SR0629 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

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SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate wish to honor the life of former State Representative Frederick Harris Rowe of Jacksonville, who passed away on September 8, 2013; and

WHEREAS, Harris Rowe was born on November 10, 1923 in Jacksonville; he married the love of his life, Alice Mary Crabtree, on December 22, 1954 in Jacksonville; he was educated in the Jacksonville school system and graduated from Jacksonville High School with the Class of 1941; and

WHEREAS, During World War II, Harris Rowe served in the United States Army Air Corps and served in the South Pacific Theater; he subsequently earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from Illinois College in Jacksonville and his Juris Doctorate from Northwestern University Law School; and

WHEREAS, After receiving his law degree in 1950, Harris Rowe joined his father in the administration of Central National Life Insurance Company, where he served as secretary and treasurer; after the death of his father, he served as president and CEO of the company until his retirement in 1986, when he co-founded Rowe, Henry, and Deal; and

WHEREAS, In addition to his successful career as a businessman, Harris Rowe held many leadership positions within his community, including chairman of the Board of Trustees of MacMurray College, chairman of the Board of Trustees of Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, director of the Illinois State Chamber of Commerce, president of the Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce, president of the Jacksonville Kiwanis Club, and a member of the Morgan County, Illinois, and American Bar Associations; and

WHEREAS, When Harris Rowe was in junior high, he contracted polio; as a survivor, he served as chairman of the Morgan County Chapter of the National Polio Foundation for many years; and

WHEREAS, Harris Rowe also had a love of politics which was instilled in him through his father, Richard Yates Rowe, who served as State Treasurer and Secretary of State, and his great-uncles, Illinois Governors Richard Yates and Richard Yates, Jr.; and

WHEREAS, The political career of Harris Rowe includes 35 years as precinct committeeman, 28 years as chairman of the Morgan County Republican Central Committee, and 8 years as alderman for the City of Jacksonville; he served as State Representative of the 49th District in the Illinois General Assembly with the Republican Caucus for 6 years; he was also one of 59 successful Republican candidates on the State-wide at-large ballot in 1964 and was the Republican candidate for State Treasurer in 1966; and

WHEREAS, Harris Rowe served as director of the Young Republicans organization and was elected as a delegate to the Republican National Convention in 1968 and 1976; and

WHEREAS, Harris Rowe was preceded in death by his parents and his brother and sister-in-law, Richard Y. Rowe, Jr. and Cranston Laningham Rowe; and

WHEREAS, Harris Rowe is survived by his daughters, Sarah "Sally" Rowe, Mary (Joe Racey) Henry, Millicent "Millie" (Harmon) Deal, and Julie Rowe; his grandchildren, Harris Cole Henry, Margaret Henry York (Adam), Madeline Henry, Annie Deal, Lucy Deal, Carter Lockman, and Samuel Lockman; his great-grandchildren, Finley and Henry York; his sister, Sally Rowe (William S.) Kanaga; and his many nieces and nephews; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we, along with his family and friends, mourn the passing of Frederick Harris Rowe; and be it further

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