Sen. Craig Wilcox (R-McHenry) | Craig Wilcox/Facebook
Sen. Craig Wilcox (R-McHenry) | Craig Wilcox/Facebook
State Sen. Craig Wilcox (R-McHenry) is looking forward to a new law that offers free Gold Star license plates to Illinois Gold Star families beginning Jan. 1.
“This is a great new benefit for surviving widows, widowers and parents who have loved ones who were lost in the line of duty,” Wilcox said in a post to Facebook.
The option will also be available to the parent of a person who served in the U.S. Armed Forces and lost his or her life while in wartime service. Prior to the new law going into effect, families were charged a $151 registration fee for such specialty plates.
The term gold star originated during World War I when family members began replacing blue stars in their windows with gold ones if their service member died in service. The gold star let the community know that their service member died or was killed while serving their country.
As part of its gratitude, the country now recognizes gold star survivors in ways that include designating the last Sunday of September as Gold Star Mother’s and Family’s Day and recognizing April 5 as Gold Star Spouses Day.
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