Bill Text: IL HR0842 | 2015-2016 | 99th General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Honors and thanks James Vernon for his act of great bravery in protecting the children at the Morton Public Library on October 13, 2015.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Republican 2)
Status: (Passed) 2015-11-10 - Added Co-Sponsor All Other Members of the House [HR0842 Detail]
Download: Illinois-2015-HR0842-Introduced.html
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| 1 | HOUSE RESOLUTION
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| 2 | WHEREAS, James Vernon has lived in and served his community | ||||||
| 3 | of Morton, Illinois since 1968, including his active membership | ||||||
| 4 | in the Morton Jaycees; and
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| 5 | WHEREAS, James Vernon honorably served his country as a | ||||||
| 6 | sergeant in a United States Army intelligence unit in Germany | ||||||
| 7 | from 1962 to 1966; he met and married Hanna Droell in | ||||||
| 8 | Frankfurt, Germany in 1966; and
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| 9 | WHEREAS, James Vernon was employed by Caterpillar, Inc. in | ||||||
| 10 | Information Technology, retiring in 2002 after 35 years of | ||||||
| 11 | service; and
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| 12 | WHEREAS, James Vernon has enjoyed playing and teaching | ||||||
| 13 | chess to children in Grundy and Lincoln elementary schools in | ||||||
| 14 | Morton for many years; and
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| 15 | WHEREAS, James Vernon's military training taught him how to | ||||||
| 16 | defend himself from a knife attack; and
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| 17 | WHEREAS, While James Vernon was teaching chess to 16 | ||||||
| 18 | home-schooled children at the Morton Public Library on October | ||||||
| 19 | 13, 2015, a 19 year-old man armed with 2 large knives entered | ||||||
| 20 | the room in the Morton Library occupied by the young chess | ||||||
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| 1 | players and announced he was there to kill the students; and
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| 2 | WHEREAS, James Vernon quietly approached the assailant | ||||||
| 3 | while the children first hid, then quickly fled the room; he | ||||||
| 4 | then put his military training to use to fight off and subdue | ||||||
| 5 | the assailant until police arrived; he sustained serious knife | ||||||
| 6 | wounds to his left hand, including 2 cut arteries and a severed | ||||||
| 7 | tendon; and
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| 8 | WHEREAS, James Vernon's quick thinking, selflessness, and | ||||||
| 9 | heroic actions saved the lives of many students and thwarted a | ||||||
| 10 | potentially heinous tragedy; and
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| 11 | WHEREAS, James Vernon was presented with a proclamation by | ||||||
| 12 | Governor Bruce Rauner designating October 26, 2015 as James | ||||||
| 13 | Vernon Day in the State of Illinois; and
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| 14 | WHEREAS, James Vernon serves as a model of bravery, | ||||||
| 15 | integrity, and dedication for the people of the State of | ||||||
| 16 | Illinois; therefore, be it
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| 17 | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | ||||||
| 18 | NINETY-NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we | ||||||
| 19 | honor and thank James Vernon for his act of great bravery in | ||||||
| 20 | protecting the children at the Morton Public Library on October | ||||||
| 21 | 13, 2015 and wish him the best in the future; and be it further
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| 1 | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | ||||||
| 2 | presented to James Vernon as a symbol of our great respect and | ||||||
| 3 | esteem.
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