Roll out red carpet for the annual ‘True Gris Awards’

A trumpet player. A small-town restaurant owner. A high school football fan. A Broadway actor. A former student.

These were some of the fine folks who shared their stories with me over the past year. It is a privilege to recognize them again as part of my annual True Gris Awards.

Humanitarian of the Year Award: Justin Kelly

Justin Kelly is the owner of the Dairy Queen Grill and Chill in Gray. On National Miracle Treat Day in July, he donated all the proceeds from sales to the Children’s Miracle Network, raising more than $150,000. His employees worked extra shifts to make it happen and donated their wages. For the past four years, the DQ in Gray has ranked No. 1 nationally in donations, with local money going to help support the Beverly Knight Olson Children’s Hospital at Atrium Health Navicent in Macon. Kelly is a civic-minded young leader in Jones County, actively finding ways to help others.

Mother Teresa Award: June O’Neal

People have been calling June O’Neal “Mother Teresa” for more than three decades. Even though she is retiring after 25 years with the Mentors Project of Bibb County, don’t expect them to stop. She is the true definition of a servant leader, an assurance there are angels among us. Whenever and wherever there is a need in the community, she is a first responder.  Before becoming the executive director of the Mentors Project, she worked at the Georgia Industrial Home and at the Department of Family and Children Services.

Trailblazer of the Year Award: Gene Espy

Seventy-three years ago, Gene Espy became the second “thru-hiker” to complete the Appalachian Trail. He is a legend in the hiking world and a section of the trail in Georgia is named in his honor. He wrote a book – “The Trail of My Life” – about his experience. At the age of 97, he continues to be an inspiration. After graduating from Georgia Tech, Espy began his solo 2,050-mile, 14-state journey at Mount Oglethorpe in north Georgia. He arrived at Mount Katahdin in Maine four months later. In those days, the trail was often crude, overgrown and poorly marked. A native of Cordele, he lived in Macon until four years ago, when he and his wife, Eugenia, went to live with their daughter in Alpharetta. They celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary this year.

Superfan of the Year Award: Tim Wilson

Fort Valley’s Tim Wilson is the most dedicated high school football fan in America. He has not missed a Peach County football game – home or away – in 50 years. His parents started taking him to Trojan games in 1975, when he was 12 years old. On Nov. 22, he was honored for attending his 600th consecutive game. He graduated from Peach County High in 1981 with the distinction of being the school’s first male cheerleader.  He has kept the scorebook for Peach County basketball teams for the past 40 years. He has worked with developmentally disabled adults at the Kay Center in Fort Valley for 37 years. For the past 36 years, he has led the music program at Chamlee Baptist Church, where he has also taught Sunday School and served as a deacon.  

Spotlight of the Year Award: Grey Henson

Grey Henson got his start singing and dancing across stages at Theatre Macon, Macon Little Theatre and Stratford Academy. This holiday season, the 34-year-old Broadway actor has been delighting audiences in the lead role of Buddy in “Elf: The Musical.’’ Grey moved to New York City 10 years ago and has appeared on Broadway as Elder McKinley in “The Book of Mormon.’’ He was Damian Hubbard in “Mean Girls,’’ a role that earned him a Tony Award nomination for Best Actor. In January, he completed a two-year run in “Shucked.’’ 

Point of Light Award: Ray Rover

Ray Rover oversees a weekly community breakfast every Sunday in the gym at the old Southside Methodist Church on Houston Avenue. An average of about 100 to 125 people attend. He started the breakfast ministry 19 years ago. Last month, on the Sunday before Thanksgiving, “Scrambled Eggs for Jesus” broke bread for the 1,000th time. Since the inaugural meal on Labor Day weekend in 2005, organizers have missed only one Sunday serving a hot breakfast.  They had to give out Pop-Tarts the morning after the Mother’s Day tornadoes in May 2008, when high winds ripped through South Macon and the church had no electricity. Even during COVID, the scrambled eggers adapted and managed to provide weekly meals without interruption. This week has also been busy for Rover with the annual “Half Deep Dish Christmas,” which gives out holiday dishes prepared by local church congregations to feed between 300-500 people.

