TRIBUTE TO NORMA IDA REYES
WHEREAS, In His Infinite Wisdom, Almighty God has granted Norma Ida Reyes, an outstanding public servant and member of her community, eternal rest on May 6, 2013; and
WHEREAS, On July 5, 1956, Norma Reyes started life as one of seven children born to Clara Luz Reyes and grew up in the Humboldt Park community. When she was a teenager, she was taken in by foster parents, Paddy and Barry McNamara, who were both attorneys and she followed in their footsteps, earning both her Bachelors and Juris Doctorate degrees from the University of Notre Dame; and
WHEREAS, Norma Reyes spent nine years in the Cook County State's Attorney's Office, rising through the ranks to eventually become Supervisor of the Juvenile Division. In 1990, she became chief assistant corporation counsel and eventually a deputy corporation counsel in the Law Department under incoming Mayor Richard M. Daley; and
WHEREAS, In 2001, Norma Reyes served as deputy chief of staff for the Mayor. In 2003, she was appointed Commissioner of the Department of Buildings and, in 2004, Commissioner of the Department of Consumer Services (that became the Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection in 2008) where she remained until her retirement in 2011; and
WHEREAS, Norma Reyes never forgot her Puerto Rican roots and was a generous contributor to scholarship funds for young Latinos. Her other civic contributions included serving as past President of the Puerto Rican Bar Association as well as being on the boards of the Institute of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture, Chicago Abused Women Coalition, and Access Living. Her professional affiliations included membership in the Chicago Bar Association, the International Association of Transportation Regulators, the Chicago Council of Lawyers and the City Club of Chicago; and
WHEREAS, Norma Ida Reyes leaves behind to celebrate her memory and mourn her loss her loving sister Lillian, her brothers, attorney Edwin Reyes, Barry (and his wife ...
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