Full Text of SR0265 102nd General Assembly
SR0265 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | SENATE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened | 3 | | to learn of the death of Bernarda "Bernie" Wong of Chicago, who | 4 | | passed away on April 27, 2021; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, Bernie Wong was born in Hong Kong to Jorge and | 6 | | Virginia Lo in 1943; she came to the U.S. at the age of 18; she | 7 | | obtained her Bachelor of Arts in Sociology at Briar Cliff | 8 | | College in Sioux City, Iowa in 1966; she earned her Master of | 9 | | Social Work from Washington University in St. Louis in 1968; | 10 | | she married Albert Yum-Chiu Wong in December 1968, and he | 11 | | preceded her in death on March 8, 2019; and
| 12 | | WHEREAS, Bernie Wong worked as a social worker in the | 13 | | Chicagoland area before she co-founded the Chinese American | 14 | | Service League (CASL) in 1978, a non-profit organization that | 15 | | has helped countless Chinese immigrants by providing social | 16 | | services and programs; she helped seniors, families, and | 17 | | undocumented immigrants by offering a number of services at | 18 | | CASL, including teaching English as a second language, job | 19 | | training, elder care, daycare, and early childhood education; | 20 | | she served as the president of CASL for decades before | 21 | | stepping down in 2016, but she continued serving as an advisor | 22 | | and a volunteer in retirement; and
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, As its first employee, Bernie Wong began the | 2 | | Chinese American Service League with a $16,000 budget, and she | 3 | | led CASL into becoming the largest and most prominent social | 4 | | service organization serving Asian Americans in the Midwest | 5 | | today, with more than 600 employees, hundreds of volunteers, | 6 | | and a budget of more than $34 million; among CASL's many | 7 | | achievements, she was especially proud of the development of | 8 | | the Albert and Bernie Wong Senior Living Community and the Kam | 9 | | L. Liu Community Service Center; through CASL, she | 10 | | strengthened Chinatown's community, which led to it becoming | 11 | | consolidated into one legislative district; she was also | 12 | | instrumental in the development of several attractions, | 13 | | including Chinatown Square and Ping Tom Memorial Park; and
| 14 | | WHEREAS, Bernie Wong's work went beyond the Chinese | 15 | | American Service League; she broke barriers in Chicago by | 16 | | becoming the first Asian American to be appointed to the | 17 | | boards of the United Way of Metropolitan Chicago and the | 18 | | Chicago Public Library; she was a founding board member of the | 19 | | National Asian Pacific Center on Aging (NAPCA) and the founder | 20 | | of Chinese Immigrant Services Agencies Network International | 21 | | (CISANI); she chaired Mayor Richard M. Daley's Advisory | 22 | | Council on Asian Affairs, and she served on the Asian Advisory | 23 | | Council for Governors Pat Quinn and Bruce Rauner; she belonged | 24 | | to the boards of the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and | 25 | | Refugee Rights (ICIRR) and Leadership Greater Chicago; she |
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| 1 | | also served as a council member of the Illinois Department on | 2 | | Aging; and
| 3 | | WHEREAS, Bernie Wong was recognized and honored by a | 4 | | number of organizations, mayors, governors, and presidents for | 5 | | her service and work, and her awards included the Community | 6 | | Organizer Trailblazer Award from the Rainbow/Push Coalition, | 7 | | the Distinguished Alumni Award from both Briar Cliff College | 8 | | and Washington University in St. Louis, the Edward J. Williams | 9 | | Community Leadership Award from Harris Bank, the Distinguished | 10 | | Community Leader award from then-Mayor Richard Daley, and the | 11 | | Champions of Change award by then-President Barack Obama in | 12 | | March 2012; and
| 13 | | WHEREAS, Bernie Wong was active in St. Therese Chinese | 14 | | Catholic Church, where she sang in the choir; and
| 15 | | WHEREAS, Bernie Wong was a trailblazing pioneer and a | 16 | | champion of social justice who dedicated her life to serving | 17 | | immigrants; her legacy will live on in the mission of the | 18 | | Chinese American Service League; and
| 19 | | WHEREAS, Bernie Wong is survived by her daughter, Jacinta | 20 | | Wong, and her grandchildren, Tiana and Matthew; therefore, be | 21 | | it
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| 1 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL | 2 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of | 3 | | Bernarda "Bernie" Wong and extend our sincere condolences to | 4 | | her family, friends, and all who knew and loved her; and be it | 5 | | further
| 6 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 7 | | presented to the family of Bernie Wong as an expression of our | 8 | | deepest sympathy.
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