More than 220 people gathered at the
Doubletree Hotel in Jackson recently for the Southwest Tennessee Development
District’s Annual Board of Directors Meeting and its first ever awards program
to recognize individuals and organizations who work cooperatively with SWTDD’s
Area Agency on Aging & Disabilities (AAAD) and its Economic & Community
Development (ECD) divisions. Winners were selected by way of nominations submitted
from throughout the region. Brownsville-Haywood County was recognized in
three different areas at the event.
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| Haywood County Mayor Franklin Smith |
Impact Award
For his untiring efforts to help the elderly and disabled in his county, Haywood County Mayor Franklin Smith was presented with SWTDD’s Area Agency on Aging & Disability Impact Award. The purpose of the Impact Award recognizes an individual or organization that has made an observable or measureable impact on the quality of life of older adults by providing leadership in advocacy, public policy change, securing new or additional funding, program development and/or cultural enhancement.
“Mayor Smith has worked diligently for many years to ensure that the elderly and disabled populations in Southwest Tennessee receive services that enable independence and dignity,” said Joe W. Barker, SWTDD executive director. “From being a county mayor, to an executive director at Southwest Human Resource Agency, to serving as the Chairman of the SWTDD Board of Directors, Mayor Smith has advocated not only for his community of Haywood County, but for citizens throughout the region… Mayor Smith is a true statesman with a gentleman’s heart.”
For his untiring efforts to help the elderly and disabled in his county, Haywood County Mayor Franklin Smith was presented with SWTDD’s Area Agency on Aging & Disability Impact Award. The purpose of the Impact Award recognizes an individual or organization that has made an observable or measureable impact on the quality of life of older adults by providing leadership in advocacy, public policy change, securing new or additional funding, program development and/or cultural enhancement.
“Mayor Smith has worked diligently for many years to ensure that the elderly and disabled populations in Southwest Tennessee receive services that enable independence and dignity,” said Joe W. Barker, SWTDD executive director. “From being a county mayor, to an executive director at Southwest Human Resource Agency, to serving as the Chairman of the SWTDD Board of Directors, Mayor Smith has advocated not only for his community of Haywood County, but for citizens throughout the region… Mayor Smith is a true statesman with a gentleman’s heart.”
Other AAAD award winners were: Senior Center of the Year: Selmer Senior Center; Partnership of the Year: West Tennessee Legal
Services; and Advisory Council Members
of the Year: James Pearson of Parkers Crossroads and Bobby Hysmith of
Henderson.
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| Sharon Hayes, Brownsville Mayor Jo Matherne, Thomas Skehan |
Community Excellence
Award
The City of Brownsville won SWTDD’s ECD Community Excellence Award for its “Brownsville on the Move” program. The Community Excellence Award recognizes a community project within the SWTDD boundaries that shows initiative, reflects originality, demonstrates a collaborative effort, has long-term positive impact on the community, includes public participation and can easily be scaled or replicated in another community.
The City of Brownsville won SWTDD’s ECD Community Excellence Award for its “Brownsville on the Move” program. The Community Excellence Award recognizes a community project within the SWTDD boundaries that shows initiative, reflects originality, demonstrates a collaborative effort, has long-term positive impact on the community, includes public participation and can easily be scaled or replicated in another community.
“With the Brownsville on the Move program, local officials
recognized the need to create a new vision for their community that would set a
course for the next 15-20 years and would impact the economic success of their
city,” said Barker. “Brownsville leaders
contracted with the University of Memphis to generate and analyze a
comprehensive plan and enlisted the help of local Planners to assist in their
effort. Composed of City leaders and
residents, this group defined goals, principles and methodology. The end product was a dynamic,
well-documented and detailed blueprint for the future of their city that is
based on extensive public input and creative ‘out of the box’ thinking.”
Regional
Collaboration Award
Haywood County was also recognized as an important
part in the SWTDD Regional Collaboration Award for its participation in the Tri-County
College Summit hosted by Dyersburg State Community College.
“This collective
effort was all about helping the students connect to a college or another form
of post secondary education,” said Barker. “The group worked together to host
an enormous college fair that included students from the six high schools (400+
students) in the REDI counties of Haywood, Lauderdale, and Tipton Counties, 13
post-secondary institutions from across the State of Tennessee, and the entire
11-county REDI staff. It was of tremendous benefit to the students and has
become a catalyst for what will become the new norm with REDI in our region.”
The other two SWTDD ECD awards were the Innovation Award to the Lexington
Industrial Development Board for its Virtual Speculative Building Initiative
and the Building Block Award to McNairy
County for its extensive use of SWTDD services.
“Southwest Tennessee Development District is
an organization with a talented and compassionate staff, but it relies heavily
on our city and county governments, volunteers and partners to carry out the
organization’s mission,” said Joe W. Barker, SWTDD Executive Director.
“Tonight’s awards program is a first step in publicly recognizing those who are
working to improve the economic climate and quality of life in the SWTDD
region. Although only eight awards were presented tonight, there are many other
individuals and groups who are working hard for the citizens in this region
every day. We look forward to recognizing them in the years to come.”
SWTDD
provides services to individuals and governments in the counties of Chester, Decatur,
Hardeman, Hardin, Haywood, Henderson, Madison and McNairy. Also recognized at
the event was Parsons’ Mayor Tim David Boaz, the outgoing SWTDD chairman, who
passed the leadership gavel to Hardin County Mayor Kevin Davis.
To learn more about the SWTDD,
visit www.swtdd.org or call 731.668.7112.
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