Beck Awarded Ronnie A. Dixon Memorial Scholarship
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ESG Parent Company Inframark cofounder Clay Sykes presented Vidalia High School Class of 2024 graduate Emma Beck with the Ronnie A. Dixon Memorial Scholarship at the regular monthly meeting of the Vidalia City Council on Monday, June 10.
“This is a real honor for me because I have known Emma since she was born. Also, she was genuinely selected before Josh (her father) was selected as city manager,” Sykes clarified with a laugh.
He began his presentation by sharing his thoughts on the City. “I always say that if anyone wants to see what government should look like, come to Vidalia, Georgia. Coming in, just driving in from out of town, is beautiful,” Sykes remarked. “It is always easy to pick apart things and look for challenges, but the City of Vidalia has a lot of positive things going for it.”
Sykes continued, “I believe that no one loved this City more than Mayor Dixon. There is a statement in Emma’s application where she says that her view of leadership is ‘walking in the light and showing integrity.’ That simple statement stuck with me as something that I am going to take as a personal challenge. In this day and age, civility, seeing the positive in people, and showing light by integrity means a lot.”
According to Sykes, this impressive quote from Beck was not the only statement received, as there were numerous outstanding applications from Vidalia High School graduates. “The other thing that is outstanding to me is the number of really impressive young people that are graduating from Vidalia High School. I’m glad I wasn’t the one that had to pick the winner out of all of the applications that we got. It is truly impressive; there’s some really positive things going on in the Vidalia school system,” he emphasized.
The Dixon family joined Sykes in the presentation of the $500 scholarship, as all honored the memory of the late mayor. Beck will use the funding to help further her education, as she plans to attend the University of Georgia in the fall.
