Sandersville City Council voted to authorize Sandersville Mayor Jimmy Andrews to execute a grant application for the Georgia Council for the Arts Fiscal Year 2022 Vibrant Communities Grant at their Monday, August 16 meeting.
City Administrator Judy McCorkle explained during the City Council’s workshop that the grant is in the amount of $7,300, which includes $2,434 in matching funds that would come from private donations.
According to City Administrator McCorkle, the City’s Economic Development Director Andrew Simpson is pursuing this grant to help fund the “Sound Off” Private Willie Lee Duckworth mural. McCorkle stated that the mural will go on John Dana’s building located on East Church Street in Sandersville; this will be visible from Highway 15.
City Administrator McCorkle stated that this project has the support of Private Willie Lee Duckworth’s family.
In 1944, Private Willie Lee Duckworth of Sandersville wrote one of the most popular marching cadences in military history; it was first known as the “Duckworth Chant,” but later gained fame as “Sound Off.”
The grant application for the mural notes that the City of Sandersville will task Color the World Bright from the University of Georgia’s Lamar Dodd School of Art to paint the mural.
“There are a lot of neat and historical things about Sandersville and Washington County; everytime you get a chance to showcase it in ways like this, it’s a win-win,” said Mayor Pro-Tem Jeffery Smith.
During the Council meeting, Mayor Pro-Tem Smith remarked that these recognitions help set the area apart.
Mayor Jimmy Andrews followed on Mayor Pro-Tem Smith’s remarks saying that the mural is a wonderful opportunity to honor someone who is very deserving.
After discussing the mural, Mayor Pro-Tem Jeffery Smith moved to allow the Mayor to execute the grant application; Councilperson Henry Watts seconded, and the vote carried unanimously.