Full Text of HR0429 102nd General Assembly
HR0429 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | 3 | | Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of the | 4 | | Honorable Raymond Alan Bolden of Joliet, who passed away on | 5 | | August 17, 2021; and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, Judge Bolden was born in Chicago to Catherine | 7 | | Hester Ray and Adrian Bolden on December 17, 1933; he moved to | 8 | | Joliet as a teen and lived with his maternal grandfather, | 9 | | Edward "Papa" Ray; he graduated from Joliet Township High | 10 | | School in 1951 and Joliet Junior College in 1953; he served in | 11 | | the U.S. Air Force; he married Kathleen "Kat" Whitfield in | 12 | | 1956, and they raised three children together before she | 13 | | preceded him in death after 38 years of marriage; he earned his | 14 | | law degree from the University of Illinois in 1961; he married | 15 | | Deborah Hickman McLurkin in 1998; and
| 16 | | WHEREAS, Alongside his wife Kat, Judge Bolden was active | 17 | | in the Civil Rights Movement, and they battled ceaselessly | 18 | | against racial discrimination in housing, employment, and | 19 | | education; they partnered on numerous community projects, | 20 | | including the Warren-Sharpe Community Center, which they | 21 | | co-founded in 1990; he served as president of the Joliet | 22 | | Branch of the NAACP during the 1960s, and he later received the | 23 | | organization's Lifetime Achievement Award; and
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, Judge Bolden was a trailblazer for over 40 years; | 2 | | he served as the first Black assistant state's attorney of | 3 | | Will County; he became a renowned criminal defense lawyer; he | 4 | | was a brilliant legal strategist and a powerful speaker who | 5 | | believed that the law could be a great force for social justice | 6 | | and equality; he was appointed the Will County Associate Judge | 7 | | in 1986, a post he held with distinction for 14 years; | 8 | | following his retirement from the bench, he returned to | 9 | | practicing law; he was later reappointed as a circuit court | 10 | | judge for a one-year term; and
| 11 | | WHEREAS, Judge Bolden was a lifelong member of Sacred | 12 | | Heart Parish, where he served in various ministries; alongside | 13 | | his wife Deborah, he continued to serve the community through | 14 | | the National Hook-Up of Black Women and the Black Bar | 15 | | Association of Will County, which he co-founded in 2007; he | 16 | | was also a committed White Sox fan; and
| 17 | | WHEREAS, Judge Bolden was a warrior for justice known for | 18 | | always standing on the side of equality and championing for | 19 | | the weak and oppressed; the practice of law was his passion and | 20 | | the fulfillment of his dream, but his heart belonged to his | 21 | | family; his legacy will live on in those he loved and inspired; | 22 | | and
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, Judge Bolden was preceded in death by his | 2 | | grandfather; his parents; his brothers, Frank, Joseph, and | 3 | | Edward; and his sister, June Bolden; and
| 4 | | WHEREAS, Judge Bolden is survived by his wife of 23 years, | 5 | | Deborah Bolden; his children, Kathryn "Kay" Bolden, Alan Scott | 6 | | (Erika) Bolden, and Joseph "Joe" Bolden; his grandchildren, | 7 | | Shayla Grayson, Joshua Bolden, Jeremy (Katie) Bolden, Karyn | 8 | | (Dennis) Omogbeme, McKay Bolden, McKenzie Bolden, and Cameron | 9 | | Bolden; his great-grandchildren, Ashanti Govan, Kyla Bolden, | 10 | | Jacari Bolden, Isaiah Bolden, Harlie Jade Bolden, and Cree | 11 | | Bolden; his bonus children, Justin McLurkin and Kimberly | 12 | | (David) Wright; his bonus grandchildren, Cole Hughes, Elliott | 13 | | Wright, Emerson Wright, Caitlyn McLurkin, and Sydney McLurkin; | 14 | | his sister-in-law, Betty (Billy) Byrd, and the entire Byrd | 15 | | family; his niece, Linda (Eric) Washington; his nephew, Eugene | 16 | | "Geno" Bolden; his special cousins, Barbara "Penni" Williams | 17 | | and Sherri Tramel; and his countless friends and relatives; | 18 | | therefore, be it
| 19 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | 20 | | HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | 21 | | we mourn the passing of the Honorable Raymond Alan Bolden and | 22 | | extend our sincere condolences to his family, friends, and all | 23 | | who knew and loved him; and be it further
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| 1 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 2 | | presented to the family of Judge Bolden as an expression of our | 3 | | deepest sympathy.
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