SR0387 LRB095 13998 GRL 39835 r

1
SENATE RESOLUTION

 
2     WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to
3 learn of the death of George E. Sangmeister of Mokena, who
4 passed away on October 7, 2007; and
 
5     WHEREAS, George Sangmeister served in the United States
6 Army during the Korean War; and
 
7     WHEREAS, George Sangmeister began his public career in
8 1961, serving as a Justice of the Peace and Magistrate of the
9 Circuit Court in Will County; he served as State's Attorney in
10 Will County from 1964 to 1968; and
 
11     WHEREAS, In 1972, George Sangmeister was elected to the
12 Illinois State House of Representatives, where he served for
13 two terms; he returned to Springfield as an Illinois State
14 Senator, serving from 1976 until 1987; during his tenure in the
15 Illinois State Senate, he served as both chairman of the Senate
16 Judiciary Committee and chairman of the Senate Executive
17 Committee; and
 
18     WHEREAS, George Sangmeister was elected to the United
19 States Congress in November of 1988 and was one of only eight
20 new members to unseat an incumbent; he was re-elected to the
21 House of Representatives in 1990 and again in 1992; as a

 

 

SR0387 - 2 - LRB095 13998 GRL 39835 r

1 congressman, he served on the Public Works and Transportation
2 Committee, the Veteran's Affairs Committee, and the Judiciary
3 Committee; he retired from Congress in January of 1995; and
 
4     WHEREAS, George Sangmeister was consistently endorsed for
5 re-election by local and Chicago media outlets and was named
6 one of the "Top Ten Legislators" in a 1985 poll conducted by
7 the Chicago Sun-Times; and
 
8     WHEREAS, George Sangmeister was "Of Counsel" with the firm
9 of McKeown, Fitzgerald, Zollner, Buck, Hutchison & Ruttle; and
 
10     WHEREAS, George Sangmeister was a member of many civic
11 organizations, including the Frankfort Unit of the American
12 Cancer Society, the Silver Cross Hospital Foundation Board, the
13 American Legion, and the Frankfort Lions Club; he was a member
14 and former Chairman of the Support Committee for the Abraham
15 Lincoln National Cemetery; he was a former member of the Board
16 of Directors of Joliet Junior College Foundation; he also
17 served as Chairman of the Housing Foundation of Will County, an
18 organization that served the homeless and those in need of
19 affordable housing; and
 
20     WHEREAS, George Sangmeister received many awards and
21 accolades in recognition of his public service; he was the
22 recipient of the Alumnus of the Year Award from Elmhurst

 

 

SR0387 - 3 - LRB095 13998 GRL 39835 r

1 College and the Distinguished Alumnus Award from John Marshall
2 Law School; he also received the Alumnus Achievement Award from
3 Joliet Junior College and the Distinguished Service Award from
4 the Will County Educational Service Region; he was named in
5 Who's Who in the Midwest; he was the chairman of the committee
6 that planned the transfer of the Joliet Arsenal from military
7 to civilian use and personally designated the committee to
8 allocate almost 1,000 acres as the site for the Abraham Lincoln
9 National Cemetery; in 1993, he was conferred with the Degree of
10 Doctorate of Humanities, Honoris, Causa, by Lewis University;
11 in 1994, he received a Doctorate of Law from Elmhurst College;
12 in 1998, a Medal of Excellence was created in his honor by
13 Silver Cross Hospital; and
 
14     WHEREAS, George Sangmeister is survived by his wife, Doris
15 M. (nee Hinspeter); his children, George Kurt (Gina)
16 Sangmeister and Kimberly Ann (Chris) Puckett; his
17 grandchildren, Jordan, Cole, Keegan, and Kinzie; and his
18 numerous cousins; and
 
19     WHEREAS, George Sangmeister will be remembered by all who
20 knew and loved him as a true statesman who effectively combined
21 cordiality with directness in a way that enabled him to stay
22 true to his positions without alienating his constituents or
23 his political foes; therefore, be it
 

 

 

SR0387 - 4 - LRB095 13998 GRL 39835 r

1     RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL
2 ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn, along with
3 his family and friends, the passing of George Sangmeister; and
4 be it further
 
5     RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
6 presented to the family of George Sangmeister as an expression
7 of our sympathy.