Bill Text: IL SR1199 | 2017-2018 | 100th General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Mourns the death of Charlene F. Bennett of Gibson City.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Passed) 2018-01-31 - Resolution Adopted [SR1199 Detail]
Download: Illinois-2017-SR1199-Introduced.html
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1 | SENATE RESOLUTION
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2 | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to | ||||||
3 | learn of the death of Charlene F. Bennett of Gibson City, who | ||||||
4 | passed away on November 8,
2017; and
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5 | WHEREAS, Charlene Bennett was born in Gibson City on July | ||||||
6 | 16, 1922 to Oliver F. and Emma (Gilmore) Shirley, two of the | ||||||
7 | first land-owning families of Ford
County; she was educated at | ||||||
8 | the one-room Pleasant Valley
School near her family's farm in | ||||||
9 | rural Gibson City; she graduated in 1940 as valedictorian from | ||||||
10 | Drummer Township High School in Gibson
City; she earned her | ||||||
11 | teaching certificate from Illinois State Normal University; | ||||||
12 | and
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13 | WHEREAS, Charlene Bennett taught for seven years at the | ||||||
14 | one-room Wantwood Country School south of Gibson City for the | ||||||
15 | starting salary of $90 per month until she left to
raise her | ||||||
16 | own family; she married Leonard L. Bennett on November 26,
1947 | ||||||
17 | in Danville and together they had five children; and
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18 | WHEREAS, Charlene Bennett was a lifelong teacher of | ||||||
19 | children and returned
to education, spending seven years as a | ||||||
20 | teaching assistant at the Gibson City
Grade School; she then | ||||||
21 | worked for many years as an aide at the Busy Hands
Nursery | ||||||
22 | School in Gibson City; and
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1 | WHEREAS, Charlene Bennett was a devoted mother, | ||||||
2 | grandmother, and great-grandmother
whose greatest joy was | ||||||
3 | doting on, and spending time with, her
family; and
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4 | WHEREAS, Charlene Bennett was a faithful and active member | ||||||
5 | of the First
Christian Church of Gibson City for over 70 years, | ||||||
6 | serving as a long-time
Sunday School teacher and the pianist | ||||||
7 | for the Children's Choir, in addition to
volunteering for the | ||||||
8 | church in many other capacities; and
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9 | WHEREAS, Charlene Bennett was a dutiful gardener on her | ||||||
10 | family's farm
northwest of Gibson City and was proud of her | ||||||
11 | flowers, sweet corn, tomatoes,
potatoes, carrots, onions, | ||||||
12 | green beans, and assorted other vegetables;
she would often | ||||||
13 | include her garden's bounty in her home-cooked meals
of simple | ||||||
14 | country recipes that were greatly enjoyed by her family; and
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15 | WHEREAS, Charlene Bennett loved to play the piano and | ||||||
16 | ensured that music
would play a defining role in the lives of | ||||||
17 | her children; she enjoyed
listening to her growing family sing | ||||||
18 | together at church or around a piano
during family gatherings; | ||||||
19 | and
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20 | WHEREAS, Charlene Bennett spent nearly all of her 95 years | ||||||
21 | within a few square miles in Ford County, as she
was born, |
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1 | lived, and died in and around her beloved Gibson City; | ||||||
2 | nonetheless, the pain of her loss extends far from the modest | ||||||
3 | boundaries of Ford County; she touched the lives of countless | ||||||
4 | people; and
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5 | WHEREAS, Charlene Bennett was preceded in death by her | ||||||
6 | parents and her
only sibling, Robert E. Shirley; and
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7 | WHEREAS, Charlene Bennett is survived by her sons, Bob | ||||||
8 | (Barb) Bennett, Tom
(Kathy) Bennett, and Doug (Sheila) Bennett; | ||||||
9 | her daughters, Wanda Driscoll and Carol (Jerry) | ||||||
10 | Bennett-Barker; 15 grandchildren; and
15 great-grandchildren; | ||||||
11 | therefore, be it
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12 | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDREDTH GENERAL | ||||||
13 | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of | ||||||
14 | Charlene F. Bennett, and extend our sincere condolences to her | ||||||
15 | family, friends, and all who knew and loved her; and be it | ||||||
16 | further
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17 | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | ||||||
18 | presented to the family of Charlene Bennett as an expression of | ||||||
19 | our deepest sympathy.
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