2008 -- H 7088

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LC00269

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STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2008

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H O U S E R E S O L U T I O N

EXPRESSING DEEPEST CONDOLENCES ON THE PASSING OF THE HONORABLE

DENNIS M. LYNCH

     Introduced By: Representatives Kilmartin, E Coderre, Murphy, Fox, and McCauley

     Date Introduced: January 09, 2008

     Referred To: House read and passed

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     WHEREAS, It is with great sadness that this House has learned of the passing of The

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Honorable Dennis M. Lynch, former Mayor of the City of Pawtucket, and longtime state and

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community leader; and

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     WHEREAS, Born and raised in Pawtucket, Dennis Lynch was the son of the late William

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and Anna Lynch. He graduated from St. Raphael Academy, attained his Bachelor’s degree from

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Providence College, and later attended Boston College of Law. He also served in the United

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States Coast Guard; and

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     WHEREAS, Mr. Lynch became a partner in William J. Lynch and Sons, a real estate and

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insurance company started by his father, and in 1973 was sworn in as the Mayor of Pawtucket.

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Following almost five terms as mayor, Mayor Lynch became Director of the Division of

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Purchasing for the state. In 2003, he retired from state service; and

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     WHEREAS, Mayor Lynch was the devoted husband of Irene (MacIsaac) Lynch, and

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together they raised seven children in an often boisterous and always loving home. He was a

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devoted father and father-in-law to State Democratic Chairman William Lynch and his wife

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Lynn, John Lynch and his wife Mary-Kathryn, Rhode Island Attorney General Patrick Lynch, the

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late Dennis Lynch, Jr. and his wife Laura, Ann Dugan and her husband Richard, Linda Lynch,

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and Pawtucket City Solicitor Margaret Lynch-Gadaleta and Patricia Ann Lynch-Gadaleta; and

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     WHEREAS, Children were always a priority, whether raising his own, or enjoying the

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company of his seventeen grandchildren, Dylan, Tara, Susan, Devin, Jarred, Blair, Kelsey,

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Graham, Blaine, Elizabeth, Jonathan, Katlyn, Teresa, Keenan, Owen, Daniel, and Liole. Mayor

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Lynch could often be found watching them play basketball and various sports, as well as

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coaching for quite a few years. The City of Pawtucket, in a very fitting tribute, named the Dennis

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Lynch Skating Arena in his honor; and

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     WHEREAS, Always an active and contributing member of the community, Mayor Lynch

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was active with a number of boards and local organizations. He was involved with the

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Blackstone Valley Chamber of Commerce, the Delaney 4th Degree Assembly of Knights of

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Columbus, the Boys and Girls club of Pawtucket, the Pawtucket Tricentennial Committee, and

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the Rhode Island Heart Fund; and

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     WHEREAS, Service to the community and the betterment of our state is a trait that

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Mayor Lynch encouraged in his family. His progeny hold the titles of Attorney General,

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Democratic State Chairman and City Solicitor. His son Patrick summed his dad up best when he

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said, “He instilled in my brothers and sisters and me the value of public service, teaching us to do

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well by doing good and to stand up for the people who can’t stand up for themselves. Even more

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importantly, however, by his own example, he showed us how family matters more than anything

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else in life and how life is meant to be lived to the fullest, which is certainly how he lived his

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life”; now, therefore be it

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     RESOLVED, That this House of Representatives of the State of Rhode Island Providence

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Plantations hereby expresses our deepest sympathies on the passing of The Honorable Dennis M.

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Lynch; and be it further

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     RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and he hereby is authorized and directed to

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transmit duly certified copies of this resolution to Irene Lynch and Family.

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LC00269

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