Illinois 2025-2026 Regular Session

Illinois House Bill HR0144 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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3	3	1 HOUSE RESOLUTION
4	4	2 WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
5	5	3 Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of Chicago
6	6	4 Bears principal owner Virginia Halas McCaskey, who passed away
7	7	5 on February 6, 2025; and
8	8	6 WHEREAS, Virginia McCaskey was the eldest child of the
9	9	7 founder of the Chicago Bears and the National Football League
10	10	8 (NFL), George Halas; she received a degree in business
11	11	9 management from Drexel University with the goal of serving as
12	12	10 her father's secretary; she also joined the Pi Sigma Gamma
13	13	11 sorority, the Newman Club, the Panhellenic Council, and the
14	14	12 YWCA; her first memory of attending a Chicago Bears game was at
15	15	13 the age of two, and she attended her first NFL Championship
16	16	14 game at the age of eight; she also attended the 1940 NFL
17	17	15 Championship when the Bears won 73-0 with their infamous "T"
18	18	16 formation; and
19	19	17 WHEREAS, Virginia McCaskey officially served as secretary
20	20	18 of the Bears franchise and as a member of the team's board of
21	21	19 directors; she voted the shares of herself, her children, and
22	22	20 her grandchildren; she and her heirs owned 80% of the Bears,
23	23	21 and the team has been in Halas-McCaskey hands since George
24	24	22 Halas acquired the then Decatur Staleys from A.E. Staley in
25	25	23 1921 and then moved the team to Chicago; and
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34	34	1 WHEREAS, Virginia McCaskey's father originally intended
35	35	2 for her younger brother, George "Mugs" Halas Jr., to inherit
36	36	3 the team; however, Mugs tragically died of a heart attack in
37	37	4 1979; therefore, Virginia was next in line to inherit the
38	38	5 Bears when her father, affectionately known as "Papa Bear",
39	39	6 passed away four years later; and
40	40	7 WHEREAS, During Virginia McCaskey's tenure as owner, the
41	41	8 infamous 1985 Bears won Super Bowl XX in dominant fashion,
42	42	9 beating the New England Patriots by a score of 46-10; this was
43	43	10 two years after the death of her father and was part of a run
44	44	11 of five consecutive NFC North Titles for the Bears from 1984 to
45	45	12 1988; and
46	46	13 WHEREAS, In the later days of her ownership, Virginia
47	47	14 McCaskey became much more of a hands-off owner, leaving the
48	48	15 front office roles to her sons, Michael and George; in 1999,
49	49	16 they hired someone outside of the family to be the team's
50	50	17 president, marking the first time a Halas or McCaskey did not
51	51	18 hold that title; Virginia's husband, Ed, previously served as
52	52	19 chairman and treasurer of the Bears and acted as co-owner
53	53	20 alongside Virginia until his death in 2003; and
54	54	21 WHEREAS, On January 21, 2007, Virginia McCaskey accepted
55	55	22 the NFC Championship trophy that bears her father's name; she
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66	66	1 called it her "happiest day so far" after the Bears had beaten
67	67	2 the New Orleans Saints, leading to their second Super Bowl
68	68	3 appearance; and
69	69	4 WHEREAS, In 2022, Virginia McCaskey was one of ten female
70	70	5 NFL owners; after the death of Arizona Cardinals owner Bill
71	71	6 Bidwill in October 2019, she became the longest tenured owner
72	72	7 in the NFL; and
73	73	8 WHEREAS, With the team that her father built, Virginia
74	74	9 McCaskey was known for being proudly private because she
75	75	10 rarely discussed the business aspect of her life; after
76	76	11 marrying her husband, Ed McCaskey, in 1943, she had 11
77	77	12 children, 21 grandchildren, 40 great-grandchildren, and four
78	78	13 great-great grandchildren; she was a Roman Catholic and
79	79	14 considered faith, family, and football inseparable in her
80	80	15 life; and
81	81	16 WHEREAS, Virginia McCaskey turned 102 on January 5, 2025,
82	82	17 which was the same day of the final Bears game she would ever
83	83	18 see, a win against the Green Bay Packers; she passed away a
84	84	19 month later; therefore, be it
85	85	20 RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
86	86	21 HUNDRED FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
87	87	22 we mourn the passing of Virginia Halas McCaskey and extend our
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98	98	1 sincere condolences to her family, friends, the loyal fans of
99	99	2 the Chicago Bears, and all who knew and loved her; and be it
100	100	3 further
101	101	4 RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
102	102	5 presented to the family of Virginia Halas McCaskey as an
103	103	6 expression of our deepest sympathy.
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