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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2     WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3 Representatives are pleased to congratulate Ross J. Centanni on
4 the occasion of being inducted into the Quincy Area Chamber of
5 Commerce's Business Hall of Fame; and
 
6     WHEREAS, The Quincy Area Chamber of Commerce's Business
7 Hall of Fame was begun in 2006 to celebrate the rich history
8 and accomplishments of the Quincy area business community; and
 
9     WHEREAS, Ross Centanni holds a bachelor's degree in
10 industrial technology and a master's degree in business
11 administration from Louisiana State University; and
 
12     WHEREAS, Ross Centanni has guided the strategic direction
13 of Gardner Denver since joining as Director of Sales and
14 Marketing in 1985 from the corporate headquarters of its former
15 parent company, Cooper Industries, Inc.; in 1990, Mr. Centanni
16 was appointed to serve as Vice President and General Manager of
17 the division that was to become Gardner Denver in 1993; Mr.
18 Centanni served as the President and Chief Executive Officer of
19 the company from 1993 until 2008 and as the Chairman of the
20 company's Board of Directors from 1998 until 2008; and
 
21     WHEREAS, Under Ross Centanni's leadership, Gardner Denver,

 

 

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1 Inc. has acquired multiple complementary companies, gained
2 major product lines, and added Drum blowers and Emco Wheaton
3 bulk storage and fluid transfer equipment, which have greatly
4 increased Gardner Denver's annual revenues, broadened its
5 global presence, and helped diversify the end markets it
6 serves; and
 
7     WHEREAS, Under the guidance of Ross Centanni, Gardner
8 Denver moved from FORBES magazine's list of the 200 Best Small
9 Companies in America, to the 100 Best Mid-Cap Companies to
10 twice on the 100 Fastest Growing Companies and, most recently,
11 to two designations on The 400 Best Big Companies in America;
12 in 2006, Dow Jones & Company designated Gardner Denver as one
13 of its highest rated stocks and the company was referred to in
14 the "SmartMoney Stock Screen" of the Wall Street Journal;
15 DeMarche Associates, Inc., one of the leading investment
16 research firms in the nation, also recognized Gardner Denver as
17 being one of the 100 best companies in the United States,
18 putting it within the top 3 percent of all major U.S.
19 corporations; and
 
20     WHEREAS, Ross Centanni is active in the Petroleum Equipment
21 Suppliers Association and the International Compressed Air and
22 Allied Machinery Committee; he has served on the Board of
23 Directors for the Great River Economic Development Foundation
24 and Quincy University, among others, and he encouraged Quincy

 

 

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1 University in the development of its MBA Program; he currently
2 serves as a director of Denman Services; and
 
3     WHEREAS, Ross Centanni was selected as a finalist in Ernst &
4 Young's 1998 Entrepreneur of the Year Program, a measure of
5 his acute business acumen; therefore, be it
 
6     RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
7 NINETY-SIXTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we
8 congratulate Ross J. Centanni on the occasion of being inducted
9 into the Quincy Area Chamber of Commerce's Business Hall of
10 Fame and wish him continued success and happiness in the
11 future; and be it further
 
12     RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
13 presented to Ross Centanni as a symbol of our esteem and
14 respect.