HR1109 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR1109 LRB098 21341 MST 59649 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of former United States Ambassador to Norway and Quaker Oats Chief Executive Officer Robert D. Stuart, Jr., who passed away on May 8, 2014 at the age of 98; and

WHEREAS, Robert Stuart, Jr. was born in 1916 in Hubbard Woods and grew up just north of there in Lake Forest; he graduated from the Los Alamos Ranch School in New Mexico and then Princeton University in 1937; and

WHEREAS, In 1940, while attending Yale Law School, Robert Stuart, Jr. began to become politically active by joining a group of classmates that included future President Gerald Ford and future Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart, which became the founding of the America First Committee; the America First Committee disbanded shortly after the attacks on Pearl Harbor in 1941, and he joined the Army as a field artillery officer, serving 2 years overseas; and

WHEREAS, Robert Stuart, Jr. was discharged in 1946 with the rank of Major and returned to law school at Yale; shortly after graduating, he joined Quaker Oats, which was founded by his grandfather, and led at the time by his father, R. Douglas Stuart, and uncle, John Stuart; and

WHEREAS, Robert Stuart, Jr. stayed at Quaker Oats for 38 years, the last 15 serving as Chief Executive Officer; in 1984, he stepped down from Quaker Oats, and was appointed by President Ronald Reagan as the ambassador to Norway and served from 1984 to 1989, during the declining years of the Cold War; and

WHEREAS, In the years following his time as U.S. ambassador, Robert Stuart, Jr. served on the defense Base Closure and Realignment Committee under Presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton; he continued to stay active in local politics, including his involvement with the Lake County Republican Federation, which he co-founded in 1962; he was an Illinois Republican Party committeeman from 1964 to 1972; and

WHEREAS, Robert Stuart Jr. is survived by his wife, Lillian; sister, Margaret; son, James M. (Dianne) Stuart; daughter, Marian S. Pillsbury; son, Alexander D. (Robin) Stuart; daughter-in-law, Nancy M. Stuart; 8 grandchildren; 6 great-grandchildren; and numerous Norwegian stepchildren, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn, along with his family and friends, the passing of Robert D. Stuart, Jr.; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we honor the memory of Robert D. Stuart, Jr. and remember his service as a U.S. ambassador, philanthropy, business acumen, and political activism; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the family of Robert Stuart as a symbol of our sincere sympathy and gratitude for his service.