DeKalb County, GA — Three local public servants will be recognized on Thursday, Jan. 11, during DeKalb County’s annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day Celebration.

The “It Starts with Me: Shifting the Cultural Climate Through the Study and Practice of Kingian Nonviolence” program will start at 11 a.m. on Thursday at the Maloof Auditorium, located at 1300 Commerce Drive in Decatur, according to a press release. The celebration is free and open to the public.

The Nathaniel Mosby Humanitarian Award celebrates the recipients’ commitment to tireless community service and outstanding dedication to being an agent for positive change. The recipients will be:

– Dr. Tommie C. Smith, a legendary 1968 Olympian who raised a clinched fist covered in a black leather glove in a historic stand for Black power, liberation, and solidarity.

– Bobbie Sanford, a longtime DeKalb County real estate agent and community activist.

– Larry Tinsley, gospel radio personality who was inducted into the Georgia Radio Hall of Fame in 2015.

The King Day charge will be delivered by Georgia State Rep. Carl W. Gilliard, chairman of the Georgia Legislative Black Caucus. Jazz vocalist Karla Harris, accompanied by keyboardist Tyrone Jackson, will perform.

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