Chicago Area Local News

CHICAGO (CBS) ― Longtime Cook County Board President John H. Stroger Jr. has died at the age of 78.

Stroger will be remembered as the first African-American President of the Cook County Board, but he considered the public hospital bearing his name, his greatest legacy. 

It was Mayor Richard M. Daley who broke the news of Stroger's death to the movers and shakers at the city's annual breakfast honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, and in a sense, to the city at large. It was an appropriate moment, said Rev. Jesse Jackson, because both King and Stroger, were people's champions.

"John Stroger believed strongly in the common people," Jackson said.

People who even Friday flooded in and out of the billion-dollar public hospital that John Stroger fought against long odds to build, and that rightfully bears his name.

"It helps a lot of people in the Chicago area that don't have insurance and stuff," said Stroger hospital patient Rosetta Hopkins.

People like Brandi Hill, whose child was born at Stroger Hospital, said, "I have no where, no other area to go to, other than this hospital."

"John was just trying to help people,' said former Illinois Attorney General Roland Burris. "His whole thing was making sure families were provided for."

And others told stories of Stroger's rise from humble beginnings to become a political power.

"To come from Arkansas, to become a member of the Democratic organization, worked his way up, his loyalty to friends that helped him -- helped propel him to the presidency of the county board," said State Senate Majority Leader Emil Jones.

It was a loyalty to the Democratic party, and both mayors Daley.

"Many times today, you see people in politics, people are so mean and bitter to one another," Daley said. "He never had that."

And at the heart of his political powerhouse, the south side 8th ward, his political proteges recalled not Stroger's clout, but his kindness.

"He really knew how to treat people," said Democratic State Rep. Marlow Colvin. "He made them feel comfortable in his presence."

Colvin is close to the Stroger family, and is best friends with John Stroger's son, current county board president Todd Stroger. Colvin said lots of politicians today are talking about universal health care, but John Stroger made it a reality, at the county hospital.

Stroger was respected by people across the county, but he was also adored by the people in the 8th ward – the south side ward where Stroger started his political career. It's where he lived with his wife and children; it's where he shopped, got his hair cut and ate. It's where everybody knew and loved him.

Izola's Restaurant in the 8th ward is where the family would come on Sundays. Table 11 is affectionately called Stroger's table. The late county board president whose pictures adorn the walls along side other powerful politicians, has been a favorite there for 30 years.

"I'm gonna miss him," said Izola White, owner of the restaurant."We could always look for him to come and have breakfast and everybody would speak his name."

And his favorite foods -- he loved pork chops, fried chicken and stewed chicken and dumplings. And he liked people. Everybody was the same, everybody was important to him.

"That's what I liked about him," said White. "He never thought he was over this little guy. That's what I liked. He never forgot from whence he came." 

"I can always think of him as John Stroger, cook county hospital and he's been very supportive of those with low incomes, those who needs jobs, he was always there for them," said Almeta Woods, a resident of the 8th ward.

The last time folks in the ward remember seeing Stroger was the week before the March Primary in 2006. That was about the time he suffered the stroke. Stroger suffered a stroke, shortly after winning the Democratic primary for what would have been a fourth term as County Board president. He had also battled diabetes, prostate cancer and heart disease.

Mr. Stroger's son, Todd Stroger, took his place on the ballot for the 2006 general election, and was elected County Board president that November.

Mr. Stroger was born on May 19, 1929, in Helena, Arkansas, where he literally picked cotton as a little boy in the scorching heat of the Mississippi Delta. He later graduated from Xavier University in New Orleans with a degree in business administration, and moved on to teach school and coach basketball.

But at his mother's encouragement, Mr. Stroger moved 600 miles north to Chicago in 1953. He connected with legendary Congressman Bill Dawson, and took his first civil service positions as an assistant auditor with the Municipal Court of Chicago.

Later, Mr. Stroger served as personnel director of Cook County Jail and financial director for the State of Illinois. He earned a law degree from DePaul University in 1965, and was elected committeeman of the South Side's 8th Ward in 1968.

In 1970, Mr. Stroger was elected to the Cook County Board. Early on, he fought for higher pay for County Board members.

He was elected the board's first African-American president in 1994, with the backing of Mayor Daley.

As board president, Mr. Stroger was an advocate of providing health care and essential services to the needy, often noting that Cook County government was the "government of last resort" for many of the urban poor.

Among Mr. Stroger's most notable achievements was the replacement of the 88-year-old Cook County Hospital with a $623 million new facility which bore his name. John H. Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County opened in December 2002.

But to pay for government services, Mr. Stroger frequently advocated tax increases, which caused contention with some commissioners on the board. Some commissioners accused Stroger of running a bloated government loaded with patronage jobs, and succeeded in defeating his proposed tax hikes in 2004 and 2005.

Mr. Stroger often boasted of his ability to place his supporters on public payrolls -- but said he never attempted to get a government job for anyone who wasn't qualified.

"If I brought anybody in and they didn't have the qualifications -- just because they were part of the political organization -- I would be cheating myself as president of the county board and the constituents," he once said.

Mr. Stroger also was known for his steadfast loyalty to fellow long-time party leaders, including current Mayor Daley, who reciprocated whenever he campaigned for office. That loyalty often placed him at odds with Chicago's black community, especially when independent black candidates like Harold Washington and Barack Obama challenged party-endorsed candidates.

Almost from the start as County Board President, there were concerns about Mr. Stroger's personal health.

First was his weight. After Princess Diana noted Mr. Stroger's girth during her visit to Chicago in 1996, he publicly went on a diet.

"We were trying to go through a narrow place and she bumped me she said, 'Excuse me but that stomach is fat,' or something like that," Mr. Stroger said in June 1996. "I'm one of these guys who's always on a diet but never accomplishes a goal."

In November 2002, Mr. Stroger was taken away from a County Board meeting in an ambulance after his blood sugar became low and he became disoriented.

After Mr. Stroger suffered his stroke, which resulted in partial paralysis, his campaign for reelection continued despite rumors that he had been left incapacitated. In June 2006, Mr. Stroger resigned as County Board president, and Todd Stroger was slated to take his place on the ballot.

In addition to his son Todd, Mr. Stroger is also survived by his wife, Yonnie, and a daughter, Yonnie Lynn. Another son, Hans, died of an asthma attack at the age of 22.

Visitation for Mr. Stroger will be held on Tuesday, Jan. 22, from noon until 8 p.m., at St. Columbanus Church, 331 E. 71st St. A funeral mass will follow on Wednesday, Jan. 23, at 11 a.m., following two hours of viewing. The fuenral will be held at St. Felicitas Church, 1526 E. 84th St.

CBS 2 Political Editor Mike Flannery, Derrick Blakley, Dorothy Tucker and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

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