City Council Pays Tribute To Maggie Daley
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Two months after her death, former Chicago First Lady Maggie Daley was honored by the City Council.
WBBM Newsradio Political Editor Craig Dellimore reports aldermen approved a resolution paying her tribute on Wednesday.
Aldermen praised and remembered Maggie Daley for almost an hour, repeatedly mentioning her radiant smile and her commitment to the city's children.
LISTEN: WBBM Newsradio Political Editor Craig Dellimore reports
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Ald. Edward Burke (14th) said she left the city in better shape than how she first found it.
"She made it more civil, more artistic, more compassionate, more courageous, more heroic and more sensitive to the lives of the vulnerable and their needs," Burke said.
Ald. Danny Solis (25th) amplified the point.
"She was an outstanding lady that cared about Chicago, but also cared about individuals," Solis said.
Ald. Timothy Cullerton (38th) said Maggie Daley helped shape the Chicago of today.
"Mrs. Daley's hand was in everything here in our city; the beautiful flowers, the planters, the art. So we can't be sad that she's gone, we have to be happy that we had her," Cullerton said.
Ald. Patrick O'Connor (40th) said Maggie Daley truly touched the people she met.
"She had the ability to make everybody feel that the moments they spent with her were special to her. She could talk to you and really give you the idea that she really was concerned and cared," O'Connor said. "And at first, I thought 'what a remarkable talent.' And then when you realized it was genuine, it was all the more, like, amazing to me."
Former Mayor Richard M. Daley did not attend Wednesday's council meeting. A spokeswoman said he feared getting too emotional. His daughter, Nora Daley Conroy, represented the Daley family.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel told Conroy that her mother was truly the "heart of Chicago."
"The meaning of sharing her with us was because she treated every other child of Chicago as if it was one of her own and that's what made her such a special person," Emanuel said. "While she had obviously – and you know this – special love for all the kids of the family and for her grandchildren, she was a unique person because she left enough room in her heart for all the other children who she treated as if they were her own."
The resolution was approved on what's known as a rising vote. All the aldermen stood in tribute as they approved the honor for Maggie Daley.
