SR1384 100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR1384 LRB100 20348 MST 35636 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to learn of the death of Richard M. "Dick" Jaffee; and

WHEREAS, Richard Jaffee graduated from the University of Wisconsin School of Business in 1957; he received honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from the Illinois Institute of Technology in 2001 and Rush University in 2013; and

WHEREAS, Richard Jaffee earned his CPA certificate from the State of Illinois in 1957 and briefly worked in public accounting for the firm of Deloitte & Touche; in 1958, after serving as an officer in the United States Army, he joined the Oil-Dri Corporation of America; he assumed the role of president from his father and company founder, Nick Jaffee, in 1960, and became chief executive officer in 1962; under his stewardship, the company became a worldwide leader in the manufacturing of clay products, employing 800 people; he retired in 2001 but continued to serve as chairman of the board until his passing; and

WHEREAS, From 2008 to 2013, Richard Jaffee served as chairman of the board of trustees of Rush University Medical Center and chairman of its executive committee; he chaired Rush's largest-ever capital campaign, ultimately raising over $389 million; his legacy remains forever memorialized by the new Rush University Center hospital dedicated in 2012; he was a life trustee of the Illinois Institute of Technology, the Museum of Science and Industry, and the Chicago History Museum; he served on an SEC advisory committee on smaller public companies and on an advisory committee to the Chicago Federal Reserve; he also served as a director of Harris Bank until 2006; and

WHEREAS, Richard Jaffee was inducted into the Chicago Business Hall of Fame and received the Making History Award; and

WHEREAS, Richard Jaffee was known to invest in the personal stories of everyone around him, from cab drivers to the valets at Rush; he loved to help people, usually by connecting them to someone who could be of further assistance; and

WHEREAS, Richard Jaffee was the beloved husband of the late Shirley Handmaker Jaffee to whom he was married for 60 years; the loving father of Susan (David), Karen (Thomas), Nancy (William), and Daniel (Heidi); the grandfather of Jennifer, Michael, Kevin (Rebecca), Jimmy, Coley, Becca, Camille, Jeffrey, Taylor, Elise, Claire, Joey, Jaqueline, and Nathaniel; and loving brother to Robert (Phyllis); therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDREDTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of Richard M. "Dick" Jaffee, and extend our sincere condolences to his family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the family of Richard Jaffee as an expression of our deepest sympathy.