Pensacola Councilwoman Sherri Myers will be honored at the Center for Independent Living’s 2016 Annual Awards & Volunteer Recognition Luncheon. Myers will be presented with Joe Oldmixon Award for her lifetime of service to people with disabilities.
Joe Oldmixon was elected Escambia County’s Supervisor of Elections in 1952 and served in that role until his death in 1994. He was almost completely paralyzed by a neck tumor that confined him to a wheelchair since his teens. When he first ran in 1952, Joe defeated four other candidates and ran unopposed every election after that. He was an inspiration to the entire community and earned the title “Dean of Florida’s Election Supervisors.”
I had the good fortune to profile Councilwoman Sherri Myers in January 2014 – Weathered Warrior. Born to an unwed mother and growing up in the slums of Montgomery, Ala., she has an affinity for underdogs and those that society shuns and ignores.
For the interview, she brought a folder full of clippings dating back to the 1970’s.
When asked about why she fought so hard for so many years for civil rights, Myers talked about the first person she met when she began her work with the homeless.
“It was the first time I had been among the homeless. I told him after we talked that it was nice to know him,†she said. “His reply was ‘You don’t know me, but I hope you know the Jesus in me.’â€
Tearing up, she admitted that those words still touch her core. “I’ll never forget that statement,†said Myers. “I’m a Christian, and I hope that people can also see the Jesus in me.â€
Sherri, we do.
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2016 Annual Awards & Volunteer Recognition Luncheon
When: 11 a.m.-1 p.m., July 26
Where: First Pentecostal Church, 6500 North W. St.
Keynote: Senator Don Gaetz
For more information, contact Danny Broxson, (850) 595-5566 (V/TTY) Email: danny@cil-drc.org