Jackson's mayor asks 'What are you Doing for Others?' during Adrian's MLK Day Celebration

ADRIAN — While Jackson’s Mayor Daniel Mahoney was the keynote speaker Monday in Adrian for the annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Community Celebration Dinner, the speaker who kind of stole the show at the event hosted by Adrian College in the Tobias Center was Michigan’s Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson.

Benson didn’t stay for the entirety of the nearly three-hour program but attended Adrian’s MLK Day celebration as a surprise guest speaker, sharing information about herself, Michigan’s statewide efforts of ensuring election security, and reminding those in attendance of the three ways Michiganders will be able to vote in the 2024 elections.

New to this year’s elections is an early voting option in which voters will have nine days of early voting available to them at a specific early voting center. In Lenawee County, early voting will take place at the Lenawee County Human Services Building in Adrian, 1040 S. Winter St.

Fairfield Township, however, is the lone exception which will be holding its early voting at its township hall, 1023 Pine St., Jasper.

More: Q&A: Early voting is coming up next month. Here's what Lenawee County voters need to know

Early voting was included in Proposal 2 in 2022, which was approved by 60% of voters statewide. It received support from 51.65% of Lenawee County voters.

Along with the nine days of early voting, voters also can vote in person on Election Day and by absentee ballot, Benson said.

No matter where anyone lives or how they vote this year, there will be more options than ever, she said, “to ensure voices are heard” during Michigan’s election process. Benson also stressed how the state is ensuring the safety and security of the elections. Every person’s vote will count, she added.

Because of the voting options available this year, Michiganders have a responsibility to make sure civil rights efforts and sacrifices made during MLK’s days were not made in vain, Benson said.

“That responsibility falls to all of us today, especially in moments like this in 2024 where, as we look out onto the horizon, we’ll see three statewide elections all of which we will be called to define who we are going to be in Michigan and in this country for the future,” she said.

Benson, a member of the Democratic party, has been Michigan’s 43rd Secretary of State since 2019. Her career, she said, started in Montgomery, Alabama, where she investigated hate groups and hate crimes throughout the country.

Mahoney, when he began his address titled, “What Are You Doing for Others?” said he was appreciative of Benson attending the Adrian program saying she brought energy into the room. He exuded plenty of energy himself, sharing his accomplishments achieved in Jackson as mayor and encouraging people to advocate for peace and equal rights among others.

The goal of his address, he said, was to inspire at least one person. “I want to die empty,” was a point of emphasis during his speech.

“We have to be willing to die empty,” Mahoney said. “A blank slate is how I want to leave this earth.”

Prior to being elected and sworn in as Jackson’s first African American mayor Dec. 1, 2021, Mahoney was initially elected to public office as a member of the Jackson County Commission in 2013. He held a seat on the commission until he ran for Jackson’s mayor.

A lot of his campaign points during his initial mayoral run have been addressed, he said. Homicides from 2021 to 2022 have been reduced by at least 50%; Jackson has reinvested almost $12 million into a downtown corridor of the city renamed in tribute of Martin Luther King Jr.; the city started a down payment assistance program that will provide $25,000 for 100 new built homes; another private investor is going build 125 new homes for rental purposes; and low- to moderate-income apartment complexes also will break ground this year.

In April, the city is slated to sell its historic Hayes Hotel to a developer for a $30 million redevelopment project.

Read about the 2023 MLK Jr. Celebration: Awards bestowed at Martin Luther King Jr. Community Celebration

Of special importance to Mahoney, he said, was the renaming of the downtown corridor to honor Martin Luther King Jr. That effort started when Mahoney was president of the Jackson branch of the NAACP. There were members of the organization, which seeks to build Black political power to end structural racism, who died while waiting for this to happen, he said.

“This was not just a change of a street name, but it also came with a promise to make intentional investments in the area,” he said.

Another highlight of Mahoney’s life in public service also was in 2019 when he started the nonprofit Many Hands Community Services. His work with the NAACP and with the nonprofit solidified to him that his life mission is to serve others. He described himself as a politician who has an activist spirit inside of him.

Mahoney was reelected to a second term as mayor in November, becoming the second Jackson mayor in nearly 20 years to serve more than one term. His current term ends in December 2026.

He was born and raised in Jackson and graduated from Jackson Public Schools in 2000. He also works as the African American Affinity Liaison for Jackson College and serves on the city’s Racial Equity Commission.

Awards handed out during MLK Day celebration

Six awards were handed out during Monday’s dinner celebration, with those presented to three college students in Lenawee County, two Community Service Award winners and the Lifetime Achievement Award winner.

Monique Savage was presented with the 2024 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Lifetime Achievement Award for her “significant impact on the community over the years that promotes the vision of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.”

Her lifetime of service spans both the states of Michigan and California where she has been a presenter of anti-racism workshops on the local, state and national level, and where she serves underrepresented populations.

Savage joins Larry Richardson (2019), Ann Hinsdale-Knisel (2020), Emily Martinez (2021), John Amara Walters (2022) and the Rev. Deanne Henagan (2023) as the past recipients of the Lifetime Achievement Award.

Sister Patricia Harvat, O.P., with the Adrian Dominican Sisters and Rudy Flores were the co-awardees of the 2024 Community Service Award.

Harvat, who described herself as part of a small, diverse and faithful group of people who are committed to undoing racism and embracing diversity, was nominated and selected for the award because of her efforts in establishing programming that engages the Adrian community in exploring issues and promoting cultural diversity, equity and inclusion. She also has assisted the county’s underserved populations.

Flores, a lifelong Adrian resident, advocates for the migrant and seasonal farmworkers and the immigrant communities by working with community service provides to provide resources, information, education and support. His career in human services dates back to 1992. He currently serves as chairman of the Southeastern Michigan Migrant Resource Council, a position he has held since 2015. He is co-chairman of the Adrian chapter of Latino Leaders for Enhancement, Advocacy and Development (LLEAD); a member of the Adrian Ebeid Neighborhood Promise steering committee; the Lenawee/Monroe County Diversity, Equity and Inclusion committee through the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS); Washtenaw Solidarity with Farmworkers’ Connect the Camps Initiative and is a community volunteer.

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Juliana Reynolds is Adrian College’s Student Award winner. She is from Hillsdale and is a junior with a 3.28 grade point average. Her major is in biology, and she is minoring in biochemistry.

Elise Kruse is the Student Award winner at the Jackson College/Lenawee Intermediate School District (LISD) Academy, holding a 4.0 GPA in both high school and college. She has nearly completed her associate degree in science while still enrolled in high school courses. She plans to attend a 4-year university to take a pre-med curriculum.

Siena Heights University’s Student Award winner is Autumn Bradford, a senior, who was described as a high-quality role model to her peers, especially the up-and-coming Black actors in the theatre program. She has performed in shows and had led shows that raise awareness about the struggles of minorities. A particular lesson from MLK that resonates with Bradford, it was said during Monday’s program, is persevering in hard times and making progress where you don’t see all the steps.

“If you can’t fly, then run. If you can’t run, then walk. If you can’t walk, then crawl. But whatever you do, you must keep pushing forward,” is Bradford’s favorite quote from Martin Luther King Jr.

— Contact reporter Brad Heineman at bheineman@lenconnect.com or follow him on X, formerly Twitter: twitter.com/LenaweeHeineman.

This article originally appeared on The Daily Telegram: Jackson's mayor delivers keynote speech during Adrian's MLK Day Celebration