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Lowndes County Commission Chairman Charlie King, Jr. received the Association of County Commissions of Alabama (ACCA) Tenure in Office Award during a ceremony held Aug. 23. The award was presented to King, who represents District 2, as part of the association’s 96th annual convention held at Perdido Beach Resort in Orange Beach.

According to Abby Fitzpatrick, ACCA director of communication and engagement, King was first elected to the commission in 1984 and held the office until 2012. Reelected in 2020, he is in the fourth year of his current term in office.

King said he was inspired to serve his community under the guidance of community leaders, who directed him to employ his talents and abilities in service to others.

“There were three old ladies in my community who were the pioneers of the movement back in the day,” King said. “They got together, and they didn’t recruit me, they told me I was going to run for county commissioner. They told me if I was active in the community and I had the courage, then I wouldn’t go wrong. I was raised not to say no to the elder people, so we started running a campaign in 1983 and I was elected in 1984.”

King recalled the reason for selecting his motto, “Keep the horse you broke.”

“I had a gentle horse back in the day,” King said. “He was broken, and I could handle him, but he wasn’t a show horse. He was a working horse.

“That’s the way I describe myself. I’m not a show horse, I’m a working horse. I’m not a show commissioner, I’m a working commissioner.

Of the many contributions King has brought to the county, he counts recruiting employers who bring jobs as among the most meaningful.

“I recruited Daehan Solutions, which is at the Tyson Exit of Interstate Highway 65 and Sejong in Fort Deposit that provide 360-something jobs,” King said. “I was concerned about my county not having jobs and economic development, so I worked hard to make sure that some of those things happened and I’m still working toward that.

District 5 Commissioner Dickson Farrior also received the award honoring his 40 years of service on the commission. Farrior was unable to attend the conference.