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PROPOSED RESOLUTION
HONORING THE LIFE AND LEGACY OF DION ELIOT MILLER-P?REZ
WHEREAS, Almighty God in His infinite wisdom has called Dion Eliot Miller-P?rez from our midst on July 26, 2018 at the age of 56; and
WHEREAS, Dion was born in Chicago, Illinois on October 24, 1961 to Dr. Angela P?rez-Miller and John Miller; and
WHEREAS, Dion learned his work at the feet of his mother, Dr. Angela P?rez-Miller, an educator and activist and was inspired by her to be a leader and voice for the oppressed; and
WHEREAS, Dion demonstrated to be a smart and caring individual and was later known to be a gentle yet powerful man; and
WHEREAS, in 1988, Dion married his soul mate, Susan Mullen, an artist and longtime art teacher at Wells High School; and
WHEREAS, earlier in life, Dion took a shot at being a political headliner, running for the 12th Ward aldermanic seat, but he found his home behind the scenes, training volunteers and managing campaigns, which suited his natural gift for teaching, building relationships and community organizing; and
WHEREAS, when the City of Chicago founded Local School Councils (LSC), Dion was among the first elected to serve. He served at three elementary school councils: Sor Juana In?s de la Cruz, Burroughs Elementary School and William F. Finkl Academy; and
WHEREAS, as a staffer for the Neighborhood Capital Budget Group, Dion fought for equity in school construction spending which he cared deeply about; and
WHEREAS, at the Cross-City Campaign for Urban School Reform, Dion dedicated his time to teaching LSCs and community organizations how to evaluate local schools and district budgets; and
WHEREAS, the most formative experience of his career came between 2005 and 2009, when Dion served as Executive Director of the Telpochcalli Community Education Project (TCEP). There, Dion created space for women and young people in Little Village, his neighborhood, to build community, speak truth to power and forge their own destinies; and
WHEREAS,...
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