Full Text of HR0544 103rd General Assembly
HR0544 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY | | | HR0544 | | LRB103 36690 LAW 66800 r |
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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 John | 4 | | Willis Johnson, who passed away on December 18, 2023; and | 5 | | WHEREAS, John Johnson was born to Chester Johnson and | 6 | | Clorine McGilberry in Ellisville, Mississippi on February 10, | 7 | | 1944; he attended Roosevelt Elementary School in Ellis; after | 8 | | moving to St. Louis with his mother and siblings, he continued | 9 | | his education in the St. Louis public school system; he | 10 | | graduated from Soldan High School in 1964, where he lettered | 11 | | in basketball, tennis, and baseball; he briefly attended | 12 | | Culver Stockton College; he married Shirley Jean Smith on May | 13 | | 30, 1965; and | 14 | | WHEREAS, John Johnson worked at Mallinckrodt/Tyco/Covidien | 15 | | from April 1965 until his retirement in July 2010; and | 16 | | WHEREAS, John Johnson was a union advocate and held | 17 | | several positions during his career, including shop steward, | 18 | | vice president, and president of UAW Local 1887; he went to | 19 | | Washington, D.C. with Jim Wells, then-director of UAW Region | 20 | | 5, to testify before Congress on plant safety issues; and | 21 | | WHEREAS, John Johnson played basketball in both industrial |
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| 1 | | and independent leagues for more than 20 years; he then | 2 | | volunteered his services as assistant coach of the Beaumont | 3 | | High School Varsity Basketball Team alongside his friend Bob | 4 | | Cole, the program's head coach; and | 5 | | WHEREAS, John Johnson committed to his faith at an early | 6 | | age; he was baptized at Mount Aid Missionary Baptist Church, | 7 | | which was built by his grandfather, John, and other family | 8 | | members in 1885 and still has an active church community | 9 | | today; at Mount Aid, he was active in the Baptist Training | 10 | | Union and the Sunday School, where he served as superintendent | 11 | | as a pre-teen; he also attended Douglas Chapel AME, where his | 12 | | father served as a deacon; after moving to St. Louis, he became | 13 | | a member of Zion Temple Missionary Baptist Church; he and his | 14 | | wife established a membership at West Side Missionary Baptist | 15 | | Church; and | 16 | | WHEREAS, John Johnson's love for his family was vitally | 17 | | important to him, and he was an avid supporter and leader of | 18 | | the annual McGilberry Family Reunions from 1982 to 2023; and | 19 | | WHEREAS, John Johnson was preceded in death by his wife of | 20 | | 57 years, Shirley; his parents, Chester Johnson and Clorine | 21 | | McGilberry McCann; his sister, Shirley Keyes; his brothers, | 22 | | Teddy Johnson, Clarence McCann, and Gerald McCann; his | 23 | | in-laws, Leslie and Beulah M. Smith, Lester Smith, Laura |
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| 1 | | Trice, and Howard and Hurletta Davidson; and | 2 | | WHEREAS, John Johnson is survived by his sons, Anthony | 3 | | (Angelita) Johnson and Terrell Washington; his grandchildren, | 4 | | Ciara, Jameelah, and Khairi; his great-grandson Jourdyn; his | 5 | | aunt, Zemma Conner; his sisters, Fannie Simpson, Carolyn Reed, | 6 | | and Ruth (Charles) McGee; his brothers, George (Marian) | 7 | | McGilberry, Larry McCann, and James H. Johnson; his | 8 | | sister-in-law, Christine (Carl) Williams Jr.; his | 9 | | brother-in-law, Charles (Christy) Smith Sr.; and a host of | 10 | | nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends; therefore, be it | 11 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | 12 | | HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | 13 | | we mourn the passing of John Willis Johnson and extend our | 14 | | sincere condolences to his family, friends, and all who knew | 15 | | and loved him; and be it further | 16 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 17 | | presented to the family of John Johnson as an expression of our | 18 | | deepest sympathy. |
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