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| 1 | SENATE RESOLUTION | ||||||
| 2 | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened | ||||||
| 3 | to learn of the death of Jerry "Iceman" Butler, who passed away | ||||||
| 4 | on February 20, 2025; and | ||||||
| 5 | WHEREAS, Jerry Butler's sharecropper parents moved his | ||||||
| 6 | family from Mississippi to Chicago in 1942 when he was three | ||||||
| 7 | years old; he grew up in what became the Cabrini-Green housing | ||||||
| 8 | development on Chicago's Near North Side; he attended James A. | ||||||
| 9 | Sexton School; he studied to be a chef at Washburne Trade | ||||||
| 10 | School before embarking on his career in music; he married | ||||||
| 11 | Annette Butler in 1959; and | ||||||
| 12 | WHEREAS, Jerry Butler achieved fame as a member of the | ||||||
| 13 | Impressions, who were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of | ||||||
| 14 | Fame in 1991, and later as a solo soul artist; his songs have | ||||||
| 15 | been sampled by numerous other musicians, including Missy | ||||||
| 16 | Elliott, Snoop Dogg, Method Man, and The Game; he is a | ||||||
| 17 | three-time Grammy Award nominee; he chaired the Rhythm & Blues | ||||||
| 18 | Foundation, which provides a wide range of assistance to | ||||||
| 19 | musicians and pushed the industry to provide medical and | ||||||
| 20 | retirement benefits; and | ||||||
| 21 | WHEREAS, Jerry Butler had a 32-year political career as a | ||||||
| 22 | member of the Cook County Board and was the longtime chairman | ||||||
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| 1 | of the powerful Health and Hospitals Committee; while serving | ||||||
| 2 | on the county board in 1993, he earned a master's degree in | ||||||
| 3 | public administration from Governors State University; his | ||||||
| 4 | true passion as a county commissioner was ensuring health care | ||||||
| 5 | for all, and he was at the forefront in opening John H. Stroger | ||||||
| 6 | Jr. Hospital of Cook County, replacing the old Cook County | ||||||
| 7 | Hospital, in 2002; he retired from the county board in 2018; | ||||||
| 8 | and | ||||||
| 9 | WHEREAS, Jerry Butler was preceded in death by his wife, | ||||||
| 10 | Annette; and | ||||||
| 11 | WHEREAS, Jerry Butler is survived by his sons, Anthony and | ||||||
| 12 | Randy; four grandchildren; and a great-grandchild; therefore, | ||||||
| 13 | be it | ||||||
| 14 | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED FOURTH GENERAL | ||||||
| 15 | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we declare March 12, | ||||||
| 16 | 2025 as "Jerry Butler Day" in the State of Illinois; and be it | ||||||
| 17 | further | ||||||
| 18 | RESOLVED, That we mourn the passing of Jerry "Iceman" | ||||||
| 19 | Butler and extend our sincere condolences to his family, | ||||||
| 20 | friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be it further | ||||||
| 21 | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | ||||||
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| 1 | presented to the family of Jerry Butler as an expression of our | ||||||
| 2 | deepest sympathy. | ||||||