grassroots community group United Power
7 for Action and Justice; and
 
8     WHEREAS, Ms. Roach also worked with DePaul University on
9 many issues affecting the urban poor, including fighting for
10 better regulation of the payday loan industry; and
 
11     WHEREAS, Ms. Roach was the recipient of many awards,
12 including the YWCA Lake County Outstanding Woman of Achievement
13 for Racial Justice; and
 
14     WHEREAS, Ms. Roach was preceded in death by her sister
15 Rosemary Roach; and
 
16     WHEREAS, Ms. Roach is survived by one brother, James (Pat)
17 Roach and 2 sisters, Helen and Jane Roach, as well as several
18 nieces, nephews, great-nieces, and great-nephews; therefore,
19 be it
 
20     RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL
21 ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of
22 Margaret "Peggy" Roach, and we extend our sincere condolences
23 to her family, friends, and all who knew and loved her; and be
24 it further
 
25     RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
26 presented to Ms. Roach's family as an expression of our deepest
27 sympathy.