Martinsville Mayor L.C. Jones joined UScellular to announce the winners of its 8th annual Black History Month Art Contest with The Boys & Girls Clubs of the Blue Ridge. The event was held at the New College Institute, Macy Martin Lecture Hall, located at 191 Fayette Street in Martinsville on March 15.
Families, friends, winners, UScellular associates, Boys & Girls club staff and Martinsville City Council members Kathy Lawson and Tammy Pearson attended the celebration.
Public voting for the finalists’ art was available online, and the winning artists were awarded gift cards in the following amounts:
Bentley Williamson, 10, received $250 for 1st Place for a portrait of Jackie Robinson.
Josh Stockton, 12, received $150 for 2nd Place for a portrait of MLK Jr.
Rania Womack, 9, received $100 for 3rd Place for a portrait of Katherine Johnson.
In recognition of influential Black STEM icons, Boys & Girls Club members were encouraged to create
original pieces of artwork of important historical figures, world leaders, scientists and educators who have made vital contributions to the world of STEM.
Ten finalists were chosen by representatives from the Boys & Girls Club and local UScellular leaders based on creativity, quality, interpretation, clarity of theme and overall impression. Public voting for the finalists was made available online throughout the month of February. In addition, the finalists’ artwork was digitally displayed in UScellular retail location at 820 Commonwealth Blvd.
“We really enjoy working with the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Blue Ridge to celebrate Black History Month and to highlight the achievements of Black icons,” said Leslie Martin, Martinsville store manager for UScellular. “Congratulations to the participants and winners in this year’s contest.”
Additionally, through its After School Access Project, in 2022, eight Virginia non-profits received a combined $1.3 million worth of hot spots and service to help youth connect to the Internet. Part of this donation went to the Boys & Girls Clubs of The Blue Ridge who received 225 hotspots and service for 2 years valued at $253,350. UScellular has pledged up to $13 million in hotspots and service to help up to 50,000 youth connect to reliable internet in its markets across the nation. For more information about UScellular’s corporate social responsibility initiatives, please go to https://newsroom.uscellular.com/community/.
