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PROPOSED RESOLUTION
CONGRATULATING THE HONORABLE JESSE WHITE ON THE OCCASION OF HIS RETIREMENT
WHEREAS, Mr. Jesse White was born on June 23, 1934, in Alton, Illinois, and in 1943 moved to Chicago with his parents where he attended Schiller Elementary School; and
WHEREAS, Mr. White went on to attend Waller High School (now Lincoln Park Academy), where he was active in school athletics, being named All-City in basketball and baseball and excelling at tumbling; and
WHEREAS, after graduating from high school, he enrolled at Alabama State College, majoring in physical education, and played baseball and basketball, earning All-Conference honors in both sports; and
WHEREAS, in May 1995, Mr. White was inducted into the Southwestern Athletic Conference Hall of Fame and was inducted into the Chicago Public League Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame in June 1995; and
WHEREAS, after receiving his diploma from Alabama State College, Jesse signed with the Chicago Cubs organization; however, four days before leaving for spring training, he was drafted by the United States Army, where he attended jump school and was trained as a paratrooper and was assigned to the 101st Airborne Division. He would later join the Army Reserves and become a member of the Illinois National Guard; and
WHEREAS, Mr. White finished his military service in 1959 and returned to Chicago, where he finally began his professional baseball career, playing for several seasons with the Chicago Cubs organization; and
WHEREAS, in the off-season, Mr. White worked as a physical education instructor at Schiller Elementary School, the school that he attended as a child, as well as with the Chicago Park District where he worked as a gymnastics coach and teacher for the Chicago Park District YMCA of Metropolitan Chicago and enjoyed a 33-year career with the Chicago public school system as a teacher and administrator; and
WHEREAS, Mr. White was asked to organize a gym show at the Rockwell Garden Housing Projects, which would lay the foundation for what would become known worldwide as the Jesse White Tumbling Team and since the team's inception, over 10,000 children, ages 6 and up, have participated in the program; and
WHEREAS, the Jesse White Tumblers give more than 1,500 performances each year at major sporting events and community, business, and charity functions, garnering national and international attention and have performed throughout the United States, Canada, Hong Kong, Bermuda, Belize, China, Israel, Tokyo, Japan, and Zagreb, Croatia. The team has also been featured in commercials, national television shows, and motion pictures; and
WHEREAS, in 1974, he was elected to the Illinois House of Representatives, where he served on the Committees on Aging, Elementary & Secondary Education, Public Utilities, and chaired the Committee on Children and Human Services. Among the bills proposed by White in the House was the Good Samaritan Bill, which allowed hotels to offer leftover food to soup kitchens without threat of liability; and
WHEREAS, Mr. White served 16 years in the Illinois General Assembly representing the most culturally, economically, and racially diverse district in Illinois building a solid record for fighting crime, improving education, and helping senior citizens; and
WHEREAS, Mr. White would go on to become the Recorder of Deeds of Cook County, the nation’s second largest Recorder of Deeds office in the country at the time having been elected to the post in 1992 and re-elected in 1996; and
WHEREAS, on November 3, 1998, Mr. White was elected Illinois Secretary of State by a margin of over 450,000 votes. He was sworn into office on January 11, 1999, serving as the 37th Secretary of State and retired as the longest serving and first African American to hold this position and in the process becoming perhaps the best-known and best-liked officeholder in Illinois; and
WHEREAS, in recognition of the indelible impact both inside and outside the world of politics over his remarkable career, this Honorable Body wishes to honor Mr. Jesse White on the occasion of his retirement.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the President and Members of the Cook County Board of Commissioners does hereby congratulate Mr. Jesse White on his retirement and thank him for his many years of dedicated service; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that this text be spread upon the official proceedings of this Honorable Body and a suitable copy be presented to Mr. Jesse White as a symbol of our respect and esteem.
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