2015 -- S 0849

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2015

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S E N A T E   R E S O L U T I O N

CONGRATULATING DON BOUSQUET ON HIS INDUCTION INTO THE RHODE ISLAND

HERITAGE HALL OF FAME

     Introduced By: Senator V. Susan Sosnowski

     Date Introduced: April 15, 2015

     Referred To: Placed on the Senate Consent Calendar

     WHEREAS, For decades, Rhode Islanders have enjoyed reading Don Bousquet's always

hilarious cartoons which depict daily life in our state and poke gentle humor at our foibles and

idiosyncrasies ranging from our unique accents and our love for "quahogs," "grinders," and

"cabinets," to how we quench our thirst at "bubblers" instead of water fountains; and

     WHEREAS, Mr. Bousquet was born in Pawtucket and raised in South County. He loved

to doodle and draw as a youngster, but didn’t make drawing and art his profession until he

entered his thirties. While working at an unsatisfying job, Mr. Bousquet listened to his wife

Laura's advice, who also happened to be pregnant at the time, and left his job to begin a new life

as a professional artist. Facing the obvious pressure of having to earn a living as fast as possible,

Don quickly began trying to sell his cartoons and drawings, and within one year, he was excelling

at it and by his second year, he was selling his first book; and

     WHEREAS, For the past thirty years, Don Bousquet has become a beloved institution in

Rhode Island. His cartoons have become a part of the fabric and culture of everyday life in our

state and have been published in numerous publications including the Providence Journal, the

Narragansett Times, Yankee Magazine, and in many independent publications; and

     WHEREAS, Mr. Bousquet continues to remain active even though he retired last year

from drawing cartoons. He currently enjoys drawing book illustrations on a volunteer basis for

the Animal Rescue League. He also loves tinkering with his model plane collection at his home, a

hobby that grew out of his childhood love for all things aviation and out of his service in the

United States Navy as an Aerial Photographer. He enjoyed sharing this hobby with his son Nate

with whom he founded Don Bousquet and son Aerial Photography. He currently enjoys

exploring his hobby all over again with his two-year-old granddaughter Norah, while he and his

wife are taking care of her three days a week; and

     WHEREAS, It is fitting that the Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame will induct Don

Bousquet on April 18, 2015, at the Rhodes on the Pawtuxet. Don has, through his art and his

comic chronicles of Rhode Islanders as they live their daily lives, become an indelible part of the

culture of Rhode Island; now, therefore be it

     RESOLVED, That this Senate of the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations

hereby congratulates Don Bousquet on his induction into the Rhode Island Heritage Hall of

Fame; and be it further

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

transmit a duly certified copy of this resolution to Mr. Don Bousquet.

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