SR0491 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR0491 LRB094 13584 HSS 48449 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Senate of the State of Illinois learned with great sadness of the death of Rabbi Albert Milton Kanter on Saturday, July 23, 2005; and

WHEREAS, He was born on the West Side in 1929 and grew up during the Great Depression as the son of a tailor; he was in the first graduating class at Ida Crown Jewish Academy and earned a bachelor's degree in psychology at Roosevelt University; and

WHEREAS, Rabbi Kanter was ordained as a rabbi with a bachelor's degree in Hebrew literature at Hebrew Theological College in Skokie in 1955; he received a master's degree from the University of Chicago in 1956 and a doctorate there in 1969 in the combined academic fields of religion and personality theory; and

WHEREAS, In 1973, he became a practitioner of psychotherapy and went into practice full-time in 1980 with offices on North Michigan Avenue and in Skokie; he maintained a full patient load well into his 70s; in sermons, books, and as a psychotherapist, he used his skill as a gifted orator to inspire, enlighten, and heal; he was the founding rabbi of Skokie Valley Agudath Jacob Synagogue and a past president of the Chicago Board of Rabbis; and

WHEREAS, Started in 1955, the Skokie Valley Agudath Jacob Synagogue grew into a modern facility on East Prairie Road in Skokie with more than 1,500 members; he wrote a prayer book called "The Second Soul", another on psychotheology, and he translated biblical commentaries; he also wrote newspaper editorials, scholarly articles, and was at work on a novel titled "A Tale of Two Souls"; and

WHEREAS, In 1995, Rabbi Kanter endowed the William and Lillian Kanter School of Liberal Arts and Sciences, named for his parents, at the Hebrew Theological College; and

WHEREAS, The passing of Rabbi Albert Milton Kanter has been deeply felt by many, especially his wife of 51 years, Sara Lee; his sons, William, Keith, and Matthew; his daughter, Miriam; and his ten grandchildren; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of Rabbi Albert Milton Kanter, and we extend our deepest sympathy to his family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to his family as an expression of our sincerest condolences.