MEMORIAL-BISHOP DR. C. PORTER

Illinois General Assembly - Full Text of SR0598

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SR0598 - 104th General Assembly

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SR0598
LRB104 18078 ECR 31517 r
1
SENATE RESOLUTION

2

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened
3
to learn of the death of Bishop Dr. Claude Porter, who passed
4
away on December 30, 2025; and

5

WHEREAS, Bishop Dr. Porter, the son of James and Corean
6
Porter, was born in Memphis, Tennessee on January 21, 1937; he
7
married Earnestine Walker; he was awarded a doctorate degree
8
in 2002; and

9

WHEREAS, Bishop Dr. Porter entered the ministry at the
10
Greater White Stone Missionary Baptist Church in Memphis in
11
1960; later that year, he was ordained and began serving as
12
assistant pastor at Greater Progressive Missionary Baptist
13
Church in Chicago; he founded Proviso Missionary Baptist
14
Church in Maywood in 1972, where he was consecrated and
15
installed as Bishop in 2005, retiring as senior pastor in
16
2016; and

17

WHEREAS, Bishop Dr. Porter founded the Proviso-Leyden
18
Council for Community Action, Inc. (PLCCA) in 1968; as
19
Founder, President, and CEO, he led the Maywood-based
20
nonprofit to become a cornerstone of community support that
21
serves over 30,000 individuals and families annually across 26
22
municipalities in the Proviso and Leyden Townships, the

SR0598
- 2 -
LRB104 18078 ECR 31517 r
1
broader Chicago metropolitan area, and throughout Illinois,
2
operating with a budget exceeding $9 million and overseeing
3
properties valued at approximately $9.1 million; and

4

WHEREAS, Bishop Dr. Porter was also the Founder and
5
Chairman Emeritus of the Proviso Township Ministerial Alliance
6
Network (PTMAN), a founding member and chairman of Interfaith
7
Illinois, the Founder and President of the Porter Family
8
Center, the president of both Maywood Phoenix Homes and
9
Goodell Place Homes, and a member of the Maywood Rotary since
10
1972; and

11

WHEREAS, Bishop Dr. Porter received numerous awards and
12
honors, including the Pioneer Award from HHS Head Start, the
13
Jefferson Award from Honoring Chicago's Unsung Heroes, the
14
King Legacy Award from American Family Insurance, the Illinois
15
Public Health Emergency Preparedness Award, the Father of the
16
Community Award from the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, the Community
17
Award from Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc., and the MLK Keeper of
18
the Dream Award from the Gospel Tribune, among others; his
19
lifetime of service was further honored by the Village of
20
Maywood with the creation of a commemorative street sign at
21
the intersection of 5th and Madison; and

22

WHEREAS, Bishop Dr. Porter was a religious leader, an
23
organizer, a nonprofit executive, and a mentor who left an

SR0598
- 3 -
LRB104 18078 ECR 31517 r
1
indelible mark on countless individuals across Illinois and
2
the country; and

3

WHEREAS, Bishop Dr. Porter was the husband of Earnestine
4
Porter; the father of the late Debra Ann Strickland, Beverly
5
Smith, and Claudette Harrell; the father-in-law of Jerome
6
Strickland Sr. and Milton Smith; the grandfather of seven; and
7
the great-grandfather of ten; therefore, be it

8

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED FOURTH GENERAL
9
ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of
10
Bishop Dr. Claude Porter and extend our sincere condolences to
11
his family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be it
12
further

13

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
14
presented to the family of Bishop Dr. Claude Porter as an
15
expression of our deepest sympathy.

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