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91_HR0876
LRB9114877KBkbA
1 HOUSE RESOLUTION
2 WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3 Representatives wish to express their sincere condolences to
4 the family and friends of Raymond Fannings, who recently
5 passed away; and
6 WHEREAS, Raymond Fannings was a resident of the South
7 Shore neighborhood of Chicago; he was a graduate of DuSable
8 High School, where he developed his lifelong interest in
9 social issues and causes, in part because of his civics
10 teacher, Mary Herrick; and
11 WHEREAS, Raymond Fannings became involved in the civil
12 rights movement of the 1960's, taking part in demonstrations
13 at the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana and
14 marching with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. through the Gage
15 Park neighborhood; and
16 WHEREAS, Mr, Fannings served in the United States Army in
17 the late 1950s, where he served as a counselor for soldiers
18 returning from the Korean War; he received his Bachelor's
19 degree in Sociology from the University of Illinois and his
20 Master's degree in Social Work from the University of
21 Chicago; and
22 WHEREAS, In 1956 Raymond Fannings began his career as a
23 caseworker for the Cook County Department of Public Aid; and
24 WHEREAS, In 1979 Ray became the first African-American
25 executive director of the Chicago Child Care Society, the
26 oldest child-welfare agency in the State of Illinois, founded
27 in 1849; and
28 WHEREAS, Ray led the agency to new heights and left it in
29 excellent shape when he retired in 1997; and
30 WHEREAS, Mr. Fannings served on many boards, including:
-2- LRB9114877KBkbA
1 the Child Care Association of Illinois, the Black Executive
2 Directors Coalition, the St. Mark United Methodist Church
3 Credit Union, the Free People's Clinic, the United
4 Way-Crusade of Mercy, and the Avalon Community Tennis
5 Association; and
6 WHEREAS, Raymond Fannings was an avid tennis player who
7 devoted many hours of his retirement teaching young people
8 the sport that he loved; and
9 WHEREAS, The passing of Raymond Fannings will be deeply
10 felt by all who knew and loved him, especially his wife,
11 Rita; his daughters, Janet Gray and Emily; his stepsons, Tres
12 and George Fielder; his sister, Izetta Karp; and his two
13 grandchildren; 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 mourn, along with all who knew him, the death of Raymond
17 Fannings; and be it further
18 RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
19 presented to the family of Raymond Fannings and the Board and
20 staff of the Chicago Child Care Society, along with our
21 sincere regards.