Full Text of SJR0037 103rd General Assembly
SJ0037 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, It is highly fitting that the Illinois General | 3 | | Assembly pays honor and respect to those who have made a | 4 | | difference in their community and the State of Illinois; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, Don Welge of Chester passed away on April 16, | 6 | | 2020; and
| 7 | | WHEREAS, Don Welge was born to William H. and Rudelle F. | 8 | | (Fritze) Welge in St. Louis, Missouri on July 11, 1935; he | 9 | | married Mary Alice Childers at St. John Lutheran Church in | 10 | | Chester on August 4, 1962; he served in the U.S. Army; and
| 11 | | WHEREAS, Don Welge and his family created the Gilster-Mary | 12 | | Lee Corporation, one of the largest independent food | 13 | | processing companies in the United States, establishing food | 14 | | processing plants on both sides of the Mississippi River and | 15 | | providing hundreds of good jobs in production, warehousing, | 16 | | and delivery truck driving; and
| 17 | | WHEREAS, Don Welge served as an adviser for the School of | 18 | | Business at Southern Illinois University of Carbondale and | 19 | | Southeast Missouri State University in Cape Girardeau; he was | 20 | | also an active Louisiana State University alumnus with the | 21 | | School of Agriculture; and
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, Don Welge established a reputation as a supporter | 2 | | of economic development, serving as a member of the chambers | 3 | | of commerce in Chester and Steeleville, both in Illinois, and | 4 | | Perryville, Missouri; he was also a director for the Buena | 5 | | Vista National Bank; and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, Don Welge was a member of St. John Lutheran | 7 | | Church in Chester; he passionately supported the Boy Scouts | 8 | | for more than 40 years and previously served as council | 9 | | president; he served as master of ceremonies for the Fourth of | 10 | | July celebration held on Kaskaskia Island for many years; and
| 11 | | WHEREAS, Don Welge was preceded in death by his parents; | 12 | | his brother, Bruce Welge; and his brother-in-law, Wib Saak; | 13 | | and
| 14 | | WHEREAS, At the time of his passing, Don Welge was | 15 | | survived by his wife, Mary Alice Welge; his sons, Robert | 16 | | (Paige) Welge and Thomas (Tracy) Welge; his brother, Mike | 17 | | (Betty) Welge; his sister-in-law, Julia Saak; his | 18 | | grandchildren, Austin Welge, Lauren Welge, Jackson Welge, and | 19 | | William Welge; and his many nieces, nephews, cousins, and | 20 | | friends; and
| 21 | | WHEREAS, Don Welge worked hard to gain support for the |
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| 1 | | building of a new bridge over the Mississippi River to connect | 2 | | Illinois and Missouri; and
| 3 | | WHEREAS, The Chester Bridge has two 11-foot lanes and | 4 | | carries 7,000 vehicles per day, connecting the cities of | 5 | | Chester and Perryville, Missouri across the Mississippi River | 6 | | along Illinois Route 150 and Missouri Route 51; and
| 7 | | WHEREAS, Plans are underway by the Illinois Department of | 8 | | Transportation and the Missouri Department of Transportation | 9 | | to replace the Chester Bridge; and
| 10 | | WHEREAS, Randolph County of Illinois, the Community | 11 | | Foundation of Randolph County, Perry County of Missouri, and | 12 | | the City of Perryville, Missouri have adopted resolutions | 13 | | supporting naming the new Chester Bridge in honor of Don | 14 | | Welge; therefore, be it
| 15 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL | 16 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE HOUSE OF | 17 | | REPRESENTATIVES CONCURRING HEREIN, that we designate the new | 18 | | Chester Bridge over the Mississippi River along Illinois Route | 19 | | 150 and Missouri Route 51 as the "Don Welge Memorial Bridge"; | 20 | | and be it further
| 21 | | RESOLVED, That the Illinois Department of Transportation |
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| 1 | | is requested to erect at suitable locations, consistent with | 2 | | State and federal regulations, appropriate plaques or signs | 3 | | giving notice of the name the "Don Welge Memorial Bridge"; and | 4 | | be it further
| 5 | | RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be | 6 | | presented to the family of Don Welge, Randolph County of | 7 | | Illinois, the Community Foundation of Randolph County, Perry | 8 | | County of Missouri, the City of Perryville, Missouri, the | 9 | | Secretary of the Illinois Department of Transportation, and | 10 | | the Secretary of the Missouri Department of Transportation.
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