Full Text of HR0509 102nd General Assembly
HR0509 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
| | HR0509 | | LRB102 20852 LAW 29733 r |
|
| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | 3 | | Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of | 4 | | Frederick Walton "Fred" Allen of Peoria, who passed away on | 5 | | January 24, 2021; and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, Fred Allen was born to Frederick William Allen | 7 | | and Laura Josephine (Johnson) Allen in Ripon, Wisconsin on | 8 | | June 10, 1923; he graduated from Ripon High School in 1941; he | 9 | | attended Ripon College until he voluntarily enlisted in the | 10 | | U.S. Army Air Force on December 7, 1942, where he learned to | 11 | | fly a B-29 bomber, received his pilot's license at Moody Field | 12 | | in Valdosta, Georgia on August 5, 1944, and completed his | 13 | | training as a second lieutenant; following his military | 14 | | service, he signed as a contract pitcher with the Papermakers | 15 | | of Appleton, Wisconsin, a minor league affiliate of the | 16 | | Cleveland Indians; he attended law school at Northwestern | 17 | | University; he was admitted to the Illinois State Bar in 1949; | 18 | | he married Tilley Derges at the First Methodist Church of | 19 | | Peoria on July 26, 1952, and she preceded him in death on | 20 | | October 20, 2018; and
| 21 | | WHEREAS, Fred Allen had a long and distinguished career as | 22 | | a plaintiff's attorney; he first worked at the law firm of | 23 | | Louis Knobloch in Peoria; he became the first downstate |
| | | HR0509 | - 2 - | LRB102 20852 LAW 29733 r |
|
| 1 | | Illinois lawyer to win a $1 million award for a client after a | 2 | | jury verdict against the Ford Motor Company in 1974, which | 3 | | earned him a membership in the Inner Circle of Advocates, an | 4 | | elite national group limited to plaintiff's attorneys who had | 5 | | won seven figure awards; he built his own law firm as a | 6 | | self-made businessman; he personally funded each case, hired | 7 | | experts, and regularly made time for pro bono legal work; he | 8 | | had a reputation for taking cases to trial by jury instead of | 9 | | settling for less, always seeking the best result for his | 10 | | clients; he earned the admiration of other attorneys for his | 11 | | work ethic and was known to be humble, generous, and exact in | 12 | | his actions; and
| 13 | | WHEREAS, Fred Allen was very active in many state, | 14 | | national, and international legal organizations; he was a | 15 | | fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, the | 16 | | International Society of Barristers, the International Academy | 17 | | of Trial Lawyers, and the Illinois Bar Foundation; he was a | 18 | | member of the Board of Governors of the Association of Trial | 19 | | Lawyers of America; he also played prominent roles in many | 20 | | Illinois legal groups, including as president of the Illinois | 21 | | Trial Lawyers Association from 1974 to 1975, the Peoria County | 22 | | Bar Association from 1979 to 1980, and the Society of Trial | 23 | | Lawyers of Illinois from 1983 to 1984; he was active in the | 24 | | Illinois State Bar Association for more than 50 years; and
|
| | | HR0509 | - 3 - | LRB102 20852 LAW 29733 r |
|
| 1 | | WHEREAS, Fred Allen remained a loyal member of the | 2 | | Democratic Party his entire life; he ran unsuccessfully for | 3 | | Congress against Bob Michel in 1956; he served as the 18th | 4 | | Congressional District State Central Committeeman for eight | 5 | | years, and he met several notable individuals, including | 6 | | President John F. Kennedy and President Lyndon Johnson; and
| 7 | | WHEREAS, Fred Allen belonged to a number of organizations, | 8 | | including the American Legion, the First United Methodist | 9 | | Church of Peoria, the Union League Club of Chicago, the | 10 | | Springs Country Club of Rancho Mirage, California, the Old | 11 | | Baldy Club of Saratoga, Wyoming, and Mascoutin Golf Club of | 12 | | Berlin, Wisconsin; he was a member of the Elks Club for more | 13 | | than 70 years; he served as president of the Country Club of | 14 | | Peoria; and
| 15 | | WHEREAS, Fred Allen was known for his love and devotion to | 16 | | his wife; alongside her, he enjoyed traveling the world, | 17 | | attending professional meetings, touring sites, golfing, and | 18 | | making lifelong friends; he remained a devoted baseball fan, | 19 | | especially supporting the Chicago Cubs; he loved golf and had | 20 | | hundreds of friendships at country clubs across the U.S.; and
| 21 | | WHEREAS, Fred Allen enjoyed spending time with his | 22 | | daughters, his grandchildren, his great-grandchildren, and | 23 | | their families; his love and pride for them was boundless; he |
| | | HR0509 | - 4 - | LRB102 20852 LAW 29733 r |
|
| 1 | | will be remembered for being a confident, self-made man who | 2 | | answered others with honesty; and
| 3 | | WHEREAS, Fred Allen was preceded in death by his parents; | 4 | | his wife of 66 years, Tilley (Derges) Allen; his daughter, | 5 | | Laura Allen Curfman; and his sister, Jane (Allen) Waters; and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, At the time of his passing, Fred Allen was | 7 | | survived by his daughters, Diane (Doug) Allen Cullinan | 8 | | Oberhelman and Rita Allen Graves; his grandchildren, Kathleen | 9 | | Cullinan (Tyson) Brill, Maureen Cullinan (Christopher) | 10 | | Bennett, Alison Cullinan (Matt) Unkovich, Allen (Laura) | 11 | | Cullinan, Crystal Curfman (Coby) Shaw, Colette Curfman, and | 12 | | Whitney Graves; and his 13 great-grandchildren with another | 13 | | expected shortly; therefore, be it
| 14 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | 15 | | HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | 16 | | we mourn the passing of Frederick Walton "Fred" Allen and | 17 | | extend our sincere condolences to his family, friends, and all | 18 | | who knew and loved him; and be it further
| 19 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 20 | | presented to the family of Fred Allen as an expression of our | 21 | | deepest sympathy.
|
|