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91_HR0302
LRB9106834KBkbA
1 HOUSE RESOLUTION
2 WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3 Representatives wish to congratulate Albert "Bert" Daniels
4 for being selected as Grand Marshal for the 81st Annual
5 Elmhurst Memorial Day Parade, to be held on May 31, 1999; and
6 WHEREAS, Mr. Daniels is the proud father of State
7 Representative Lee Daniels, as well as seven other children;
8 he met his wife, Evelyn, when they both attended York
9 Community High School; and
10 WHEREAS, In a ceremony to be held at the end of the
11 parade route, at the Veterans Memorial, Mr. Daniels and three
12 other combat veterans of World War II will be honored for
13 their active duty and service to their country; In addition,
14 25 survivors of the Normandy invasion will attend the
15 ceremony; and
16 WHEREAS, Mr. Daniels attended Michigan State College, now
17 Michigan State University, and graduated in 1941 from the
18 School of Police Administration; in 1943 he made plans to
19 attend the Detroit Law School, but his plans changed when he
20 was commissioned as an ensign in the United States Navy; and
21 WHEREAS, Like most young couples of their generation,
22 Bert and Evelyn had better things to do than fight a war; and
23 WHEREAS, A whole generation shared dreams and aspirations
24 of living the American dream; but history was about to change
25 millions of dreams to nightmares; and
26 WHEREAS, The United States was drawn into war in Europe
27 and in the Pacific and Bert Daniels and thousands like him
28 answered the summons of the trumpet; and
29 WHEREAS, Bert Daniels and his generation knew their duty
30 and thus a whole generation of brave Americans marched
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1 forward to win the war; and
2 WHEREAS, Mr. Daniels was first sent to Princeton, New
3 Jersey, for indoctrination; he then reported to the naval
4 base in San Francisco and after a week went on to Honolulu,
5 where he reported for duty to the USS Frazier DD 607, a
6 Bristol Class Destroyer; and
7 WHEREAS, Mr. Daniels reported to the ship at Pearl
8 Harbor, where he met Captain Fletcher and was assigned as a
9 communications officer; Mr. Daniels went on to many
10 encounters in the Pacific, from surviving three typhoons,
11 mines, torpedoes, kamikaze pilots, to escorting General
12 Douglas MacArthur and the USS Enterprise in the invasion of
13 the Philippines; and
14 WHEREAS, Toward the end of World War II, Mr. Daniels
15 destroyer was assigned to General MacArthur and aided in a
16 memorial service held in Manila Bay as the flagship for the
17 services; Mr. Daniels spent a year and a half in the South
18 Pacific, and was discharged as a lieutenant junior grade; and
19 WHEREAS, A recent book written by Tom Brokaw is titled
20 "The Greatest Generation" in honor of men and women just like
21 Bert and Evelyn Daniels; and
22 WHEREAS, When the war had been won, Bert and many
23 thousands more just like him left the horror and the losses
24 behind and came home to a hero's welcome; and
25 WHEREAS, Many soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines were
26 honored with parades, while others like Bert received a
27 hero's welcome after marching up the sidewalk; and
28 WHEREAS, While Lieutenant J.G. Daniels had been on a ship
29 for almost two years, Evelyn kept his Navy picture clearly
30 displayed, allowing the children, including Lee A. Daniels,
31 then three years old, a constant reminder of their dad; and
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1 WHEREAS, When Mr. Bert Daniels entered his home in
2 Elmhurst, Evelyn hugged him and said "Children, daddy is
3 home," at which time Lee began to cry and said "You're not my
4 daddy!" and, pointing at the picture he knew so well, said
5 "That's my daddy!"; Of course, the photo and the sailor were
6 one and the same, but Lee had no memory of his "daddy" except
7 the picture; and
8 WHEREAS, Mr. Daniels returned to Elmhurst and finished
9 his education; he graduated from Kent College, and went on to
10 practice law until 1991; and
11 WHEREAS, Mr. Daniels is a respectable choice to serve as
12 Grand Marshal for the Memorial Day Parade; he is a true hero
13 and a man worthy of this honor; therefore, be it
14 RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
15 NINETY-FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
16 we congratulate Mr. Albert Daniels on being selected to serve
17 as Grand Marshal for the 81st Annual Elmhurst Memorial Day
18 Parade; and be it further
19 RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
20 presented to Mr. Daniels, along with our sincere regards.