DeKalb youths to be honored at county’s 2021 MLK celebration

Rhodes scholar, Stonecrest teen entrepreneur and student leaders to receive Nathaniel Mosby Humanitarian Award

DECATUR—DeKalb County government will honor a Rhodes scholar, two youth organizations engaged in human rights advocacy and a 14-year-old entrepreneur during the county’s 37th annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. celebration.

The awards will be presented on Monday, Jan. 18, 9:45 a.m., during a brief King Day celebration at James R. Hallford Stadium, 3789 Memorial College Ave., Clarkston, GA.

At 10 a.m., immediately after the program, 3,500 DeKalb residents will receive one 20-pound box of fruit and vegetables and a 10-pound bag of chicken hindquarters. The COVID-19 Care Baskets will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis, at four locations:

• James R. Hallford Stadium, 3789 Memorial College Ave., Clarkston, GA 30021
• Former K-Mart store parking lot at 5597 Buford Hwy NE, Doraville, GA 30340
• Buck Godfrey Stadium,2817 Clifton Springs Rd., Decatur, GA 30034
• Big Miller Grove Missionary Baptist Church, 3800 Big Miller Grove Way, Stonecrest, GA 30038

The youths will receive the Nathaniel Mosby Humanitarian Award, which celebrates the recipients’ commitment to tireless community service and outstanding dedication to being agents for positive change.

Those being recognized include:

• Phaidra Buchanan

Phaidra Buchanan, DeKalb County resident, is the University of Georgia’s first African-American student to win the prestigious Rhodes scholar. Only 25 students in UGA’s history have won this scholarship, which pays for two years or more of postgraduate study at England’s Oxford University.

• Beacon Hill Black Alliance for Human Rights Youth/Student Committee and the Black Student Union of Decatur High School

The Beacon Hill Black Alliance for Human Rights’ Youth/Student Committee and the Black Student Union of Decatur High School began advocating in 2017 for the removal of the Lost Cause monument that was located in the Decatur Square. Their efforts were successful in June 2020 when the monument was removed.

• Mason Wright, Mason’s Super Dogs, CEO and head chef

Fourteen-year-old entrepreneur Mason Wright, a Stonecrest resident, is the CEO and head chef of Mason’s Super Dogs, which is located at 3275 Snapfinger Road, Stonecrest, GA. Wright also is officially licensed to sell Super Dogs on the campus of Morehouse College. In 2019, he won PETA’s No. 5 place for the Top 10 Vegan Hot Dogs of 2019.