By: Ali Elizabeth Turner
When I walked in for my usual Monday morning meeting with Mayor Ronnie, there were signs on the door to the conference room in City Hall that made it quite clear that the room was going to be occupied for a while…like maybe a few days. Why? The art work for the annual Martin Luther King Jr. Essay & Art Contest was being judged, and I can tell you that this year there are some outstanding creations from every grade level.
Several years ago, the essay contest was started as part of honoring the legacy of Dr. King, and it has always garnered some thoughtful written pieces. But then original art was added to the contest because “a picture is worth a thousand words.” Mayor Ronnie said, “Art can sometimes express what words can- not.” He continued on by simply saying, “I am so proud of our kids.” The annual MLK Day celebration will be on the Square with a march starting at 9 a.m. that will end up at the Alabama Veterans Museum. Then, the attendees will be able to look at the art work, including the winners and hear the essays. “This is an important part of our young people being a part of the dream, and in fact the theme for this year is Together We Can Be The Dream.” Speaking of young people, the members of the Mayor’s Youth Commission will be going to Trinity/Ft. Henderson to learn the history on January 21.
There are always so many outstanding quotes made by Dr. King, and it is strange to consider that in three more years, had he lived, he would have been 100 years old. For this year, it seemed appropriate to illustrate this year’s theme with the following quote: Everybody can be great … because anybody can serve. You don’t have to have a college degree to serve. You don’t have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.
Athens City Council met on Monday night, and Mayor Ronnie issued a proclamation with regard to human trafficking and the fact that January is Human Trafficking Awareness Month. It says, in part:
Now, therefore, I, William R. Marks, as Mayor of the City of Athens Alabama do hereby proclaim January 2026 as Human Trafficking Prevention Month, and reaffirm our commitment to human trafficking awareness, training, and education activities strengthened resources for those impacted by human trafficking, and to being designated a Trafficking Free Zone supporting a more coordinated, comprehensive response to prevent and combat the crime of human trafficking.
In keeping with the proclamation, Mayor Ronnie said that seeing the film Still Hope, which comes out on February 5, is an excellent way to strengthen Monday’s proclamation. And, on a completely unrelated note, the mayor wanted people to know that on February 17 there would be a solar eclipse.
There was just one thing left to do, and that was to pray about everything above, so we did. And then, it was time for Ronnie to roll.
By: Ali Elizabeth Turner
