HR0341 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0341 LRB094 12041 CSA 45189 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Leon M. McNair is retiring from the Fox Bend Golf Course in Oswego after 38 years as its PGA Professional and Director of Golf; and

WHEREAS, Mr. McNair was born in Amsterdam, New York, on May 15, 1941, and grew up in Cooperstown, New York; when he was five years old, his parents took him to experience The Leatherstocking Golf Course located on Otsego Lake, and he goes back to that golf course to play in The Cooperstown Senior Open that benefits the Baseball Hall of Fame; and

WHEREAS, When he was seven, his family moved to Chicago and he participated in several sports during his school years; he graduated from Glenbard West High School in 1960 and attended Southern Illinois University, where he was a member of the golf team that won the 1964 NCAA Division II National Championship; in the summer of 1961, he worked for The Wadsworth Golf Course Construction Company, beginning a lifelong relationship with Brent Wadsworth; and

WHEREAS, By 1965, the dirt was being moved on the old Pearse Farm just east of Oswego on Route 34 to make way for the Fox Bend Golf Course; Mr. McNair was one of the crew that gave life to what would at first become a nine hole semi-private golf club; it was also in 1965 that he married his wife, Carole; and

WHEREAS, In 1966, while Mr. McNair was working on his master's degree in Industrial Recreation, Brent Wadsworth asked him to come to Fox Bend to be the Head Golf Professional; the golf course opened June 15, 1967 and, by 1969, it had 18 holes; and

WHEREAS, In March 1980, the Oswegoland and Fox Valley Park Districts purchased the Fox Bend Golf Club; and

WHEREAS, In 1977, Mr. McNair was a regional qualifier for the U.S. Open Championship; in 1978, he was a member of the Illinois PGA Radix Cup Team; in 1986, he qualified for the National PGA Club Professional Championship; and in 1995, he was a qualifier for the National PGA Senior Club Professional Championship; and

WHEREAS, He was the recipient of numerous awards; in 1992, he was named Illinois PGA Professional of the Year and was recognized as a Top 15 National PGA Merchandiser of the Year in Public Golf Course category; and

WHEREAS, Mr. McNair has served on the Illinois PGA Executive Committee and the National Advisory Board for the Oldsmobile (now Buick) Scramble, as an Illinois PGA Delegate to the National PGA Convention, as the Treasurer of the Illinois PGA, and as President of the Illinois PGA; he presently serves on the Illinois Golf Hall of Fame Selection Committee, is a member and the President of the Board of Directors of The First Tee Aurora Chapter, and serves on the Illinois PGA Foundation Board; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate Leon M. McNair on working in a profession he loved for 38 years and wish him much health and happiness throughout his retirement; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to Leon M. McNair as an expression of our admiration.