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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
Leon Finney Sr. of Chicago, who passed 
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away on April 4, 2008; and

 
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    WHEREAS, Leon Finney Sr. was born in 1916 in Mississippi; 
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he was the son of successful funeral home operator  T.J. 
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Huddleston; he moved to Chicago, where his aunt, Bertha Brody, 
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lived; and

 
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    WHEREAS, Leon Finney Sr. was the founder and owner of the 
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Leon's Bar-B-Q chain; he founded the business in 1942, after 
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the police broke up a bookie joint in the basement of a 
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barbecue shop on East Garfield Boulevard in Chicago; after the 
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raid, the owner offered to sell the barbecue restaurant for 
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$700, the price of the refrigerator; after his father wired him 
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the money, he opened Leon's Bar-B-Q, which has since become a 
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staple of Chicago's culinary history and is particularly known 
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for its tangy and sweet barbeque sauce; and

 
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    WHEREAS, Leon Finney Sr. was active in running his popular 
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chain of restaurants until his health began to decline; and

 
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    WHEREAS, Leon Finney Sr. was an active advocate of 
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African-American business and community organizations, helping 
 


 






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numerous African-Americans create many businesses in the City 
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of Chicago and beyond; and

 
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    WHEREAS, Leon Finney Sr. is survived by his six children, 
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Rev. Leon Finney Jr.,  Gwendlyn Woods, Michael, Michelle, Andre, 
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and Zenobia Rene; and his nine grandchildren; and
 
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    WHEREAS, Leon Finney Sr. will be remembered by all who knew 
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and loved him for his dedication to his profession and his 
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willingness to help his fellow entrepreneurs; 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 Leon Finney Sr.; and be 
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it further

 
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    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be 
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presented to the family of Leon Finney Sr. as an expression of 
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our sympathy.