MEMORIAL RESOLUTION FOR WILLIAM D. GAINER
WHEREAS, it is with great sadness that members of this Chamber learned of the death of William "Bill" Gainer on Saturday March 16th, 2019 at the age of seventy-nine; and
WHEREAS, the City Council has been informed of his passing by the Honorable Margaret Laurino, Alderman of the 39th Ward; and
WHEREAS, Bill was born in Chicago on December 26, 1939 to loving parents, the late Dorothy Quinn and William Gainer, a second generation Chicago police officer; and
WHEREAS, Bill was raised, along with his six brothers and sisters, in the Roseland community on Chicago's far south side and graduated from St. Ignatius College Prep in 1958 at the age of 16; and
WHEREAS, Bill found his calling early in life when he started working at Illinois Bell in 1960. The following year he joined the Army where he ran phone lines through Texas in the 261st Signal Construction Corps; and
WHEREAS, Bill met the wonderful woman who would become his wife, Gerry at Duffy's Tavern in 1964, beginning what would become a lifetime of shared memories and a shining example of a blessed marriage and partnership; and
WHEREAS, after returning from military service, Bill rejoined Illinois Bell and continued his employment at the company for nearly fifty years, including through its transitions to Ameritech and then AT&T. Bill began as a lineman and worked his way up through every operation of the company -eventually serving as the Director of Government Relations, overseeing some of the biggest events in Chicago that required coordination with AT&T; and
WHEREAS, Bill leveraged his place in the business community with his beloved Irish heritage and became an active member in the City of Chicago and Cork County, Ireland Trade Missions. In October, 2001, Mayor Richard M. Daley appointed Bill as Chairman of the Galway/Chicago Sisters Cities International Program Committee; and
WHEREAS, Bill tremendously enhanced commercial and cultural links between Cook and Cork County which resulted in ongoing trade and political visits focusing on tourism, technology advancement, and biotech. One outgrowth of these collaborations was the establishment of the Cork Convention Bureau in 2007, consisting of forty international ambassadors who promoted Cork as an international location for conferences, congresses, and meetings that subsequently generated millions of dollars of business tourism and international conferences for the county; and
WHEREAS, both in his career and in his community, Bill worked tirelessly in service to others. He was a devoted board member and supporter to Misericordia and Mercy Home, where his sister Rosemary resided. He served on the Southside Irish Parade Committee since its inception and was an executive board member of the Irish Fellowship Club of Chicago. Out of his deep respect for law enforcement, and the fact that a Gainer had served continuously in the Chicago Police Department for over 100 years, he was an active member and strong supporter of the Hundred Club of Cook County; and
WHEREAS, Bill made countless contributions to society in his lifetime, but above all he was a wonderful family man and friend, deeply loved by many for his warm heart, positive outlook, tremendous generosity, fun nature, and his great compassion and support for anyone and anything Irish or Catholic; and
WHEREAS, Bill leaves many to cherish his memories, including: his adoring wife Gerry (nee Lennon); devoted children, Bridget (Dennis Kibby), Nora (Ferdia Doherty), Billy, Maureen (Eamon Reilly), Mary (Peter Wetzel) and Sheila (Patrick Griffin); seventeen cherished grandchildren: Finn, Lily and Mary Kibby; Bebhinn, Aonghus and Maude Doherty; Ella and Will Gainer; Noreen, Brendan, Jack, and Owen Reilly; Rohan, Cormac and Fiona Wentzel; and Patrick and Geraldine Griffin; and his treasured brothers and sisters, Dorothy (the late Hal) Henson, Robert (Christine) Gainer, Patricia (Donald C.P.D. ret.) Wood, and the late Daniel C.P.D. ret., (Patricia), and Rosemary and Thomas Gainer USMC. Bill was the favorite uncle of many dear nieces and nephews and dearly loved by a host of extended family and friends; and
WHEREAS, Bill touched the lives of all who knew him through his warm and loving spirit. He will be deeply missed, but the memory of his character, intelligence, integrity, faith, and compassion will live on in those who knew and loved him, now therefore
BE IT RESOLVED, that we, the Mayor and members of the City Council of the City of Chicago, gathered here this tenth day of April, 2019, do hereby express our deep sorrow on the death of William D. Gainer and express our deepest sympathies to his family and friends; and
MARGARET LAURNINO Alderman, 39th Ward
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that a suitable copy of this resolution be prepared and presented to the family of William D. Gainer as a sign of our honor and respect.
