Cox named Citizen of the Year
Don Cox was named Citizen of the Year at annual Farm City banquet.
Russellville city schools Superintendent Don Cox has followed in the footsteps of his mentor, Dr. Wayne Ray, several times during his professional career.
Both served as Russellville’s head football coach, high school principal, assistant superintendent and superintendent.
Monday night, he added another to that list.
Ray presented Cox with the Franklin County Citizen of the Year Award during the Franklin County Extension System’s annual Farm City banquet.
“This is a great honor and something that I will cherish for a lifetime,” said Cox, who will be retiring in 2011 after spending 32 years in the Russellville school system and 40 years in education.
“I want to thank God for placing me in Russellville because this is a wonderful place.”
A Hamilton native, Cox was named head coach of the Golden Tigers in 1980 and served in that capacity through the 1994 season when he became the school’s principal. He spent five years as principal and then moved on to the central office. He was named superintendent in early 2009.
“I worked with him for 30 years and I still know him as a man of character and work ethic, just like he had when he came here in 1980,” said Ray, who now serves as president of the Russellville Rotary Club, which is the club that nominated Cox for the honor.
The announcement was made during the annual Farm City banquet, which takes place on the week of Thanksgiving each year.
Farm City week was established 55 years ago so that rural farmers and townspeople could celebrate each other’s important roles to one another.
The Farm City planning committee presented several awards during Monday’s banquet, including:
• Cooperator of the Year – Tommy and Lori Johnson
• Educator of the Year – Jack Paul
• Cattleman of the Year – Frank Mitchell
• Farmer of the Year – Joe Fike
• Farmer’s Market Manager – Melody Pearson
• Farm City Volunteer of the Year – Orland Britnell
• Franklin Community Resource Development – Lt. Colonel James Cecil Langcuster, United States Army Reserve, retired
• Franklin County Humanitarian Award – Milton K. Sage
• Franklin County Extension System Agricultural Hall of Fame – Milton Gholston Glass, Franklin County Farmer’s Federation Women’s Committee, Sen. Roger Bedford, State Rep. Johnny Mack Morrow
• Franklin County Extension System Agricultural Lifetime Achievement Award – Dale W. Hester.
The 4-H program and the extension system also hosted a countywide poster contest. The winners in the kindergarten to third grade division were:
• first place, Lashawna Newell, of Belgreen
• second place, Bailey Oliver, of Belgreen
• third place, Braden Williams, of Belgreen
• honorable mention, Kailey Brook Borden, of Belgreen; Nicholas Hill, of Belgreen; Jensen Kirkland, of Belgreen; Cheyenne Talmadge, of Phil Campbell; Kaitlin Weeks, of East Franklin
Winners in the fourth to sixth grade division were:
• first place, Madison Skye Fierro, of Red Bay
• second place, Ariana Ofelia Galvez, of East Franklin
• third place, Carolyna White, of Vina
Winners in the seventh through 12th grade essay contest were:
• first place, Clay Hodge, of Tharptown
• second place, Chase White, of Tharptown
• third place, Elana Blackburn, of Tharptown.
