Full Text of HR0984 95th General Assembly
HR0984 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 former | 4 |
| Illinois State Senator Adeline Geo-Karis of Zion, who passed | 5 |
| away on February 10, 2008; and
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| WHEREAS, Adeline Geo-Karis was born on March 29, 1918 in | 7 |
| Tegeas, Greece; she came to the United States at the age of | 8 |
| four; and
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| WHEREAS, Adeline Geo-Karis graduated from Austin High | 10 |
| School in 1936 and from Herzl Junior College two years later; | 11 |
| she went on to attend Northwestern University before receiving | 12 |
| her L.L.B. from DePaul University; and
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| WHEREAS, Adeline Geo-Karis worked hard throughout her | 14 |
| career to serve the public with dignity and integrity; she | 15 |
| served the citizens of Lake County in the Illinois General | 16 |
| Assembly for 34 years, where she gained a sterling reputation | 17 |
| as an efficient and dedicated lawmaker; she also served as a | 18 |
| lieutenant commander in the United States Naval Reserves, as an | 19 |
| Assistant State's Attorney, as a Justice of the Peace, and as | 20 |
| the Mayor of Zion; and
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| WHEREAS, Adeline Geo-Karis was the first woman ever to be |
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| appointed to the position of Assistant State's Attorney in Lake | 2 |
| County; she went on to become the first woman from Lake County | 3 |
| to be elected to the Illinois House of Representatives and the | 4 |
| Illinois Senate; and
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| WHEREAS, Adeline Geo-Karis was the first woman in Illinois | 6 |
| history to serve in the Senate Leadership, serving as Assistant | 7 |
| Senate Majority Leader from 1993 until 2003; and
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| WHEREAS, Adeline Geo-Karis was the Minority Spokesman and | 9 |
| Co-Chair for the Senate Executive Appointments Committee, one | 10 |
| of only two Republican Senators to serve as co-chairperson of a | 11 |
| committee in the 94th General Assembly; she also served as a | 12 |
| member of the Financial Institutions Committee and as chairman | 13 |
| of the Senate Republican Task Force on Veterans; and
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| WHEREAS, Adeline Geo-Karis was a strong advocate for | 15 |
| veterans; she served as Chairperson of the Senate Republican | 16 |
| Task Force on Veterans, where she tirelessly worked to protect | 17 |
| our men and women in the United States Armed Forces, an | 18 |
| expression of her intense patriotism; and
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| WHEREAS, Adeline Geo-Karis worked for her constituents in a | 20 |
| bipartisan manner to enact legislation for strong crime | 21 |
| control, veterans rights, senior citizens and children | 22 |
| protections, people with disabilities, and the working person; |
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| and | 2 |
| WHEREAS, Adeline Geo-Karis pioneered legislation on | 3 |
| gasohol, solar energy, and other alternative energy resources; | 4 |
| she was cited for her sponsorship of the Nuclear Safety | 5 |
| Preparedness Act, the Alternative Energy Act, and on many laws | 6 |
| which increased safety on Illinois lakes, among many others; | 7 |
| and
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| WHEREAS, Adeline Geo-Karis successfully sponsored and | 9 |
| supported many pieces of important crime-control legislation | 10 |
| and was a proud sponsor of the "Guilty but Mentally Ill" law; | 11 |
| and
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| WHEREAS, Adeline Geo-Karis was intensely committed and | 13 |
| supportive of the business communities, senior citizens, and | 14 |
| agriculture of this State; her work undoubtedly resulted in | 15 |
| better lives and more opportunities for many of her | 16 |
| constituents and the people of Illinois at large; and
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| WHEREAS, Adeline Geo-Karis was an avid supporter for | 18 |
| passage of the Equal Rights Amendment during the 1970s and | 19 |
| 1980s; and | 20 |
| WHEREAS, Adeline Geo-Karis was elected as a delegate to the | 21 |
| 1984, 1988, and 1996 National Republican Conventions and as |
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| secretary to the Illinois Delegation; she was also elected as | 2 |
| an Alternate Delegate to the 1992 National Republican | 3 |
| Convention; and
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| WHEREAS, Adeline Geo-Karis was the head of her own law firm | 5 |
| in Zion; she also served as a municipal attorney for Mundelein, | 6 |
| Vernon Hills, Libertyville Township, and Long Grove School | 7 |
| District, and was elected Justice of the Peace in Lake County | 8 |
| in 1949; and
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| WHEREAS, Adeline Geo-Karis was a member of St. Demetrios | 10 |
| Greek Orthodox Church in Waukegan and served as the past | 11 |
| president of the Parish Board of Trustees and Ladies Auxiliary; | 12 |
| and
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| WHEREAS, In honor of Adeline Geo-Karis' dedication to the | 14 |
| people of Illinois, the Illinois Beach State Park in Zion was | 15 |
| renamed the Adeline Jay Geo-Karis Illinois Beach State Park in | 16 |
| 2006; she was also the recipient of countless honors and awards | 17 |
| in recognition of her incredible work in government; and | 18 |
| WHEREAS, Adeline Geo-Karis was very proud of her American | 19 |
| citizenship, yet cherished her Greek heritage, working hard to | 20 |
| assist and support the Greek community throughout her public | 21 |
| career; and
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| WHEREAS, Adeline Geo-Karis was affectionately dubbed "Geo" | 2 |
| by her friends and colleagues in the General Assembly; she was | 3 |
| a beloved political icon known by the people of the State for | 4 |
| her intelligence, compassion, and gracious demeanor; and
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| WHEREAS, The loss of Adeline Geo-Karis will be felt | 6 |
| immensely by her former colleagues and constituents, who had | 7 |
| been so greatly served by this legendary legislator; therefore, | 8 |
| be it
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| RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | 10 |
| NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we | 11 |
| mourn the death of Adeline Geo-Karis and honor the life and | 12 |
| memory of this great legislator; and be it further
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| RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 14 |
| presented to the family of Adeline Geo-Karis as a symbol of our | 15 |
| utmost sympathy.
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