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SENATE RESOLUTION


 
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    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to  
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learn of the death of
Royal Walter Lauing of Naperville, who 
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passed away on June 28, 2007; and

 
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    WHEREAS, Royal Walter Lauing was born on November 18, 1921 
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in Blunt, South Dakota; his parents were Walter and Victoria 
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Lauing; and

 
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    WHEREAS, Royal Walter Lauing and his  family moved to 
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Belmont when he was  five years old; there he attended Puffer 
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Elementary, then graduated from Downers North High School in 
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1941; he enlisted in the United States Army immediately after 
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graduation, serving in General George Patton's 6th Armored 
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Division, 3rd Army, 25th Engineers Battalion in Europe during 
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the Second World War; his "Super Sixers" unit saw combat in The 
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Battle of the Bulge and participated in the liberation of 
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Buchenwald; after the war he made three pilgrimages to the 
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Patton Museum in the Mohave Desert in California and rode to 
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Washington, D.C. on The Journey to Honor trip to witness the 
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dedication of the WWII Memorial; and

 
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    WHEREAS, After the Second World War, Royal Walter Lauing 
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worked as a mechanic for his uncle at the Burgess Motor Garage 
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on Washington Street in downtown Naperville, where he met his 
 


 






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future wife Marcianna Miller, who would come in to fuel her 
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car; they were married in 1946 and built a home that Royal 
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lived in for 61 years and where he raised his children; he also 
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worked for his father and learned the bricklayer trade; he 
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started his own sub-contractor business, Royal Lauing Masonry, 
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in the late 1950's; he worked as a builder for 60 years as one 
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of the longest standing members of the Bricklayers and Allied 
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Crafts Workers Local 74; his last major project before 
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retirement was to complete the 16 stone piers of Grand 
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Pavillion of the Naperville Riverwalk and the keystone piers to 
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the west branch promenade; and

 
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    WHEREAS, Royal Walter Lauing was an active member of VFW 
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Post 3879; he volunteered monthly at Hines Veteran's Hospital 
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in the spinal cord ward; he was a volunteer WWII living history 
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speaker with Naperville School District 203's HURRAH (Happy 
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Upbeat Recycled Retirees Actively Helping) Program for 18 
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years; he had taken basic PC computer training at Naperville 
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North High School in 2005, where he proved that "old dogs can 
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learn new tricks"; he was also a member of the Naperville 
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American Legion and took great joy in riding in Memorial Day 
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parades in antique vehicles; he was also a member of the 
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Naperville Heritage Society; and

 
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    WHEREAS, Royal Walter Lauing is survived by his children, 
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Daniel and Carolyn (Mel) Finzer; his granddaughters, Nicole and 
 


 






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Deirdre Finzer; his brother, Donald Lauing; and his sisters, 
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Shirley Phelps and Barbara Kleb; and
 
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    WHEREAS, Royal Walter Lauing will be remembered by all who 
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knew and loved him as an honest, generous businessman with a 
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strong work ethic; therefore, be it
 

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    RESOLVED, BY THE  SENATE OF THE NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL 
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ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn, along with

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his family and friends, the passing of Royal Walter Lauing; and 
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be it further

 
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    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be  
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presented to the family of Royal Walter Lauing as an expression 
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of
  our sympathy.