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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2     WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3 Representatives wish to express their sincere condolences to
4 the family and friends of Thomas G. Lyons of Chicago, who
5 passed away on January 12, 2007; and
 
6     WHEREAS, Thomas Lyons was born May 24, 1931 in Chicago; he
7 was raised on Chicago's Northwest Side in our Lady of Victory
8 Parish; he was the son of Marian (Daniels) and Thomas V. Lyons,
9 the former Chicago Chief of Uniformed Police; and
 
10     WHEREAS, Mr. Lyons was a graduate of Campion Jesuit High
11 School, Xavier University, Loyola University Chicago, and the
12 Loyola University Chicago School of Law; and
 
13     WHEREAS, Mr. Lyons followed in his father's footsteps as a
14 Chicago Police officer; he became an attorney in 1957 and
15 served as the chief attorney for the Cook County Assessor's
16 Office from 1958 to 1960 before joining the office of the
17 Illinois Attorney General; and
 
18     WHEREAS, Mr. Lyons was elected State Senator in 1964; the
19 next year he was elected to serve in a leadership role for the
20 State commission studying the need for a new State
21 constitution; he was later elected a delegate to the 1970

 

 

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1 Constitutional Convention, serving as vice president during
2 the drafting of the 1970 Illinois Constitution; and
 
3     WHEREAS, While a member of the Illinois Senate Mr. Lyons
4 served as chairman of the Appropriations and the Constitutional
5 Implementation committees; and
 
6     WHEREAS, Mr. Lyons, the 45th Ward Democratic Committeeman
7 since 1968, was first elected chairman of the Cook County
8 Democratic Party in 1990, a position he held for nearly
9 seventeen years; he also served as a delegate to every
10 Democratic National Convention from 1968 to 2000; and
 
11     WHEREAS, Mr. Lyons was named a Knight of the Holy Sepulchre
12 by the late Joseph Cardinal Bernardin and was awarded a Medal
13 of Excellence by his alma mater, the Loyola University Chicago
14 School of Law; and
 
15     WHEREAS, Mr. Lyons was named by former President Bill
16 Clinton to the American Battle Monuments Commission as a
17 reflection of his dedication to military service and to the men
18 and women who have worn our country's uniform; Mr. Lyons served
19 in the United States Army achieving the rank of Captain in the
20 Army Rangers; and
 
21     WHEREAS, Mr. Lyons was a practicing attorney as a named

 

 

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1 partner in the firm of O'Keefe, Ashenden, Lyons & Ward, later
2 O'Keefe, Lyons and Hynes; a man of many diverse interests, Mr.
3 Lyons was an avid scholar of American history, as well as a
4 devout fan of Notre Dame, the Chicago White Sox and the Chicago
5 Bears (and in that order!); and
 
6     WHEREAS, Mr. Lyons is survived by his loving wife, Ruth
7 (Tobin); his children, Alexandra (Thomas) Cooney, Thomas V.
8 (Margo), Francis X. (Mary Pat), and Rachel (James) Cooper; his
9 grandchildren Anne Marie, Thomas and Sheila Lyons, Caroline,
10 Elizabeth and Frances Lyons, and Alexandra and William Cooper;
11 his sister, Patricia Breen; his cousin and dear friend, State
12 Representative Joseph Lyons; and his many good friends and
13 admirers; therefore, be it
 
14     RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
15 NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we
16 mourn, along with his family and friends, the passing of Thomas
17 G. Lyons; and be it further
 
18     RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
19 presented to the family of Thomas G. Lyons as an expression of
20 our deepest sympathy for their loss.