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1		HOUSE RESOLUTION
2		WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3		Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of Dr.
4		Russell R. Dohner of Rushville, who passed away on August 7,
5		2015; and
6		WHEREAS, Dr. Dohner was born on a farm outside of Vermont
7		on February 8, 1925 to David Robert and Ethel May (nee Rowland)
8		Dohner; he graduated from Vermont High School in 1943; he was
9		drafted by the United States Army in the Spring of 1944, and
10		from 1944 to 1946, he served in the military police unit,
11		guarding the Pentagon and seeing such notables as President
12		Harry Truman and General Dwight D. Eisenhower; he was then
13		placed in the medical detachment of a battalion, rising to the
14		rank of Staff Sergeant; and
15		WHEREAS, In 1946, Dr. Dohner became one of the first 4
16		pre-med students at Western Illinois Teacher's College
17		(Western Illinois University), where he attended from 1946 to
18		1949 on the GI Bill and lived and worked at the
19		Dodsworth-Piper-Wallen Funeral Home in Macomb; he graduated
20		from Northwestern University in 1953 with his medical degree
21		and served as Cardiology Internist at St. Luke's Hospital in
22		1954; in 1955, he moved to Rushville and practiced medicine for
23		58 years until October 31, 2013; and

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1		WHEREAS, Dr. Dohner attracted national attention beginning
2		in the early 1970s due to his $2.00 office visit fee, which at
3		that time was being revised to $3.00; the fee was later raised
4		to $5.00 per office visit, which remained his office fee until
5		his practice concluded in 2013; he regularly did house calls
6		and since no appointments were taken at his office, names went
7		on a list and he would see patients in sequential order until
8		everyone had been seen; if a patient was feeling really sick,
9		they came through the back door for quicker attention; he would
10		also see patients who came to his home; he delivered over 3,500
11		babies in Rushville and encouraged many young people to enter
12		the medical field; and
13		WHEREAS, Dr. Dohner was a regular church attendee at First
14		United Methodist Church in Rushville; he was a member of the
15		Rushville Rotary Club, where he earned his 37-year perfect
16		attendance pin and was a Paul Harris Fellow; he was also a
17		member of the Masons; he enjoyed singing both at church and at
18		the Rotary Club, growing flowers and trees, and fishing; for
19		years, his Rushville home and his cabin located outside of
20		Rushville were the hub of social events for family and friends;
21		and
22		WHEREAS, Dr. Dohner received a number of awards and
23		recognitions over the years, including the Western Illinois

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1		University Alumni Achievement Award in 1982, the Western
2		Illinois University Distinguished Alumni Award in 1990, the
3		Illinois Public Health Association Distinguished Service Award
4		in 1998, the Illinois Pfizer Quality of Care Award in 2002, the
5		Illinois "Doc Hollywood Award" in 2005, the Western Illinois
6		University Honorary Doctorate Award in 2006, and the
7		Northwestern University Service to Society Award in 2015; he
8		was the recipient of the Illinois Department on Aging's Hall of
9		Fame award presented at the Governor's Mansion in Springfield
10		in 2013; he was second runner-up in the "Country Doctor of the
11		Year" national award in 2004; and
12		WHEREAS, In 2004, Rushville celebrated "Dr. Dohner Day",
13		honoring his 50 years of service to community; in 2013, he
14		served as grand marshal of the Illinois State Fair Parade in
15		Springfield and was honored by Rushville with a ceremony and a
16		bronze statue with his likeness, located in the Rushville
17		Central Park Square; he was the subject of the United States
18		Congressional Record, Volume 159, Issue 180, titled "Tribute to
19		Dr. Russell Dohner" by Senator Dick Durbin (2013); he was
20		included in Bob Dotson's book, American Story: A Lifetime
21		Search for Ordinary People Doing Extraordinary Things
22		(published in 2013); he appeared on NBC's "Today Show", on CNN,
23		and was featured twice in People Magazine; and
24		WHEREAS, Dr. Dohner was a man of humility; he would say

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1		that what he valued most was providing service to others, and
2		that his most cherished "prizes" were the homegrown, canned,
3		baked, and crafted items - including cards, letters, and
4		children's crayoned notes - which were shared with him over the
5		years by patients; and
6		WHEREAS, Dr. Dohner was preceded in death by his parents;
7		his brother, Robert Dohner; his 3 sisters, Clarice Dohner,
8		Norma Dohner, and Beula Garrabrant; his 3 brothers-in-law,
9		Wendell Copes, Bob Garrabrant, and Lester Goodwin; his
10		sister-in-law, Beulah Gibble Dohner; and his nephew, Michael
11		Garrabrant; and
12		WHEREAS, Dr. Dohner is survived by his 2 sisters, Doris
13		(Ronald) Cook and Lydia Goodwin; his 10 nieces and nephews,
14		Sandy (Jeff) Belden, Barb (Gary) Bray, Mary Ann Cook (Joe
15		Cusumano), Ramona Cook, David Dohner, Mark Dohner, Martha (Lee)
16		Fillingham, Jim (Eva) Garrabrant, Marilyn (Garry) Johnson, and
17		Linda (Michael) Kuehl; his 13 great-nieces and nephews; and his
18		14 great-great-nieces and nephews; therefore, be it
19		RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
20		NINETY-NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we
21		mourn the passing of Dr. Russell R. Dohner, and extend our
22		sincere condolences to his family, friends, and all who knew
23		and loved him; and be it further

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1		RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
2		presented to the family of Dr. Dohner as an expression of our
3		deepest sympathy.