First domestic partners of 2006 honored

Saturday, January 07, 2006

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

Drew McLeod and David DeBoer were the first domestic partners to sign the Cook County registry in 2006. The couple registered on Thursday morning.

They live in Chicago’s Lincoln Square neighborhood with their daughter.

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

The Clerk’s office gave the new domestic partners donated gift certificates redeemable for: a night’s stay at the Chicago Hilton & Towers, dinner at Caro Mio restaurant, and a pair of tickets to a show at Steppenwolf Theatre.

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 has now issued a total of 775 partnership certificates since October 2003.