Nominations sought for Martin Luther King Jr. Awards

Posted on October 26, 2017

By WJBC Staff

NORMAL – Bloomington and Normal Human Relations Commissions are seeking nominations for the 2018 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Awards.

Each year, the Commissions honor the legacy of the Rev. King by recognizing two local high school students and two adults for their efforts to promote tolerance and understanding among people of diverse backgrounds. Winners will be recognized at the annual awards luncheon on Saturday, January 20.

Each commission is soliciting nominations and will choose award winners from their respective community. Nominations will be evaluated based on the nominee’s commitment to improving relationships and fostering mutual respect among people of divergent cultures, races, religions, incomes, personal preferences or abilities.

Nominations must be received by 5 p.m., Friday, Dec. 1. Nominations may be submitted online via the City of Bloomington and Town of Normal websites. Individuals unable to submit the form online should contact Nicole Albertson at Bloomington City Hall, 109 E Olive St Bloomington, (309) 434-2210, or Ben McCready, Town of Normal Administration Office, 11 Uptown Circle, (309) 454-9504.

The 42nd Annual Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Awards Luncheon will be held at 1 p.m., on Saturday, Jan. 20, at the Marriott Hotel and Conference Center in Normal.

This year’s guest speaker will be James A. Knecht, a Justice of the Appellate Court, Fourth District, who has been a judicial officer for 42 years. Judge Knecht won the Town of Normal’s Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Award in 2000. He served on the faculty of ISU for 27 years, receiving a Distinguished Alumni of ISU Award in 2000, and is currently a member of the ISU Foundation Board. A past president of the Appellate Lawyers Association and the Beyond the Books Educational Foundation, he was awarded the Abraham Lincoln Award of Excellence in 2000, the League of Women Voters Florence Fifer Bohrer Award in 2008, and an honorary degree of Doctor of Laws from Lincoln College in 2013.

Tickets for the 2018 luncheon honoring Dr. King will be available beginning Nov. 1, 2017, from Human Relations Commission members and at Normal and Bloomington city halls. Single tickets are $20. Reserved tables are available.

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