Full Text of SR0219 101st General Assembly
SR0219 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | SENATE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to | 3 | | learn of the death of Morris Littlefield "Morry" Hecker Jr. of | 4 | | Champaign, who passed away on March 3, 2019; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, Morry Hecker was born to Morris L. and Bess Stipes | 6 | | Hecker on July 20, 1922; he attended Champaign public schools | 7 | | and entered the University of Illinois in the fall of 1940; he | 8 | | enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1942 and served in World War II; | 9 | | he attended Officer Training School at the University of | 10 | | Pennsylvania and Midshipman School at Northwestern | 11 | | University's Abbott Hall, Chicago Campus; he tested Higgins | 12 | | Boats on Lake Ponchartrain in New Orleans while awaiting | 13 | | deployment on a Landing Ship Tank (LST); he served in the | 14 | | Pacific theater and experienced a number of enemy bombings; and
| 15 | | WHEREAS, After the war, Morry Hecker finished his education | 16 | | at the University of Illinois and graduated from Harvard | 17 | | University's Business School in 1948 with a Master of Business | 18 | | Administration; he returned to Champaign to work with his | 19 | | cousin at Stipes Publishing, which is still operating today; | 20 | | and | 21 | | WHEREAS, Morry Hecker married Martha Zearing in 1950; and |
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, Morry Hecker was part of numerous church, civic, | 2 | | and community organizations; his board of director positions | 3 | | included 1st United Methodist Church of Champaign, the | 4 | | Champaign Rotary, the Champaign Public Library, the Champaign | 5 | | Chamber of Commerce, and The Salvation Army; he was active in | 6 | | the alumni organization for his college fraternity, Delta Tau | 7 | | Delta; he was also a member of the WILL-TV Citizen Advisory | 8 | | Board, the Krannert Marquee Council, the U of I President's | 9 | | Club, and the Carle Foundation; and | 10 | | WHEREAS, Morry Hecker was known for his quick wit, humor, | 11 | | and sarcasm; he enjoyed traveling with Martha and his family to | 12 | | the shores of Michigan, the rest of the United States, the Holy | 13 | | Lands, Western and Eastern Europe, South America, Africa, the | 14 | | Greek Isles, Turkey, Great Britain, and other locations; in the | 15 | | summer of 1948, he visited his childhood friend, Bob Simon, in | 16 | | France, where Bob was a foreign correspondent for Time | 17 | | Magazine; and | 18 | | WHEREAS, In 2012, Morry Hecker and his children immensely | 19 | | enjoyed an Honor Flight to Washington, D.C. with other central | 20 | | Illinois veterans; and | 21 | | WHEREAS, Morry Hecker's granddaughter, Grace, lived with | 22 | | him for four years and was often seen driving him to | 23 | | appointments, the grocery store, and out to dinner, which was a |
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| 1 | | great source of social activity in his latter years; and
| 2 | | WHEREAS, Morry Hecker enjoyed his coffee circle in downtown | 3 | | Champaign, Rotary lunches, fishing trips with his sons and | 4 | | grandsons, Krannert Performing Arts Center productions, word | 5 | | games, puzzles, bridge, and watching Jeopardy and The Golden | 6 | | Girls; he was an avid fan of the University of Illinois | 7 | | football and basketball teams; and
| 8 | | WHEREAS, Morry Hecker was preceded in death by his wife of | 9 | | almost 57 years, Martha; his parents; and his siblings, John, | 10 | | Helen, and James; and
| 11 | | WHEREAS, Morry Hecker is survived by his children and their | 12 | | families, John and Barbara Hecker and their children, Meredith | 13 | | Garreau (Scott) and Joseph, and Mary and Terry MacRae and their | 14 | | children, Grace and Camille; therefore, be it
| 15 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL | 16 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of | 17 | | Morris Littlefield "Morry" Hecker Jr. and extend our sincere | 18 | | condolences to his family, friends, and all who knew and loved | 19 | | him; and be it further
| 20 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 21 | | presented to the family of Morry Hecker as an expression of our |
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| 1 | | deepest sympathy.
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