'A political giant has passed'

A political giant has passed from the scene. Even though many residents in this area today may not be familiar with her name, former state Sen. Virginia Macdonald, who passed away last week, helped make the Northwest suburbs a powerful political force in Illinois.

Virginia's long and dedicated service extended far beyond the reaches of her district. While she was always attentive to her immediate constituent needs, she recognized that the entire Northwest suburban community was a vibrantly growing region. She cast votes in the General Assembly that supported that growth and that helped our local municipalities in so many ways.

The state resources in support of Lake Arlington, the state legislation needed for cooperative intergovernmental agreements, the state funds so important to our local social service agencies and to our local school districts - all of these and so much more Virginia played a role in.

Virginia served with distinction as a delegate to the Illinois Constitutional Convention in 1970, which resulted in a major revision and modernization of our state constitution. She then served for 10 years in the Illinois House of Representatives and 10 years in the Illinois Senate. She was always responsive to the needs of those she served and her quiet effectiveness made her a force in the Illinois General Assembly. She was not a sharp partisan as describes so many in the legislature today; she was a genuine public servant.

I was proud to have served in the Illinois House for 10 years while Ginny was in the Senate. I got to know her well, and her advice and counsel were always sound and grounded in what was best for the people of our districts.

She made her mark the way few others have, and she will be missed.

David Harris

Arlington Heights