Jacksonville, FL (August 11, 2020) – Councilman Becton received a huge surprise during the August 11th City Council meeting when he was awarded the Council’s Mary Singleton Award by 2019-2020 City Council President Scott Wilson during the presentation portion on the Zoom meeting.
To make it even more special, Councilman Becton’s wife, Linda Becton, presented the award to Councilman Becton in his home office when his name was announced. These were two humbling and overjoyed moments in which he said he was honored to experience and thankful to be recognized for his efforts.
“It is always humbling when your colleagues and peers recognize the work that you do and feel it achieves recognition to the level for which the Mary Singleton Award is bestowed,” Council Member Becton rejoiced. “Chairing Land Use and Zoning, this past year for the second time, I set the bar higher, to challenge myself as a student of this very important area of our responsibilities. I expected a lot from myself to help make the process work better; not only for the applicants seeking land use and zoning changes but also for the public who want to have a voice and input into how their neighborhoods and communities evolve.”
According to the City of Jacksonville website, “The late Mary Littlejohn Singleton was one of the first women elected to the City Council in modern times. Having first been elected to the Council of the prior City of Jacksonville in 1967, she served as Vice President of the former City Council for the 1967-68 term. Singleton and Sallye Mathis were also the first minorities to serve on the City Council since George Ross in 1907. She was elected to the first City Council after Consolidation, serving from 1968 to 1972 when she was elected to the Florida State Legislature. Singleton was re-elected to the Legislature in 1974. A graduate of Florida A&M University, Singleton was a former school teacher and known for her work as Chair of the Child Day Care Commission. She died of cancer in 1980. The Governor declared December 7, 1990, “Mary Singleton Day” in remembrance of her efforts toward peace and brotherhood. The Jacksonville City Council recognized January 30, 1992, as “Mary Singleton Day” and established the “Mary L. Singleton Memorial Award” for Justice, Peace and Social Harmony. Reinstated in 2012, the “Mary L. Singleton Memorial Award” is given annually, by the out-going Council President, to the most outstanding Committee Chair.”
Councilman Becton joins the following Council Members who have received the awards in the years prior during Councilman Becton time on City Council: Tommy Hazouri (2019), Garrett Dennis (2018), Sam Newby and Scott Wilson (2017 Co-Recipients) and Scott Wilson (2016).
This is not Councilman Becton first award received while on City Council. Councilman Becton was awarded the City Council’s most prestigious award, the Charles D. Webb Award for 2016-2017, which is also given annually by the outgoing President to the Council Member that best exemplifies the extraordinary commitment to public services demonstrated by the late Charles D. Webb during his years on the City Council from 1971 until his death in 1976.
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