[ Search ] [ PDF text ] [ Legislation ]
[ Home ] [ Back ] [ Bottom ]
92_SR0128
LRB9208668RHrhA
1 SENATE RESOLUTION
2 WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate wish to
3 express their sincere condolences to the family and friends
4 of Charlie Soo, who recently passed away; and
5 WHEREAS, Charlie Soo was known as "The Mayor of Argyle"
6 for his hard work and activism in the Asian American
7 community; Mr. Soo was the director of the Asian American
8 Small Businessman Association of Chicago from 1980 through
9 2001, where he worked on many needs of the community,
10 including licensing, special assessments, curbs and gutters,
11 and other items of concern; and
12 WHEREAS, Charlie Soo was born in Hawaii in 1945; he
13 received his undergraduate degree at the College of Emporia
14 in Kansas; he also attended the University of Illinois and
15 later earned a business administration degree from Roosevelt
16 University; Mr. Soo served on the Community Development
17 Advisory Committee and the Illinois Economic Development
18 Commission; and
19 WHEREAS, Mr. Soo served as director for Neighborhood
20 Redevelopment, Inc. from 1963 until 1965; from 1965 through
21 1970 he served as president of Far East Import-Export Company
22 and Chicago International; from 1970 through 1975 he served
23 as an appointee of Illinois Governor Kerner as a commissioner
24 for the first Illinois Economic Development Commission, where
25 he helped organize successful trade missions to the Far East
26 and Europe with the Governor and the State's business
27 leaders; and
28 WHEREAS From 1975 through 1980, Mr. Soo served as project
29 director and associate director of the Chicago Economic
30 Development Corporation (CEDCO), where he helped establish
31 technical assistance to minority firms and spurred economical
32 development in Chicago; and
-2- LRB9208668RHrhA
1 WHEREAS, Mr. Soo became a fixture on Argyle Street in the
2 late 1970s in the area known as New Chinatown; he worked to
3 have the Chicago Transit Authority invest in a $250,000
4 renovation of the new Chinatown station, which was decorated
5 with pagoda-style features and bright colors; and
6 WHEREAS, Mr. Soo arranged "Taste of Argyle" which was
7 attended by the late Mayor Harold Washington, Mayor Jane
8 Byrne, and current Mayor, Richard M. Daley; he worked to fill
9 empty buildings on the street and helped in community
10 policing efforts; and
11 WHEREAS, Mr. Soo served on numerous boards and
12 commissions, earning him countless awards and recognitions,
13 especially in the City of Chicago, including the Illinois
14 Economic Development Commission, the Chicago Transit
15 Authority Advisory Board, and the President of Truman College
16 Advisory Council; he served as a delegate to the White House
17 Conference on Small Business, and the Chicago School Board
18 Commission; he also served as a media committee member of the
19 Asian-American Coalition of Chicago Lunar New Year
20 Celebration for over 10 years; and
21 WHEREAS, The passing of the "Mayor of Argyle", Charlie
22 Soo, will be deeply felt by his many friends and the people
23 whose lives he touched; therefore, be it
24 RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-SECOND GENERAL
25 ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing
26 of Charlie Soo; and be it further
27 RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
28 presented to the Asian American Small Businessman Association
29 of Chicago in his honor.