LEGEND & PIONEER Leaving Behind Legacy of Excellence John W. Rogers Sr.

John Rogers, Sr. (Photo: Rogers family) LEGEND & PIONEER Leaving Behind Legacy of Excellence Correspondent: MG Media John W. Rogers Sr. was a member of the famed Tuskegee Airmen during World War IIand went on to a successful legal career capped by 21 years as a Cook County Juvenile Court judge. Mr. Rogers, 95, died Tuesday, Jan. 21, at the University of Chicago Medical Center after a long illness. His son, John W. Rogers Jr., the founder, chairman and CEO of Ariel Investments has suffered a hug blow to his life. His dad, outside of his deceased mom was the cornerstone of life. His dad is the person who introduce the young Rogers to the stock market, which inspired his ambition to find his passion. Mr. Rogers, Sr. was born in 1918 in Knoxville, Tenn. Upon his parents death, he and his sisters moved to Chicago to live with an uncle. Mr. Rogers graduated from Tilden Technical High School and earned a bachelor's degree in education from what is now Chicago State University in 1941. Before World War II, African-Americans had been barred from flying for the U.S. military. Civil rights groups persuaded the government to create an African-American pursuit squadron and Mr. Rogers became part of the Tuskegee Airmen's 99th Pursuit Squadron. He was one of the original 28 airmen in the first group to go overseas. Mr. Rogers flew 120 missions in Europe. Years later he was part of a group of about 300 Tuskegee Airmen to be honored with the Congressional Gold Medal. And in January 2012, Mr. Rogers was one of a group of Tuskegee Airmen who came to the White House as a special guest of President Barack Obama to view the movie Red Tails. In May 1977, Mr. Rogers was appointed an associate judge in Cook County and several months later was assigned to the Juvenile Division. To the often-complicated cases involving minors, Mr. Rogers strove to bring compassion and justice, said friends and family members. "So many juveniles have said many years later how he gave them the benefit of the doubt," said Mr. Rogers' granddaughter, Victoria Rogers. "For me, his legacy is about those core values of his that I'm trying to follow." Mr. Rogers retired from the bench in 1998. In 2012 the University of Chicago Law School named the school's director of admissions office after him and his first wife, who died in 1997. Rogers funeral was held last Friday at Rockefeller Memorial Chapel in Hyde Park (Chicago).