Bill Text: IL HR0190 | 2011-2012 | 97th General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Honors Rafael Mendez Jr. for his work as the homeless liaison for the Waukegan School District.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2011-03-17 - Resolution Adopted [HR0190 Detail]
Download: Illinois-2011-HR0190-Introduced.html
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1 | HOUSE RESOLUTION
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2 | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | ||||||
3 | Representatives are pleased to honor Rafael Mendez Jr. on his | ||||||
4 | work as the homeless liaison for the Waukegan School District; | ||||||
5 | and
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6 | WHEREAS, Rafael Mendez Jr. was born October 14, 1958 in | ||||||
7 | Bayamon, Puerto Rico, the second of five children of Rafael and | ||||||
8 | Ruth Mendez; he was educated in Waukegan public schools and | ||||||
9 | received a General Education Degree in 1978; he has worked as a | ||||||
10 | dishwasher, apparel store salesman, grocery clerk, | ||||||
11 | carpenter/plastering apprentice, and metal heat treating tech; | ||||||
12 | and
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13 | WHEREAS, He now works for the Waukegan School District, | ||||||
14 | where he has been a truant officer, security officer, and | ||||||
15 | residency officer, and currently holds the position of homeless | ||||||
16 | program liaison; and
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17 | WHEREAS, Since 2002, he has worked extensively with the | ||||||
18 | homeless students of Waukegan; his duties include: | ||||||
19 | (1) identifying the homeless population and | ||||||
20 | coordinating activities, entities, and agencies that | ||||||
21 | benefit homeless students; | ||||||
22 | (2) ensuring that homeless children and youth enroll in |
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1 | and have a full and equal opportunity to succeed in the | ||||||
2 | schools they are eligible to attend, including Head Start | ||||||
3 | and preschool programs; | ||||||
4 | (3) initiating referrals to health care, dental, | ||||||
5 | mental health, and other appropriate services; | ||||||
6 | (4) informing parents or guardians of homeless | ||||||
7 | children and youth about the available educational and | ||||||
8 | related opportunities and providing them with meaningful | ||||||
9 | ways to participate in the education of their children; | ||||||
10 | (5) promoting awareness of the educational rights of | ||||||
11 | homeless children and youth by posting public notices in | ||||||
12 | schools, family shelters, and soup kitchens; | ||||||
13 | (6) advising parents, guardians, and any unaccompanied | ||||||
14 | youth of the mediation process involving enrollment | ||||||
15 | disputes and fully informing them of procedures for | ||||||
16 | accessing all transportation services required by the | ||||||
17 | McKinney-Vento Act; and | ||||||
18 | (7) allocating funds to provide school uniforms, | ||||||
19 | backpacks, school supplies, access to field trips, outdoor | ||||||
20 | education, and assistance with summer school fees; and
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21 | WHEREAS, The endless giving of his time and dedication to | ||||||
22 | homeless students goes well beyond his assigned duties; he | ||||||
23 | organized "Coats 4 Kids" in 2002, resulting in thousands of | ||||||
24 | donations of new winter coats, hats, and gloves by public and | ||||||
25 | private corporations and employee groups from surrounding |
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1 | communities; and
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2 | WHEREAS, In 2004, he was presented with a certificate of | ||||||
3 | appreciation from the Illinois State Board of Education in | ||||||
4 | recognition of exemplary service to the Illinois | ||||||
5 | McKinney-Vento Homeless Student Programs; and
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6 | WHEREAS, In addition to his valuable work, he has kept | ||||||
7 | alive his love for music as a guitar player, songwriter, | ||||||
8 | singer, and recording artist, with frequent performances | ||||||
9 | throughout Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, Indiana, and Michigan; | ||||||
10 | and
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11 | WHEREAS, His wife, Rachelle, also works for the students of | ||||||
12 | Waukegan, as a third grade teacher; he is an active member of | ||||||
13 | the Trinity Christian Center in Zion and is quite proud of the | ||||||
14 | fact that he is a lifelong "home-grown" resident of Waukegan; | ||||||
15 | therefore, be it
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16 | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | ||||||
17 | NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | ||||||
18 | we honor and thank Rafael Mendez Jr. for his hard work and | ||||||
19 | dedication to the homeless students of Waukegan, and commend | ||||||
20 | him for for the many ways in which he has enriched the lives of | ||||||
21 | the people of Illinois; and be it further
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1 | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | ||||||
2 | presented to Rafael Mendez Jr. as a symbol of our respect and | ||||||
3 | esteem.
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