title
PROPOSED RESOLUTION
HONORING COMMISSIONER EARLEAN COLLINS ON HER RETIREMENT
WHEREAS, Commissioner Earlean Collins (1st District) will retire on November 30, 2014, after thirty-seven years of outstanding and meritorious years of public service; and
WHERAS, Commissioner Collins was born in Rolling Fork, Mississippi, and was one of fourteen children. She moved to Chicago, Illinois, as a teenager and graduated from Wendell Phillips High School and later attended the University of Illinois at Chicago Circle Campus; and
WHEREAS, first elected to the Illinois State Senate in 1977, Commissioner Collins was the first African American female to win the Democratic nomination for a statewide constitutional office, and the first woman to serve as an assistant presiding officer of the Senate; and
WHEREAS, as a result of diligent work and demonstrated ability in the Senate, Commissioner Collins advanced significant pieces of legislation including: the Public Employees Collective Bargaining Act, the Equal Employment Opportunity Office, the Job Training Partnership Act, the Independent Public Defender's Office Act, the Earn Fare Program, and the College Tuition Savings Program; and
WHEREAS, Commissioner Collins was elected to the Cook County Board of Commissioners in 1998; and
WHEREAS, as a member of the Cook County Board of Commissioners, Commissioner Collins serves as Chairman of the Criminal Justice and Workforce, Job Development & Training Opportunities Committees; and
WHEREAS, Commissioner Collins has focused her time on the County Board working to improve the lives of children, families, and senior citizens; and
WHEREAS, throughout her many years of service, Commissioner Collins has served the residents of Cook County with fairness and dedication; further, she has earned the respect and admiration of Cook County Board members for her knowledge, tenacity, and humor;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the President and Members of the Cook County Board of Commissioners do hereby extend our sincere and grateful appreciation to Commissioner Earlean Collins for her highly esteemed service to the Cook County Board of Commissioners, and our congratulations on her well-earned retirement, and our best wishes to her for continued success, happiness, and good health in the years to come.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that this text be spread upon the official proceedings of this Honorable Body, and a suitable copy of same be tendered to Commissioner Earlean Collins.
end