2024 Katie Hall Foundation program is April 6
The Honorable Brandon Johnson, current and 57th Mayor of the City of Chicago, Illinois, will receive the Katie Hall Educational Foundation, Inc.’s 2024 Public Service Award on Saturday, April 6, in Gary.
The award will be presented at the 11th Annual Katie Hall Public Service Awards luncheon, at Fellowship Hall, St. Timothy Community Church, 25th Avenue and Grant Street in Gary.
Mayor Johnson, a progressive politician, will join other distinguished and outstanding public servants who have received the award, among them: Reverend Dr. Bernice A. King, CEO, The King Center; former Gary, Indiana, mayors Richard Gordon Hatcher and Karen Freeman-Wilson; Editor and Publisher Dorothy R. Leavell, Crusader Newspaper Group; Eric J. Holcomb, the current 51st Governor, State of Indiana.
Johnson earned both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Aurora University. Afterwards, he taught Social Studies at Jenner Academy Elementary and George Westinghouse College Prep within the Chicago Public School system. An avid organizer, he helped organize the 2012 Chicago teachers’ strike.
Entering politics in 2018, Johnson ran successfully for the Cook County Board of Commissioners (District #1). During his first term as a Commissioner, he was the chief sponsor of the Just Housing Ordinance, which amended the county’s housing ordinance by prohibiting potential landlords from asking about prospective tenants’ or homebuyers’ criminal history. The ordinance was passed in April 2019. He was re-elected to the Cook County Board of Commissioners in 2022.
In 2023, Johnson was elected mayor of Chicago. He became the third African-American mayor in the city’s history. Since assuming the highest elected municipal office in the city of Chicago, Johnson has been faced with an ongoing migrant crisis, which has challenged America’s third-most populous city.
A public servant dedicated to improving the lives of others, especially youth, Mayor Johnson has served with intense vigor to ensure that all persons share equally and fairly in the American dream, regardless of their respective backgrounds.
Additional honorees of the Class of 2024 Katie Hall Public Service Award include Dr. Valerie McCray, Attorney Shontrai D. Irving, Civil Rights Director Tamie Dixon-Tatum, Attorney Haneefah Khaaliq, Gary jazz pianist/composer Billy Foster, and jazz/gospel vocalist Renee’ Miles-Foster.
A VIP reception will begin at 12 p.m.; the luncheon begins at 1 p.m. Admission is $100 per person. For more information, contact Junifer Hall at [email protected] or the law office of Attorney John Henry Hall.
