RICHMOND, Va. -- The City of Richmond renamed a Southside street to honor former Richmond Mayor Dwight Jones.
At the corner of 16th and Decatur Streets, you can now see a brown honorary street name sign saying "Dr. Dwight C. Jones Way," in honor of Richmond's 79th Mayor, Dr. Dwight C. Jones.
Sunday's celebration and sign reveal honored Jones and his more than 50 years in public service.
“When I think about it, it’s very hard for me to process the fact that I’ve been at this church for 50 years, but the numbers don’t lie and my legs don’t lie," Jones, whose First Baptist Church of South Richmond is located on the block, said.
During his two tenures as Richmond mayor from 2009 through 2016, Jones helped build four new schools, spearhead the revitalization of Main Street Station, and start a shuttle service to help Richmonders living in food deserts get transportation to grocery stores.
"There are monuments in this city that we can look around today and we will, for the rest of our lives, and give you credit for your leadership and making it happen," said Councilwoman Ellen Robertson. “A great challenge that we still have, that still needs to be addressed, and that is racism. But you, you put that on top of the agenda, and you made every person, not just persons of color like you and I are, but every person in the city of Richmond, to recognize the value of what we had in common, and that’s where we kept our attention.”
Jones saying this about this honor: “When I think about 50 years, and when I think about this street sign, it’s a monument. When I think about the placard on the church, the historical document, when I think about the history all of us have together, it’s a monument but it’s what the Lord has done, and whatever I’ve been able to be a part of, I can only thank God for using me as an instrument to get his work done.”
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