Music Ambassador of the Year Award: Newt Collier

Newt Collier has a T-shirt that reads: “Newt Town Macon.” And he has a spot on the “Walk of Fame” at the historic Douglass Theatre with the inscription: “Dean of Macon Music.’’ No one has their finger on the pulse of the local music scene like Newt. He spent almost three decades as a studio musician and sideman for some of the great blues and soul singers of the 1950s and ’60s, including Sam & Dave, one of soul music’s most successful duos. In his career as a trumpet player, he appeared three times on “The Ed Sullivan Show” and performed on stage at Madison Square Garden.  A movie called “Newt: A Short Documentary’’  will be released in time for his 80th birthday in July and the Macon Film Festival in August.

Defender of the Year Award: Paige Slocumb

For the past 16 years, Macon’s Paige Slocumb has taught her “Fight Like a Girl” self-defense classes to thousands of women and girls in Middle Georgia and across the state, with an emphasis on awareness and vigilance. She has offered classes in schools, churches, community centers and retirement homes. She has taught children, mothers and grandmothers. In July 2006, her 54-year-old sister, Jennifer Ewing, was sexually assaulted and murdered while riding her bicycle on the Silver Comet Trail in Paulding County. Michael Ledford, a 43-year-old convicted rapist, was found guilty in May 2009 and received the death penalty. Four months after Jenny’s death, Paige and her brothers – Buster, Robert, John, and William – founded a non-profit organization in her memory called “Safe Alone.” 

Sweet Tooth of the Year Award: Scott Mitchell

Scott Mitchell’s success story is worthy of a book. Or a movie. Or both. In November of 2023, he opened Sweet Eleanor’s Divine Desserts on Poplar Street. It was named in honor of his grandmother, Eleanor Sanders, a woman he called “Nanny.’’ She died less than a week after Sweet Eleanor’s had its soft opening, and a week before its official grand opening.  She was a major influence in his life. Not only did she teach him to cook, she never gave up on him … even during his dark days. In his late 20s, he became addicted to drugs and alcohol. He was homeless and living on the streets of Atlanta. He went to prison for almost five years for selling drugs. He was released from prison in 2008 and went to work in the restaurant business. Soon, he climbed his way up the ladder, winning national awards for restaurant management. Scott is also the owner of The Bohemian Den, a local gift shop located in the old Newberry Building on Cherry Street, where artisans and artists showcase their goods. Two years ago, he was named the “Small Business Leader of the Year” by the Macon-Bibb Chamber of Commerce.

Super Hero of the Year Award: Clarke Jones 

This award is extra special since Clarke was one of my journalism students at Stratford Academy. Last March, she and four of her Kappa Alpha Theta sorority sisters were traveling from Athens to Savannah for the St. Patrick’s Day parade. They came to the rescue of a mother and her two children whose SUV veered off the road near a bridge in Burke County. The five women jumped into the creek and helped the family to safety. Clarke, a former lifeguard at Idle Hour Club in Macon, performed CPR on the 4-year-old boy, who was unresponsive after being underwater for several minutes. She saved his life. Over the past nine months, Clarke and the others have had a whirlwind of interviews with media outlets, including “Good Morning, America,’’ “People’’ magazine, the “Kelly Clarkson Show’’ and Kate and Oliver Hudson’s “Sibling Revelry’’ podcast.  They received a letter of commendation from UGA President Jere Morehead and met with Gov. Brian Kemp at the state capitol, where they were recognized for their heroic actions. 

Couple of the Year Award: Paul and Alice Williams

Alice and Paul have been married for 56 years, and often refer to themselves as the “Old Fuddy Duddy Couple.’’ You probably have noticed them around town, although you might not recognize them when they’re not wearing pink. Every March, they are sidekicks to the most photographed pink poodle on the planet. For more than two decades, they have shared a long line of show-stopping dogs during the Cherry Blossom Festival. It began with Casper, followed by Lacie, Blossom and now Cherry. They are dedicated to their dogs. They are dedicated to each other. They are dedicated to the festival. And they are dedicated to their community. Hats off to two of the finest people in Macon.