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Gray gets his day, his highway

By Becky Malkovich, The Southern

Friday, May 9, 2008 4:33 PM CDT

FRANKLIN COUNTY - In typical Ken Gray fashion, the retired congressman accepted the praise delivered to him by the speakers at a ceremony Thursday to dedicate the new Ken Gray Expressway.

"Thank you for all of those kind words. I feel like the old maid that's kissed in the dark; she didn't know where it came from, but she liked it," Gray said. "I don't even know where all that (praise) came from, but I sure did like it."

And with that, Gray began a lively speech during which he not only expressed his gratitude for the renaming of the section of Interstate 57 from mile post 106 at the Marion-Jefferson county line to mile post 0 at the southern state line, but also sang a tune accompanied by an accordion played by his wife, Toedy.

Gray helped draft the legislation that created the Interstate Highway System and through his persuasive efforts, landed mile after mile of interstate for his district.

But that's not all the West Frankfort native did during his tenure as a congressman. He also brought home dollars for a federal prison for Marion, Rend Lake, 120 post offices, nursing homes, hospitals and other infrastructure - more than $7 billion in projects overall.

"This portion of I-57 serves as a dedication to Congressman Gray for his lifetime of service to the people of Southern Illinois," said Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who signed an executive order creating the expressway at the conclusion of the ceremony at the Rend Lake Rest Area on I-57.

"Kenny Gray is a larger-than-life figure, a legendary figure," the governor said. "He is a guy who had style and who knew how to get it done. This is a guy who didn't let niceties or other considerations get in the way of doing the nuts and bolts things that matter to help people back home in his district. He was all about the people of his district: Creating jobs, investing in infrastructure, getting Southern Illinois' share out of Washington and making sure he brought it back home. Whatever it took to get that done, he did it. And it's the results that matter, and the results speak for themselves."

Ed Smith, formerly of Laborers' International Union of North America, came up with the idea for the expressway and contacted state Sen. Gary Forby for assistance.

"I was driving to Springfield on a Sunday and it struck me. We wouldn't have interstate highways if it had not been for Kenny Gray. Why don't we have an interstate named after our own Kenny Gray," said Smith, who is taking over as head of ULLICO Inc., labor's own insurance and financial services company. "No individual has ever brought more jobs, and we've had great legislators, no one has done more to put people to work in good-paying jobs than Kenny Gray. Nobody. What an honor it is to be here to honor someone we could never repay."

Forby said when he got Smith's call, he said, "Why didn't I think of that? I went to the governor and said we need to get this done.

"This interstate and the economic development all up and down it, this lake, none of this would be here without Kenny Gray," Forby said. "He is the type of guy who could make things happen. This is why I'm so proud to be here today to dedicate the Ken Gray Expressway."

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