Bill Text: IL SR0501 | 2023-2024 | 103rd General Assembly | Introduced

---

Bill Title: Mourns the death of George E. Hopkins, Ph.D.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Passed) 2023-10-26 - Resolution Adopted [SR0501 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2023-SR0501-Introduced.html

---

SR0501 LRB103 34600 ECR 64438 r
SENATE RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened
to learn of the death of George E. Hopkins, Ph.D., who passed
away on September 28, 2023; and
WHEREAS, George Hopkins was born to Homer and Lillian Hunt
Hopkins in Shawnee, Oklahoma on March 6, 1937; while residing
in Texas, he graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School in 1955
and Southern Methodist University in 1959; he joined the U.S.
Navy Reserve during high school and attended Officer Training
School while in college; after college, he was commissioned as
an ensign in the U.S. Navy; he applied for flight training and
was assigned to the patrol squadron PATRON 50 in Iwakuni,
Japan for a three-year tour of duty, where he piloted a U.S.
Navy P5M seaplane; he married Elaine Bridges in Dallas, Texas
in 1959; he earned his Ph.D. in History from the University of
Texas at Austin; and
WHEREAS, George Hopkins was hired by Western Illinois
University in 1968, where he taught lecture classes on the
Vietnam War and U.S. presidential assassinations, as well as
many other subjects, until his retirement in 2007; and
WHEREAS, George Hopkins authored the book The Airline
Pilots: A Study in Elite Unionization, published by Harvard

SR0501 - 2 - LRB103 34600 ECR 64438 r
University Press in 1971; he also authored Flying the Line,
Volumes I and II, published in 1982 and 2000, respectively,
published by the Airline Pilots Association, where he served
as a consultant; and
WHEREAS, George Hopkins was named Professor of the Year by
Western Illinois University students in 1979 and Distinguished
Faculty Lecturer by his colleagues in 2003; and
WHEREAS, George Hopkins was a member of the Macomb Flyers;
and
WHEREAS, George Hopkins and his wife shared a wide variety
of interests, including traveling, biking, skiing, reading,
attending live theater, and touring museums; and
WHEREAS, George Hopkins is survived by his wife; his
children, Jennifer (Paul) Wheeler and Paul W. Hopkins; his
grandchildren, Sam (Carolyn) Wheeler, Joey (Stephanie)
Wheeler, Jack (Karen) Wheeler, and Breanna Hopkins; his
great-grandchildren, Lillian Elaine and Charles Robert; and
one great-grandchild on the way; therefore, be it
RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL
ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of
George E. Hopkins, Ph.D. and extend our sincere condolences to

SR0501 - 3 - LRB103 34600 ECR 64438 r
his family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be it
further