Photo by: Ishara Henry, Blacktea Brownsuga Network
-AWARD-
Editor and Publisher Sonja Reis surprised Gazette 2.0 Person of the Year recipient Marlene Banks with a certificate and subscription during the African American Celebration of Arts (AACOA) event held at the Father Ryan Arts Center in McKees Rocks on Feb. 19.
Banks was chosen as person of the year for 2021 by the newspaper’s readership.
A January article outlining the reasons why Banks was chosen for the honor calls her “a multi-faceted woman who organizes many different efforts in the Sto-Rox community” including the “Welcome to the Table” project where Sto-Rox residents can receive free, hot meals with no questions asked.
During the 11th annual Black History Month program sponsored by Focus on Renewal, Banks provided a special presentation on Kwanzaa.