State Senator A.J. Wilhelmi (D-Joliet) will speak on the "Current Illinois Budget Crisis"  at the Joliet Rotary Club lunch meeting on March 22, 2011 at 12 noon.  All Rotarians and guests are encouraged to attend.
He was first appointed in January 2005 and then elected in November 2006 and 2010 to represent the communities of the 43rd Senate District, which encompasses a northwestern portion of Will County.  Born in Joliet, Illinois on May 14, 1968, Senator Wilhelmi has lived in Will County all of his life.  He currently resides in Joliet with his wife, Michelle and their three daughters.
 
Senator Wilhelmi attended St. Paul the Apostle Elementary School and Joliet Catholic High School.  In 1986, Wilhelmi enrolled at Loyola University of Chicago, and in 1990 graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts Degree with a major in English and minors in Philosophy and Political Science.
 
In June 1993, Wilhelmi graduated from Chicago-Kent College of Law.  After passing the Illinois State Bar Examination in October, Wilhelmi was sworn in as an attorney on November 3, 1993.  From November 1993 to March 2008, Wilhelmi practiced law with the McKeown Law Firm, specializing in real estate and business law.  In April 2008, Wilhelmi joined Murer Consultants, Inc. as a senior consultant.  Recently, the firm launched the law firm of Murer, Brick & Wilhelmi, LLC, with a focus in real estate and business law.
 
Senator Wilhelmi brings a breadth of community service experience to the Senate.  In 1996, Wilhelmi co-sponsored the building of the 13th Will County Habitat for Humanity home, and served on the Family Support Committee.  In addition, Senator Wilhelmi served as Chairman of the Board for the Joliet Region Chamber of Commerce in 2003 after serving in a variety of other posts for the organization.  In 2001 and 2002, Wilhelmi chaired the Diplomats Committee for the Will County Center for Economic Development.  Senator Wilhelmi has also been active with his alma mater, Joliet Catholic.  Senator Wilhelmi served as president of the JCA Alumni Board from 1999 to 2001.  Senator Wilhelmi also served for three years (2002, 2003, and 2004) on the Board of the Joliet Grade Schools Foundation for Educational Excellence.
 
Senator Wilhelmi serves as chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee.  He is vice chairman of the Senate Agriculture & Conservation Committee and a member of the Senate Transportation, Gaming, and Criminal Law Committees.  During the 95th General Assembly he served as the chairman of the Judiciary Criminal Law Committee and a member of the Senate Education, Agriculture and Conservation, Appropriations II, and Judiciary Civil Law Committees.  He also serves on the Supreme Court’s Special Committee on Illinois Evidence.
 
In 2009, Governor Quinn appointed Senator Wilhelmi as an Illinois delegate to the Uniform Law Commission, a national group of lawyers who draft and adopt uniform laws to be enacted in state legislatures across the country.  The most recognizable statutes which originated with the Uniform Law Commission are the Uniform Commercial Code and the Uniform Probate Act.
 
Locally, Senator Wilhelmi is the chairman of the Collins Street Task Force and a member of the Will County Center for Community Concerns and the Local Emergency Planning Committees.
 
The 43rd Senate District includes all or part of the following communities:  Bolingbrook, Channahon, Crest Hill, Elwood, Joliet, Lockport, Manhattan, Naperville, Rockdale, Romeoville and Shorewood.