Title
To honor and congratulate Catherine Willis on being the 2020 Harrison M. Sayre Award Recipient
Body
WHEREAS, a passionate advocate for enriching lives through education, Catherine Willis’ love for community radiates though her enduring service to it. As a Columbus City Schools teacher, Mrs. Willis dedicated her career to instilling knowledge and developing students to become lifelong learners. Nearly 50 years ago, she co-founded Friends of Art for Community Enrichment (F.A.C.E.) to introduce children to the art and culture of Africa and African Americans. Among its activates, F.A.C.E. presents local, regional and national artist’ work, encourages participation in intergenerational art activities, and furthers awareness and understanding of the African American culture through artistic portrayals of community experiences; and
WHEREAS, since 1987, Mrs. Willis has served as part of the Helen Jenkins Scholarship Fund Lunch Bunch, which awards scholarships to Black CCS graduating seniors who demonstrate high scholastic and ethical standards. Mrs. Willis and a colleague developed the fund to recognize Helen Jenkins Davis, who led the desegregation of CCS and committed her professional life as an educator to mentoring and motiving underprivileged and at-risk Black students.; and
WHEREAS, in her retirement, Mrs. Willis continues to advocate for children through her volunteer work. In 2007, she founded Urban Strings, an organization dedicated to supporting underserved minority youth in playing string instruments. Since its founding, the group has grown from just a few young people to more than 50. In 2019, the Columbus Symphony Orchestra recognized the success of the organization and Mr. Willis’ role in it by awarding her its Music educator Award; and
WHEREAS, Mrs. Willis’ commitment to the young people of our community is further seen through her 30 years of service on the board of the Columbus Youth Foundation (CYF). CYF improves the lives of youth from eco...
Click here for full text