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92_HR0031
LRB9205016RHrh
1 HOUSE RESOLUTION
2 WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3 Representatives honor former members and public officials on
4 milestone events; and
5 WHEREAS, DeKalb County Circuit Judge John W. Countryman
6 is retiring from a career of public service to pursue his
7 interests and dedicate more time to travel and his family;
8 and
9 WHEREAS, John W. Countryman was born in DeKalb County in
10 1945, the son of a prominent lawyer and State's Attorney, and
11 has lived in DeKalb County his entire life; and
12 WHEREAS, John W. Countryman earned his bachelor's degree
13 from Northern Illinois University in 1967; and his Juris
14 Doctorate, with distinction, from IIT Chicago-Kent College of
15 Law in 1970; he was admitted to the Illinois Bar in 1970; and
16 WHEREAS, John W. Countryman has served the people of the
17 State of Illinois in all three branches of government over
18 the years including having served as a member and chairman of
19 the State Board of Elections, a member of the Illinois
20 General Assembly; and as the presiding Circuit Judge in the
21 Sixteenth Judicial Circuit; and
22 WHEREAS, John W. Countryman was a member of the State
23 Board of Elections for five years serving as Vice-Chairman
24 and Chairman; and
25 WHEREAS, John W. Countryman as a legislator serving the
26 76th legislative district from 1983 until 1990 helped make
27 improvements in the civil justice system, including enhancing
28 the rights and protections afforded to participants in the
29 criminal courts of our State; he sponsored many bills which
30 became law benefiting Northern Illinois University and the
31 entire 76th District of Illinois, and he served on many
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1 committees including Higher Education, Elections, Joint
2 Committee on Administrative Rules as Co-Chairman and
3 Judiciary as Minority Spokesman; and
4 WHEREAS, John W. Countryman engaged in private law
5 practice from 1970 through 1990, including practice in the
6 State and Federal Courts, in addition, he was active in trial
7 practice during those years; and
8 WHEREAS, John W. Countryman has served as presiding Judge
9 in the courts of DeKalb County for more than ten years, where
10 he has rendered many important decisions affecting the well
11 being of many Illinois residents, and decisions which have
12 been affirmed by the Illinois Appellate and Supreme Courts,
13 as proper interpretations of the Illinois Statutes and the
14 Illinois Constitution; and
15 WHEREAS, John W. Countryman has served in many other
16 public positions throughout the years including Public
17 Defender of DeKalb County, Adjunct Professor at Northern
18 Illinois University College of Law, a member and President of
19 the Kishwaukee Sunrise Rotary Club, Kishwaukee YMCA Board of
20 Directors and Past President, Chairman of the International
21 Council on Governmental Ethics laws, and as President of the
22 DeKalb County Bar Association; and
23 WHEREAS, John W. Countryman has received many honors and
24 awards over the years which include the Bud Geigle Award for
25 service to Northern Illinois University in 1990, and the
26 Northern Illinois University Foundation Humanitarian Award
27 for service to Higher Education in 1997, and legislative
28 service awards from the Illinois Agriculture Association,
29 Illinois Public Defender Association and the DeKalb County
30 Board of Realtors during his tenure in the Illinois House;
31 and
32 WHEREAS, John W. Countryman and his wife Cheryl, to whom
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1 he has been a devoted husband for more than thirty-three
2 years, reside in DeKalb where they successfully raised their
3 three children Julia, Amy, and Jeffrey, to whom he has been a
4 supporting father and role model; and
5 WHEREAS, John W. Countryman is a long-suffering fan of
6 the Chicago Cubs baseball team, having spent many an
7 afternoon dreaming of the first time in his life that he will
8 see the National League pennant flying over Wrigley Field;
9 therefore, be it
10 RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
11 NINETY-SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
12 we honor the service of DeKalb County Circuit Judge and
13 former member of the Illinois House of Representatives, John
14 W. Countryman, and wish him well in all of his future
15 endeavors; and be it further
16 RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
17 presented to John W. Countryman as an expression of our
18 esteem.