[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 168 (Thursday, November 14, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6577-S6578]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              REMEMBERING
                           BILLY LAWLESS, SR.

  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, when many people think of Chicago, they 
think of Irish culture. Chicago's Irish American community is a 
thriving, invaluable part of the city. And no person represented the 
rich marriage of cultures more than my friend Billy Lawless. So, it is 
with great sadness that I share the news of his passing.
  Though Billy's path would later take him to Illinois, much of his 
life was spent in Ireland. A native of Galway, Billy grew up in a 
family that owned pubs and a hotel, instilling in him a passion for the 
hospitality industry

[[Page S6578]]

from a young age. He long harbored dreams of opening a restaurant in 
the United States, but it was not until 1998--on the heels of his 
daughter earning a rowing scholarship at Boston University--that Billy 
made this dream a reality. He and his family moved to Chicago, and 
Billy soon fell deeply in love with the city, a love affair that would 
last until his final days.
  In Chicago, Billy combined his love for the restaurant industry with 
his love for Ireland, opening the bar, the Irish Oak, in the 
Wrigleyville neighborhood. In the wake of the bar's success, he opened 
several other bars and restaurants across the city, establishing 
himself as a mainstay of Chicago culture and eventually creating the 
Gage Hospitality Group. But what made Billy special was that he 
channeled his business power into political power, using his growing 
success to give back to both Chicago and America's Irish communities.
  Namely, Billy became a fierce advocate for undocumented Irish 
immigrants and a staunch proponent of immigration reform. In pursuit of 
these ends, he was a board member and cofounder of the Illinois 
Business Immigration Coalition, chair of the Chicago Celts for 
Immigration Reform, and he was a leader of the Illinois Coalition of 
Immigrant and Refugee Rights. In short, he was a tireless champion of 
the Irish diaspora in the United States. It was over the matter of 
immigration reform--a matter to which I have devoted a large portion of 
my policy efforts over my career in public office--that Billy and I 
bonded. His work on immigrant and refugee rights in Chicago was 
invaluable. We all owe him a debt of gratitude.
  Even from across the Atlantic Ocean, his commitment to the Irish 
people remained steadfast. And this did not go unnoticed. In 2015, 
Billy joined the ranks of those such as President John F. Kennedy when 
he was made a Freeman of Galway, an honorary title given to valued 
members of the community. In 2016, then-Taoiseach Enda Kenny nominated 
Billy to the Seanad, the Irish Senate, where he served one term as a 
member of the Seanad Independent Group. In this role, he served as an 
overseas Irish Senator for the Irish diaspora, the first person ever to 
hold that title. In that role, he gave voice to the hundreds of 
thousands of Irish men and women living in the U.S. and across the 
world.
  In a lot of ways, Billy represents the American dream. He came to 
this country with hope for prosperity. And he quickly found it. But, 
despite his success, he never forgot where he came from. To the 
contrary--it was his love for Ireland, his passion for the rights of 
immigrants and refugees, and his commitment to making sure America 
lived up to its ideals that motivated him to give back to both of the 
countries he considered home. He was a businessman of integrity, a 
political force to be reckoned with, and most importantly, a genuinely 
good man. In asking how he could use his position to give back, he made 
our Nation better.
  My wife Loretta and I send our deepest condolences to Billy's wife 
Anne; his four children Amy, Clodagh, Billy Jr., and John Paul; and his 
eight grandchildren on their tremendous loss. Billy was a lot of 
things. But he took most pride in being a loving husband, father, and 
grandfather.
  Though we will no longer get to feel the warmth of his embrace, and 
though we will certainly feel the pain of his loss, Billy's remarkable 
legacy will live on across oceans--in pints of beer and the fight for 
immigration reform alike. We will miss him dearly.

                          ____________________