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92_HR0893
LRB9216794BHbh
1 HOUSE RESOLUTION
2 WHEREAS, It has come to our attention that Reverend James
3 Bass of Chicago is celebrating his 81st birthday and 45th
4 anniversary of service to the Mt. Olive Missionary Baptist
5 Church this year; and
6 WHEREAS, Pastor Bass was born May 7, 1920, to Frank and
7 Hattie Bell Bass in the vicinity of Star, Mississippi; and
8 WHEREAS, Pastor Bass began school at the age of six in a
9 little church house, where he attended with two brothers and
10 one sister; he would pretend to conduct services to
11 neighborhood children, rendering sermons, praying, and
12 singing; tithes and offerings were pieces of broken glass,
13 and Pastor Bass would minister at the funerals of "anything
14 that died"; he was referred to as "The Preacher Boy"; and
15 WHEREAS, Pastor Bass accepted Christ as his personal
16 Savior in August, 1929, and was baptized in the Sunflower
17 River; in 1938, he revealed his calling and preached his
18 first sermon in September at the Mt. Laton Baptist Church in
19 Mississippi; and
20 WHEREAS, On December 7, 1941, Pastor Bass was drafted
21 into the U.S. Army and served his country during World War
22 II; he was promoted to Corporal in 1944 and served as a
23 chaplain in the South Pacific, India, and New Guinea; Pastor
24 Bass was discharged in June 7, 1945, and returned home with
25 his parents to lead a quiet life; and
26 WHEREAS, Pastor Bass renewed his ministerial career
27 joined by his brother, Harry, and pursued his life in the
28 ministry; Pastor Bass spent his freshman year of college at
29 Tougloo College, then attended the Mississippi Seminary in
30 Jackson, Mississippi in 1951; he became the pastor of the Mt.
31 Israel Baptist Church in Clarksdale, Mississippi, where he
-2- LRB9216794BHbh
1 sponsored a broadcast for the senior citizens, the sick, and
2 shut-ins; his success was due to his dedication; and
3 WHEREAS, After a Revival in Detroit Michigan, and his
4 work on a mission in Chicago led by his brother, Harry,
5 Pastor Bass saw a need for his ministry in the City of
6 Chicago, where he permanently relocated; and
7 WHEREAS, Pastor Bass organized and founded the Mt. Olive
8 Missionary Baptist Church in September 1956, at 1532 South
9 Pulaski Road; and
10 WHEREAS, In 1967, Pastor Bass was united in Holy
11 Matrimony to Helyn Maxine Julius; the couple was blessed with
12 a son on May 3, 1968, James Vincent Elliot Bass, and on
13 January 16, 1970, they were blessed with a daughter, Vikkeda
14 E'lisa Jacque Bass; and
15 WHEREAS, After several relocations, the Mt. Olive Baptist
16 Missionary Baptist Church found its present home at 5729-43
17 West Chicago Avenue, which includes underground parking; and
18 WHEREAS, Pastor Bass has been the founder and pastor of
19 Mt. Olive Missionary Baptist Church for the entire 45 years,
20 with this year being his 45th Anniversary Celebration and
21 81st Birthday Celebration; therefore, be it
22 RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
23 NINETY-SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
24 we congratulate Pastor James Bass on his 45th anniversary at
25 Mt. Olive Missionary Baptist Church and on his 81st birthday;
26 and be it further
27 RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
28 presented to Reverend James Bass and the Mt. Olive Missionary
29 Baptist Church as an expression of our esteem.