Bill Text: IL HR0716 | 2011-2012 | 97th General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Mourns the death of our friend and colleague, former Illinois State Representative and United States Representative Edward Joseph "Ed" Derwinski.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Republican 3)
Status: (Passed) 2012-01-31 - Resolution Adopted [HR0716 Detail]
Download: Illinois-2011-HR0716-Introduced.html
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| 1 | HOUSE RESOLUTION
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| 2 | WHEREAS, Edward Joseph "Ed" Derwinski was a son of | ||||||
| 3 | Illinois, having been born in Chicago on September 15, 1926; | ||||||
| 4 | and
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| 5 | WHEREAS, As a member of the "Greatest Generation", Ed | ||||||
| 6 | Derwinski served his country in World War II, assigned to duty | ||||||
| 7 | on the Pacific front; after the surrender of Japan aboard the | ||||||
| 8 | "U.S.S. Missouri", he continued his time in uniform during the | ||||||
| 9 | occupation of Japan; and
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| 10 | WHEREAS, In his return to civilian life after World War II, | ||||||
| 11 | Ed Derwinski was a real-life counterpart of George Bailey in | ||||||
| 12 | the 1946 classic movie, "It's a Wonderful Life"; after the | ||||||
| 13 | death of his father, Ed led his brothers to carry on the family | ||||||
| 14 | building and loan, West Pullman Savings and Loan, a community | ||||||
| 15 | savings institution; and
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| 16 | WHEREAS, After completing his education at Loyola | ||||||
| 17 | University, Ed Derwinski joined the Illinois House of | ||||||
| 18 | Representatives as an elected member of the 70th General | ||||||
| 19 | Assembly (1957-58) representing the 24th Legislative District; | ||||||
| 20 | and
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| 21 | WHEREAS, In the 1958 general election, Ed Derwinski ran for | ||||||
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| 1 | and was elected by his fellow Illinoisans to the United States | ||||||
| 2 | House of Representatives, representing the 4th Congressional | ||||||
| 3 | District; as a congressman, he served the State of Illinois and | ||||||
| 4 | the people of the United States for 24 years, from 1959 until | ||||||
| 5 | 1993; and
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| 6 | WHEREAS, As a congressman, Ed Derwinski specialized in | ||||||
| 7 | foreign affairs, becoming a ranking member of the House Foreign | ||||||
| 8 | Affairs Committee; in this role, he fought tirelessly to keep | ||||||
| 9 | the hope of freedom alive in the countries then trapped behind | ||||||
| 10 | the Iron Curtain; he was repeatedly honored by his fellow | ||||||
| 11 | Polish-Americans for his advocacy on behalf of the people of | ||||||
| 12 | Poland, as well as the other sovereign nations of Central and | ||||||
| 13 | Eastern Europe that, at that time, groaned under the heel of | ||||||
| 14 | Soviet and Yugoslavian communist occupation; and
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| 15 | WHEREAS, After leaving the U.S. House at the end of the | ||||||
| 16 | 97th Congress, Ed Derwinski joined the Reagan Administration in | ||||||
| 17 | a variety of roles, including Under Secretary of State for | ||||||
| 18 | Security Assistance, where he oversaw Ronald Reagan's | ||||||
| 19 | military-aid program as the Soviet empire approached its | ||||||
| 20 | collapse; and
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| 21 | WHEREAS, When the U.S. Veterans Administration was | ||||||
| 22 | elevated to Cabinet status in March of 1989, newly-elected | ||||||
| 23 | President George H.W. Bush appointed Under Secretary Ed | ||||||
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| 1 | Derwinski to be the nation's first Secretary of the Department | ||||||
| 2 | of Veterans Affairs (USDVA), giving this son of Chicago a seat | ||||||
| 3 | at the White House cabinet table; and
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| 4 | WHEREAS, Ed Derwinski served as USDVA Secretary from March | ||||||
| 5 | 15, 1989, until September 26, 1992; this period saw not only | ||||||
| 6 | the culmination of his lifelong fight to tear down the Berlin | ||||||
| 7 | Wall and bring freedom to Poland and other countries of the | ||||||
| 8 | Soviet empire, but also the significant expansion of his | ||||||
| 9 | Department as it took on new responsibilities associated with | ||||||
| 10 | the aging of his fellow World War II veterans and growth in the | ||||||
| 11 | health-care and other benefits that his country would provide | ||||||
| 12 | to armed forces veterans of the Cold War and beyond; and
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| 13 | WHEREAS, After conclusion of his federal service in 1992, | ||||||
| 14 | Ed Derwinski returned to the Chicago area to live in | ||||||
| 15 | retirement, enjoying the companionship of his second wife, | ||||||
| 16 | Bonita "Bonnie" Derwinski, his daughter, Maureen Quattrocki, | ||||||
| 17 | his son, Michael Derwinski, his step-daughter, Maggie Hickey, | ||||||
| 18 | and his step-son, Kevin Hickey; and
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| 19 | WHEREAS, After a life spent fruitfully and triumphantly in | ||||||
| 20 | the service of his country, Illinois State Representative, U.S. | ||||||
| 21 | Representative, and Secretary Ed Derwinski passed away on | ||||||
| 22 | January 15, 2012; therefore, be it
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| 1 | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | ||||||
| 2 | NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | ||||||
| 3 | we mourn the death of our friend and colleague, Edward J. "Ed" | ||||||
| 4 | Derwinski, and salute his impeccable record of service to this | ||||||
| 5 | nation; and be it further
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| 6 | RESOLVED, That we pledge to continue to remember and | ||||||
| 7 | cherish in our hearts the time in uniform spent by all of our | ||||||
| 8 | American veterans; our country is what it is because of these | ||||||
| 9 | men and women; Ed was their leader for a time, but all of them, | ||||||
| 10 | together, are our leaders; and be it further
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| 11 | RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be | ||||||
| 12 | presented to the wife of this great patriot, Bonita "Bonnie" | ||||||
| 13 | Derwinski, his daughter, Maureen Quattrocki, his son, Michael | ||||||
| 14 | Derwinski, his step-daughter, Maggie Hickey, and his step-son, | ||||||
| 15 | Kevin Hickey.
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