HR0361 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0361 LRB094 12147 CSA 45533 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives were saddened to learn of the death of William "Les" Brown of Chicago on April 11, 2005; and

WHEREAS, Mr. Brown was the founder of the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless, which he headed for over two decades; the coalition, founded in 1980, strived towards improving the lives of homeless and impoverished people throughout Chicago; and

WHEREAS, William "Les" Brown was born William Leslie Brown in 1940, in Tampa, Florida; he grew up on a small farm in Doraville, Georgia, where he developed his love for the outdoors; and

WHEREAS, He earned a bachelor's degree from Erskine College in South Carolina; he also received a master's degree in social work from Loyola University Chicago; in between receiving the two degrees, he enlisted in the Air Force and served as a medical corpsman in England; and

WHEREAS, He was the first president of the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless, later serving as its executive director; from 1990 until his death, he served as the coalition's director of policy; the coalition helped host the first national conference on homelessness in Chicago in 1983; and

WHEREAS, In 1984, he received a heart transplant at Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood; he was the hospital's longest surviving heart transplant recipient; and

WHEREAS, He was a founder and former president of the Illinois Coalition for the Homeless; he was also a founding board member of the newspaper, Streetwise, as well as a board member for other local and state groups advocating for improving the lives of the homeless; and

WHEREAS, Mr. Brown served as director of social work services for the Travelers and Immigrants Aid Society, which is now the Heartland Alliance; he also documented the growing number of homeless people living at the Greyhound bus terminal, Union Station, and O'Hare Airport; and

WHEREAS, His accomplishments include leading protests that led to low-income apartment units being established in the government-subsidized West Loop Presidential Towers complex; he utilized a federal law to successfully acquire lakefront land near Navy Pier; the land he acquired was originally to be used as gardens to provide work for homeless people, but was later exchanged for land on the South Side that became the "Growing Home" agriculture job training program; and

WHEREAS, He also helped acquire 10 acres of land in Marseilles that is currently farmed by homeless people from Chicago; and

WHEREAS, Mr. Brown is survived by his wife, Diana Leifer; his son, Jesse; his daughter, Mari Herreras-Zinman; his sister, Claudia Lewis; and his two grandchildren; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of William "Les" Brown along with all who knew and loved him and extend our sincere condolences to his family, friends, and community; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the family of William "Les" Brown as an expression of our deepest sympathy.