SR0058 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR0058 LRB094 10799 CSA 41273 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Earl L. Neal, the legendary condemnation lawyer who served as trusted confidant to Mayors' Daley, Bilandic, Byrne, Washington, Sawyer, and Daley passed away February 13, 2005; and

WHEREAS, Earl Neal was a giant of the legal profession, an outstanding educational and civic leader, and a friend and counselor to every Chicago mayor of the last 50 years; he could be counted on to provide wise guidance and leadership; Chicago is a better city because of Earl Neal's contributions in so many areas of its civic life; and

WHEREAS, Though they never bear his name, just about every major public works project built in Chicago in the last 50 years - including the Dan Ryan Expressway, the University of Illinois at Chicago, the United Center, U.S. Cellular Field, the Midway Airport expansion, and the current effort to expand O'Hare - could not have happened without Earl Neal quarterbacking the sometimes unenviable task of clearing a path; and

WHEREAS, The son of Chicago attorney Earl James Neal and Evelyn Neal, a teacher in the Chicago Public Schools, Earl Langdon Neal was born in Chicago on April 16, 1928; he graduated from Englewood High School in 1945 and received his B.A. from the University of Illinois in 1949 and his J.D. from Michigan Law School in 1952; and

WHEREAS, Following his graduation from law school, Earl Neal served briefly in the U.S. Army; in 1955, he joined his father's law firm, Neal & Neal; in 1960, Mr. Neal began working with the Chicago city government and later that year was appointed assistant corporation counsel; in 1962, he accepted the responsibility as principal of his father's law firm after his father was appointed judge; in 1968, he formed his own firm, Earl L. Neal and Associates, and continued to handle trial work for the City of Chicago and other public agencies; and

WHEREAS, In 1975, he was elected President of the University of Illinois Board of Trustees; his election made him the first African-American trustee in the United States; in 1995, Mayor Richard M. Daley appointed him Chairman of the Chicago/Gary Regional Airport Authority; and

WHEREAS, He was the recipient of a host of honors and awards, including the Robert S. Abbott Memorial Award, the Justice John Paul Stevens Award, and the Defender of Justice Award; his community work included membership in the Chicago Urban League, the NAACP, and co-chairmanship of the Teachers Academy for Mathematics and Science; and

WHEREAS, He had a breath of quality so rarely possessed by one individual; he epitomized the qualities of a gentleman; humor, principal, courage and compassion, intelligence and humility, and love for his fellow human beings; he loved the City of Chicago and its citizens and will be remembered for what "he gave back" to others who followed; and

WHEREAS, He married Isobel Hoskins Neal on September 24, 1955 and shared his life with his partner for 49 years; his son, Langdon Neal, serves as chairman of the Chicago Board of Election Commissioners; and

WHEREAS, He spent his leisure time yachting from Florida to the Caribbean to the Carolinas and Lake Michigan and doting on his four grandchildren; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of Earl L. Neal and extend our sincerest condolences to his family, friends, and community; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to his family as an expression of our deepest sympathy.