‘Trailblazers’ In Race Relations, Diversity, Inclusion Honored

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TUPELO, MISS. (WCBI) -Mississippians who have contributed to racial and cultural diversity and inclusion were honored during an awards ceremony in Tupelo.

The 13th annual Trailblazer Awards recognized nine people for their work.  The awards ceremony is the only statewide awards honoring individuals for their contributions to race relations.

Among the winners,  Jessie Pennington, who won the Legacy Award,  he was the first managing attorney for North Mississippi Legal Services.

Also,  Mississippi’s first and only Chief US Marshal, Dennis Erby took Trailblazer of the Year.

“My soul looks back in wonder at all the accomplishments that we’ve made, going back to the US Constitution, which is the best legal document in the world, outside the Bible, it’s the only document that says ‘We the People’  , we the people in order to come together to establish justice and that is very important,” said Legacy Award Winner Jessie Pennington.

“I grew up during a time, the sixties, when change was going on and a lot of things happened in Mississippi I imagine none of us are really proud of but  from that point we started to build and there have been a lot of things taking place but show not only the black community but the white community joined hands to try and make sure some of those things are moved to the past,” said US Marshal Dennis Erby, who won Trailblazer of the Year.

Other winners included Representative Steve Holland and his Mother, Judge Sadie Holland.   They both won “Tupelo Trailblazers”  and Doctor Cindy Ayers won the INSPIRE Award.