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HOUSE RESOLUTION


 
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    WHEREAS, Mr. Louis H. Rago has been named a recipient of 
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the Joseph Cardinal Bernardin Humanitarian of the Year Award 
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given by the Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans 
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(JCCIA); and

 
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    WHEREAS, The JCCIA's Joseph Cardinal Bernardin 
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Humanitarian of the Year Award is presented annually to those 
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whose lives exemplify the virtues of caring, humanity, and good 
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will that were the hallmark of Cardinal Bernardin's tenure as 
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Archbishop of Chicago; and

 
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    WHEREAS, Mr. Rago served as president of the JCCIA from 
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1997 to 1998; he has been in the forefront of combating Italian 
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stereotypes since he became involved in the Chicago-area 
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Italian-American community; and

 
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    WHEREAS, He was born and raised on Chicago's Near North 
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Side at Grand and Western avenues, an area known as "The 
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Patch"; he attended Holy Rosary Parish School and later St. 
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Genevieve School; during his freshman year of high school at 
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DePaul Academy, he started working for his father's funeral 
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home business; he was 18 when his father passed away, and he 
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decided to go to mortuary school and enter the family business; 
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and

 
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    WHEREAS, It was during this time that he became actively 
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involved with the Italian-American community; since 1967, he 
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has been involved in coordinating the assembly area and the 
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line of march for the Columbus Day Parade; he has also served 
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as past president of Amerital Chicago and Greater Chicago 
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chapters of UNICO National and the Joint Civic Committee of 
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Italian Americans; and

 
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    WHEREAS, As president of the JCCIA, Mr. Rago led a 
 


 






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demonstration against the Chicago Tribune for the paper's lack 
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of sensitivity regarding comments made by one of its writers; 
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Mr. Rago also founded the Italian American Human Relations 
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Foundation of Chicago; and

 
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    WHEREAS, Throughout the years, Mr. Rago has also dedicated 
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himself to many worthwhile charities; he served as a past 
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trustee of the Easter Seals Society of Illinois and is the past 
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director of the Hemophilia Foundation; and

 
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    WHEREAS, He is the third-generation owner of the Original 
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Rago Brothers Funeral Homes, and currently serves as the 
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president of the Midwest Group/Memorial Traditions of 
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Illinois; he is the father of three children, and two of his 
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sons work in the family business; he says that he has enjoyed 
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every minute of his activities in the Italian-American 
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community and is happy to contribute by fighting against 
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negative stereotypes; therefore, be it

 
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    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE 
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NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that 
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we congratulate Mr. Louis H. Rago on being a recipient of the 
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Joseph Cardinal Bernardin Humanitarian of the Year Award given 
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by the Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans; and be it 
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further

 
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    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be 
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presented to Mr. Rago as an expression of our esteem.