Patrick J. Joyce is a Democratic member of the

Illinois Senate The Illinois Senate is the Upper house, upper chamber of the Illinois General Assembly, the legislative branch of the government of the U.S. state, State of Illinois in the United States. The body was created by the first state constitution adop ...

from the 40th district since November 8, 2019. The 40th district, located partly in the

Chicago area The Chicago metropolitan area, also colloquially referred to as Chicagoland, is a metropolitan area in the Midwestern United States. Encompassing 10,286 sq mi (28,120 km2), the metropolitan area includes the city of Chicago, its suburbs and hint ...

, includes all or parts of Bourbonnais, Bradley,

Chicago Heights Chicago Heights is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 27,480 at the 2020 census. In earlier years, Chicago Heights was nicknamed "The Crossroads of the Nation". Currently, it is nicknamed "The Heights". Geograp ...

, Coal City,

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

Flossmoor Flossmoor () is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 9,704 at the 2020 census. Flossmoor is approximately 25 miles south of the Chicago Loop. Geography Flossmoor is located at (41.541684, -87.684970). According ...

, Frankfort, Glenwood, Hazel Crest, Homewood, Joliet, Kankakee,

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

, Matteson,

Mokena Mokena is a village in Will County, Illinois, United States. The population was 19,887 at the 2020 census. The Census Bureau's 2019 estimate found that the population had increased to 20,159. Etymology Mokena is a name apparently derived from a ...

, Monee,

New Lenox New Lenox is a village in central Will County, Illinois, United States. It is a southwestern suburb of Chicago and an eastern suburb of Joliet. The village population was 27,214 as of 2020. New Lenox has schools like Lincoln-Way West High School ...

, Park Forest,

Richton Park Richton Park is a village and a southern suburb of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 12,775 at the 2020 census. The community was named after a Richton in Vermont, the native home of a first settler. Geography Ri ...

, Steger, University Park, and Wilmington. Joyce was appointed to the district on November 8, 2019 after former State Senator Toi Hutchinson resigned to become the new Illinois Cannabis Regulation Oversight Officer.

Early life, education, and career

Joyce was raised in

Reddick, Illinois Reddick is a village in Kankakee County, Illinois, United States. A small portion of the village extends into Livingston County. The population was 163 at the 2010 census, down from 219 at the 2000 census. The Kankakee County portion of Reddick ...

. He graduated from Illinois State University with a B.A. in Agribusiness. He is a fourth generation farmer and for 25 years has owned and operated his family farm. For 19 years he has been a member of the

Kankakee County Kankakee County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 113,449. Its county seat is Kankakee. Kankakee County comprises the Kankakee, IL Metropolitan Statistical Area. History St ...

Farm Bureau Board of Directors.

Illinois State Senator

As of July 2022, Senator Joyce is a member of the following Illinois Senate committee: * (Chairman of) Agriculture Committee (SAGR) * Appropriations - Agriculture, Environment & Energy Committee (SAPP-SAAE) * Energy and Public Utilities Committee (SENE) * Health Committee (SHEA) * Labor Committee (SLAB) * Local Government Committee (SLGV) * Next Generation of Energy Committee (SENE-ENGE) * (Chairman of) Redistricting - Kankakee & Will Counties Committee (SRED-SDKW) * State Government Committee (SGOA) * (Chairman of) Subcommittee on Long-Term Care & Aging (SHEA-SHLT)

Electoral history

Personal life

Joyce is married and has three children. He currently lives in

Essex, Illinois Essex is a village in Kankakee County, Illinois, United States. The population was 802 at the 2010 census, up from 554 at the 2000 census. It is included in the Kankakee-Bradley, Illinois Metropolitan Statistical Area. History Ira M. Lish (185 ...

. He lost his daughter, Katelyn, to

leukemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ' ...

in 2011. Since her passing, Joyce has "led a team of friends and family members to raise money at the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s Light the Night fundraiser in Katelyn’s memory."

References

External links

Senator Patrick J. Joyce (D) 40th District
at the

Illinois General Assembly The Illinois General Assembly is the legislature of the U.S. state of Illinois. It has two chambers, the Illinois House of Representatives and the Illinois Senate. The General Assembly was created by the first state constitution adopted in 181 ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Joyce, Patrick 21st-century American politicians Democratic Party Illinois state senators Illinois State University alumni Living people Year of birth missing (living people) People from Kankakee County, Illinois