Eric Church to receive North Carolina Award

Oct. 13—RALEIGH — A Caldwell County native is among six North Carolinians to be given the state's highest civilian honor.

The North Carolina Award will be presented to six distinguished North Carolinians Tuesday, Nov. 15, at the North Carolina Museum of Art. Gov. Roy Cooper will present the awards.

The award was created by the General Assembly in 1961 to recognize significant contributions to the state and nation in the fields of fine arts, literature, public service, and science.

The 2022 honorees are Eric Church for Fine Arts, the Honorable Eva Clayton for Public Service, Honorable Mickey Michaux for Public Service, David Zucchino for Literature, Dr. Stanley Riggs for Science, and Dr. Priya Kishnani for Science.

"These individuals have enriched North Carolina and our nation through their extraordinary accomplishments," said Secretary Reid Wilson, of the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources. "Each of them has enhanced the lives of North Carolinians through their lasting achievements in the arts, literature, sciences, and public service."

Eric Church was born in Granite Falls, where his musical journey began at the age of 13 when he started writing songs and taught himself how to play the guitar. He earned a degree in marketing from Appalachian State University before moving to Nashville to pursue a music career. A multi-ACM and CMA Award winner, including the 2020 award for CMA Entertainer of the Year, Church has also earned numerous GRAMMY nominations while amassing a passionate fanbase around the globe known as the Church Choir. In 2013, Church and his wife Katherine founded the Chief Cares Fund, a charitable giving organization that provides aid to those in need, in both the U.S. and around the world.

Eva M. Clayton, the first African American woman to represent North Carolina in Congress, was instrumental in reviving the Rural Caucus to continue federal aid to farmers, create new rural jobs, and expand technology initiatives. After retiring from Congress in 2003, Clayton spent three years in Italy as Assistant Director-General of the Food Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the U.N. And facilitated the establishment of 24 National Alliances to reduce hunger, malnutrition, and poverty in countries around the world.

Honorable H. M. "Mickey" Michaux Jr. has spent more than 50 years as an activist, businessman, and politician. Michaux was appointed in 1977 to serve as a U.S. attorney, becoming the first African American to serve in that role in the South since Reconstruction.

David Zucchino, contributing writer for The New York Times and winner of the 2021 Pulitzer Prize for his book, "Wilmington's Lie: The Murderous Coup of 1898 and the Rise of White Supremacy," has covered wars and civil conflicts in more than three dozen countries. He is the author of "Thunder Run: The Armored Strike to Capture Baghdad" and "Myth of the Welfare Queen."

Dr. Stanley R. Riggs began his work as a marine geologist in the 1960s during a time when few people recognized the importance of climate change research. He has published several books on coastal dynamics and climate change, including "Drowning the North Carolina Coast" and "The Battle for North Carolina's Coast."

Dr. Priya S. Kishnani has treated patients and conducted groundbreaking basic and clinical research at Duke University School of Medicine for close to 30 years. Her innovative contributions translate laboratory science into treatment for people with lysosomal storage disorders (LSDs), glycogen storage diseases (GSDs), Down syndrome, and other rare inherited disorders.

The 2022 awards will be presented at the North Carolina Museum of Art. This event is sponsored by Wells Fargo, Lenovo, Martin Marietta, Duke Energy, RTI, Mr. Joseph M. Bryan, Jr., CBC/WRAL Community Fund of the Triangle Community Foundation, Dr. William Roper, and Dr. Dudley Flood.

Since the award's inception, more than 250 notable men and women have been honored by the state of North Carolina. Past recipients include Selma Burke, William Friday, James Taylor, Etta Baker, Charles Kuralt, Maya Angelou, Lee Smith, and Branford Marsalis.

The N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources (NCDNCR) is the state agency with a vision to be the leader in using the state's natural and cultural resources to build the social, cultural, educational and economic future of North Carolina. NCDNCR's mission is to improve the quality of life in our state by creating opportunities to experience excellence in the arts, history, libraries and nature in North Carolina by stimulating learning, inspiring creativity, preserving the state's history, conserving the state's natural heritage, encouraging recreation and cultural tourism, and promoting economic development.