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SENATE RESOLUTION

  
 
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    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to 
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learn of the death of George A. "Bud" Berry III of St. Charles, 
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who passed away on April 16, 2010; and
  
 
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    WHEREAS, He was born in Chicago to George A. Berry Jr. and 
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Helen Royer Berry and raised in Hinsdale; he attended Philips 
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Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, and was a graduate of 
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Middlebury College in Middlebury, Vermont, where he was a 
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letterman in football, hockey, and track; in September 1946, he 
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married Jane Morton of Geneva, and they had two children, 
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Robert F. Berry and George A. Berry IV; and
  
 
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    WHEREAS, In June 1935, he began his career at American 
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Terra Cotta Corporation, a company originally founded in 1881 
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as American Terra Cotta & Ceramic Co. by William Day Gates and 
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bought and re-organized by his father, George A. Berry Jr., in 
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1935; he was a member of the United States Army from 1941-46, 
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where he was involved in the D-Day Invasion and the Battle of 
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the Bulge; he completed his service in England as an adjutant 
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of the 433rd Fighter Control Squadron; after World War II, he 
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returned to work at American Terra Cotta Corporation and 
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continued his illustrious career at the company; and
  
 
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    WHEREAS, He was instrumental in transforming the company 
 


 






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from the manufacturer of clay products, which discontinued in 
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1966, to an industry leader in commercial heat treating and 
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manufacturer of heat treated ground engaging tools for the 
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construction equipment industry; the worldwide company, known 
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today as TC Industries Inc., has facilities in Crystal Lake; 
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Guelph, Ontario, Canada; Selkirk, Manitoba, Canada; and 
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Skinningrove, U.K.; he retired as chairman in 1984, but 
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remained involved in the company's planning and real estate 
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activities until his passing; and
 
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    WHEREAS, He authored and published two books on the history 
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of the company, "Common Clay: A History of American Terra Cotta 
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Corporation 1881-1966," and "Bars & Blades: A History of TC 
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Industries, Inc. 1881-2006"; and
 
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    WHEREAS, He was president of the Architectural Terra Cotta 
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Institute from 1950-56, director of Structural Clay Products 
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Institute in Washington, D.C., through 1966, national 
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president of the Associated Alumni of Middlebury College in 
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1964, and served as trustee of the Geneva Community Hospital in 
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Geneva for 20 years; he was a member of the Geneva Golf Club 
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and The Chicago Club for 64 years, the Chicago Golf Club for 42 
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years, and a member of the Key Largo Anglers Club, the Card 
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Sound Golf Club, and the Ocean Reef Club in Key Largo, Florida, 
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where he has had a winter home for 40 years; during his time in 
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Florida, he pursued his favorite hobby of fishing for the "Big 
 


 






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Three": bonefish, tarpon, and permit; and
  
 
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    WHEREAS, He was preceded in death by his parents; and a 
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sister, Dorothy Gillespie; and
  
 
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    WHEREAS, He is survived by his wife; his sons; his 
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daughter-in-law, Margo; his two grandchildren, Sterling Morton 
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Berry and George A. Berry; and his sister, Helen von Dallwitz; 
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therefore, be it
  
 
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    RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-SIXTH GENERAL 
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ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn, along with 
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his family and friends, the passing of George Berry; and be it 
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further
  
 
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    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be 
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presented to the family of George Berry as a symbol of our 
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sincere sympathy.