The 2014 MLK Observance Day Committee has announced Levi Scott Jr. as the grand marshal for the Jan. 20 event.
The observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day will start with the annual breakfast at the county administrative complex in Springfield on Laurel Street. The breakfast begins at 7:30 a.m. Keynote speaker is former state representative Ann Purcell.
The day’s celebration will continue with a parade in Springfield beginning at 10 a.m. The children’s awards will be presented at noon at the Recreation Department gymnasium on Ga. 119. A service at 6 p.m. will be held to end the day at Goodwill Missionary Baptist Church in Rincon.
Scott is a Rincon City Council member and is self-employed as an environmental consultant.
Scott is a member of the Goodwill Missionary Baptist Church in Rincon, where he serves on the Deacon board.
He is married to Bertha Scott. They have two children and four grandchildren.
Scott has served with a number of organizations including, the NAACP, as an executive of the Pilgrim Missionary Baptist Association, member of the Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Georgia and member of Helping Young People Excel (HYPE).
Scott has also served on the board of directors for the Effingham County Chamber of Commerce, served as lieutenant governor for the Optimist International of Georgia, as a member of the YMCA board of directors and served with several other organizations.
Lon Harden with the MLK Observance Day Committee said Scott is also a recipient of the Distinguished President Award of Optimist International, the Optimist Key Man Award and the Optimist Star award. He also received the Outstanding Young Man of America award and was honored with a resolution from the Georgia House of Representatives for dedication for his civic and leadership commitment to his community.
Harden also announced winners of the theme contest for 2014. Essay and poster winners will be announced later.
First place: “Hope for Change, Dream for Justice, Live for Equality”- Aaliyasha White, seventh grade student at Effingham County Middle School.
Second place: “Changing the future of Many, By the Dream of One”- Alexander Williams III, tenth grade student at Effingham County High School.
Third place: “Keeping Dr. Kings’s Dream focused on Breaking the Chains of Injustice”- Anthony Patterson Jr., fifth grade student at Guyton Elementary School.
Honorable Mention- “Character, Intelligence, and Pride, Accomplishing the Challenges Beyond the Dream” - Christian Faith Andrews, eighth grade student at Effingham County Middle School.