Full Text of HR1489 95th General Assembly
HR1489 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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| HOUSE RESOLUTION
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| WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | 3 |
| Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of
Ronald | 4 |
| Burton Watkins, noted author, entrepreneur, and economic | 5 |
| development consultant; and
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| WHEREAS, Ron Watkins began his entrepreneurial career in | 7 |
| 1965, when he opened Mr. Lucky's Jazz Club on the south side of | 8 |
| Chicago, featuring some of Chicago's best jazz artists; in | 9 |
| 1968, he founded Expressions In Black, an entertainment and | 10 |
| speaker's bureau presenting African American artists and | 11 |
| lecturers on college campuses throughout the United States; and
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| WHEREAS, In 1975, Ron Watkins founded and served as | 13 |
| Chairman of The Chicago Association of Audio Visual Producers; | 14 |
| In 1977, he joined the staff of the Illinois Department of | 15 |
| Economic Development as the first African American to be | 16 |
| employed by the state as an Industrial Development Consultant; | 17 |
| and
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| WHEREAS, In 1979, Ron Watkins was appointed by the governor | 19 |
| as the Director of Minority Business Enterprise for the State | 20 |
| of Illinois; during his tenure, he initiated the state's first | 21 |
| Minority Export Assistance Program and organized trade | 22 |
| missions to Haiti, Jamaica, and the Bahamas; he served in this |
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| position until 1984, when he resigned to pursue his interests | 2 |
| in international trade; and
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| WHEREAS, In 1989, Ron Watkins moved to Liberia in western | 4 |
| Africa and established The Sub-Saharan Gold and Diamond Fund, | 5 |
| an offshore trading company involved in gold brokerage and | 6 |
| import of machinery and equipment used by gold and diamond | 7 |
| miners in Liberia; and
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| WHEREAS, In 1992, Ron Watkins founded The Heritage | 9 |
| International Trade Association, a not for profit membership | 10 |
| organization providing technical assistance and consultant | 11 |
| services to small businesses interested in global trade; and
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| WHEREAS, In 1994, Ron Watkins completed and published his | 13 |
| first book, "Doing Business In Africa, Myths and Realities"; | 14 |
| from 1995 to 2001, he wrote a monthly column, "Thinking | 15 |
| Globally", for Afrique Newsmagazine in Chicago; and
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| WHEREAS, In 2000, Ron Watkins founded The African Trade | 17 |
| Center Association with a $200,000 research grant from the | 18 |
| State of Illinois to conduct a feasibility study on | 19 |
| establishing an African Trade Center in Chicago; and
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| WHEREAS, In 2006, Ron Watkins completed the manuscript for | 21 |
| his second book, "Cooperative Economics, A Global Vision for |
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| Black Economic Development"; in the same year, he founded and | 2 |
| served as the president of the Liberian-American Center for | 3 |
| Trade & Development; and | 4 |
| WHEREAS, Ron Watkins was featured in Crain's Chicago | 5 |
| Business, The Chicago Tribune, The Network Journal Magazine, | 6 |
| The Weekly Standard, The Chicago Defender, and The Wall Street | 7 |
| Journal and appeared on several local radio and television talk | 8 |
| shows; he also taught International Business in the Chicago | 9 |
| City College system and organized several trade missions and | 10 |
| seminars on trade and investment with Africa and the Caribbean; | 11 |
| and
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| WHEREAS, Ron was preceded in death by his father, George | 13 |
| (Cookie) Watkins, and his mother, Louise Watkins; and | 14 |
| WHEREAS, Ron Watkins is survived by his children, Ronald | 15 |
| (Suzan) Harris, Pamela Williams, Burton (Anita) Amos, and | 16 |
| Sheila Watkins; his sisters, Rodena Jackson and Shazzada | 17 |
| Wilkens; his brother, Kenyatta Watkins; his nephews, Alvin | 18 |
| Jackson, Jr. and Antonio Jones, Jr.; his fifteen grandchildren | 19 |
| and fifteen great-grandchildren; and a host of friends that he | 20 |
| considered family; therefore, be it
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| RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | 22 |
| NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we |
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| mourn, along with his family and friends, the passing of Ronald | 2 |
| Burton Watkins; and be it further
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| RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 4 |
| presented to the family of Ron Watkins as an expression of our | 5 |
| sympathy.
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