Our CEO wins a leadership award for her work with Foot Soldiers Park

On March 22, 2025, Foot Soldiers Park’s very own Kimberly Smitherman was presented with the Perpetuating Empowerment Ignited By Mentors Leadership II award from the Selma Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority for her over 10 years of community involvement and activism and for her unwavering dedication to the city and people of Selma.

This distinguished award aims to identify and celebrate people who consistently demonstrate leadership qualities, such as initiative, organization, and the ability to inspire others – all characteristics that Kim has exemplified and continues to demonstrate throughout her career and role as an effective and inspiring leader.

The award is named in honor of two extraordinary women foot soldiers, Margaret Jones Moore and Amelia Boynton Robinson. Ms. Moore was a courageous educator and civil rights activist in Selma during the 1965 voting rights movement. As a teacher, she organized almost every Black teacher in the city to march to the courthouse demanding the right to vote. It was a key turning point in the protests leading up to Bloody Sunday.

Ms. Boynton Robinson is best known for her role as a prominent civil rights activist who was instrumental in building the voting rights movement in Selma. She made her home a center for strategy sessions for Selma’s civil rights battles, and was among the seventeen people beaten and left unconscious during the Bloody Sunday march. She was also the first Black woman to run for Congress from Alabama.

“I am deeply honored to receive the Leadership II Award from the Selma Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., in the names of two extraordinary women, Margaret Jones Moore and Amelia Boynton Robinson,” said Kim. “Their legacies of fearless activism and unwavering commitment to justice are the foundation upon which we build today. At Foot Soldiers Park, we carry their torch forward, igniting, empowering, and perpetuating the movement for equity, truth, and transformation. This recognition is not mine alone. It belongs to the people of Selma and every hand helping to shape a brighter future.”

Congratulations, Kim! Well deserved!