SR0387 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR0387 LRB095 13998 GRL 39835 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to learn of the death of George E. Sangmeister of Mokena, who passed away on October 7, 2007; and

WHEREAS, George Sangmeister served in the United States Army during the Korean War; and

WHEREAS, George Sangmeister began his public career in 1961, serving as a Justice of the Peace and Magistrate of the Circuit Court in Will County; he served as State's Attorney in Will County from 1964 to 1968; and

WHEREAS, In 1972, George Sangmeister was elected to the Illinois State House of Representatives, where he served for two terms; he returned to Springfield as an Illinois State Senator, serving from 1976 until 1987; during his tenure in the Illinois State Senate, he served as both chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee and chairman of the Senate Executive Committee; and

WHEREAS, George Sangmeister was elected to the United States Congress in November of 1988 and was one of only eight new members to unseat an incumbent; he was re-elected to the House of Representatives in 1990 and again in 1992; as a congressman, he served on the Public Works and Transportation Committee, the Veteran's Affairs Committee, and the Judiciary Committee; he retired from Congress in January of 1995; and

WHEREAS, George Sangmeister was consistently endorsed for re-election by local and Chicago media outlets and was named one of the "Top Ten Legislators" in a 1985 poll conducted by the Chicago Sun-Times; and

WHEREAS, George Sangmeister was "Of Counsel" with the firm of McKeown, Fitzgerald, Zollner, Buck, Hutchison & Ruttle; and

WHEREAS, George Sangmeister was a member of many civic organizations, including the Frankfort Unit of the American Cancer Society, the Silver Cross Hospital Foundation Board, the American Legion, and the Frankfort Lions Club; he was a member and former Chairman of the Support Committee for the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery; he was a former member of the Board of Directors of Joliet Junior College Foundation; he also served as Chairman of the Housing Foundation of Will County, an organization that served the homeless and those in need of affordable housing; and

WHEREAS, George Sangmeister received many awards and accolades in recognition of his public service; he was the recipient of the Alumnus of the Year Award from Elmhurst College and the Distinguished Alumnus Award from John Marshall Law School; he also received the Alumnus Achievement Award from Joliet Junior College and the Distinguished Service Award from the Will County Educational Service Region; he was named in Who's Who in the Midwest; he was the chairman of the committee that planned the transfer of the Joliet Arsenal from military to civilian use and personally designated the committee to allocate almost 1,000 acres as the site for the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery; in 1993, he was conferred with the Degree of Doctorate of Humanities, Honoris, Causa, by Lewis University; in 1994, he received a Doctorate of Law from Elmhurst College; in 1998, a Medal of Excellence was created in his honor by Silver Cross Hospital; and

WHEREAS, George Sangmeister is survived by his wife, Doris M. (nee Hinspeter); his children, George Kurt (Gina) Sangmeister and Kimberly Ann (Chris) Puckett; his grandchildren, Jordan, Cole, Keegan, and Kinzie; and his numerous cousins; and

WHEREAS, George Sangmeister will be remembered by all who knew and loved him as a true statesman who effectively combined cordiality with directness in a way that enabled him to stay true to his positions without alienating his constituents or his political foes; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn, along with his family and friends, the passing of George Sangmeister; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the family of George Sangmeister as an expression of our sympathy.