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NEWS RELEASE
City Hall
1565 First Street
Sarasota, FL 34236
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For Immediate Release: September 27, 2006
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MAYOR HONORED BY NAACP
Sarasota, FL – Mayor Fredd “Glossie” Atkins
has been selected by the NAACP Sarasota County Branch to
receive the NAACP’s 2006 Lifetime Achievement Award.
He will be honored at the 21st annual Freedom Awards Banquet
Thurs., October 5, 2006 at the Hyatt Sarasota, 1000 Boulevard
of the Arts. A reception will begin at 6pm, followed by
dinner and the Freedom Awards ceremony at 7pm.
During the ceremony, Mayor Atkins’ vast
community contributions and accomplishments spanning several
decades in Sarasota will be highlighted. “Being a
native of Sarasota and being raised in Newtown, I’ve
watched Fredd throughout the years,” said Trevor
Harvey, NAACP Sarasota County Branch President. “He
was the first African American to hold any elected position
in Sarasota. He broke the barriers, and he opened the doors
for others to come along and follow him. And, we thought
it was important to recognize what he’s done.”
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Mayor Atkins was the founding board member of the
Greater Newtown Community Redevelopment Corp., founder and former
president of Newtown Little League, president of Booker High School
Boosters, and chair of the Booker Middle School Advisory Committee.
He has served on the Southwest Florida Regional Planning Council,
Metropolitan Planning Organization, Economic Development Board of
Sarasota County, Tourist Development Council, the Urban Administration
Committee of the Florida League of Cities and the Board of Trustees
of the Out of Door Academy. He also served as Education Chairman of
the Sarasota County NAACP and was a representative on the Florida
Advisory Council for HUD. As the elected City Commissioner for District
One within the City of Sarasota, he remains a steadfast champion of
affordable housing.
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Fredd "Glossie" Atkins first became a City Commissioner
in 1985 and served until 1995. During that time, he was
selected for two terms as Mayor. In 2003, he returned to
elected office. He currently fills the District One City
Commission seat, and was appointed Mayor again last April.
Fredd Atkins is a native of Sarasota and was educated
in the public school system. He graduated from the
University of South Florida with a Bachelor of Arts in
interdisciplinary social sciences. He currently is the
Special Projects Coordinator at Jobs, Etc.
He is married and the father of six children.
For more information, please contact:
Jan
Thornburg, Public Information Officer (941) 954-4160
jan.thornburg@sarasotagov.com
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