First domestic partners of 2005 honored

Monday, January 03, 2005

Cook County Clerk David Orr today recognized the first same-sex couple of the new year to sign the county’s Domestic Partnership registry.

Julie Rodriguez, 30, of Park Ridge and Jamillah Crawford, 31, of Park Ridge were the first domestic partners to sign the Cook County registry in 2005.

The Clerk’s office has been issuing Domestic Partnership certificates only since Cook County initiated the program Oct. 1, 2003.

The Clerk’s office gave the new domestic partners donated gift certificates redeemable for: a weekend stay at the Palmer House Hilton, dinner at Petterino’s restaurant, and a pair of tickets to the Goodman Theatre’s opening of “Silk.”

The county’s Domestic Partnership Registry allows same-sex couples living in Chicago and suburban Cook County to formally document their partnerships. It is intended to make it easier to obtain insurance and other benefits from companies that offer them to partners of gay and lesbian employees.

The Clerk’s office issued 278 partnership certificates in 2004 and has now issued a total of 577 since October 2003.