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2008 Champion for Children Award Winner Jackie Rawlings

Marc Valero/Highlands Today

Jackie Rawlings is the winner of the 2008 Judge Clifton M. Kelly Champion for Children Award.

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By MARC VALERO | Highlands Today

Published: September 26, 2008

SEBRING - After a 36-year career working with children and families, Jackie Rawlings found herself in the spotlight Thursday winning the Ninth Annual Judge Clifton M. Kelly Champion for Children Award.

Amidst the congratulations, Rawlings exclaimed that she had three meetings to go to the next day.

"It's unbelievable," Rawlings said Thursday evening at the Restoration Center. "I'm going to go to three meetings tomorrow and take my kids to school and everything else. I may collapse after it's all over with."

Rawlings, who is currently director of Healthy Start, has served as director of the Youth Care Home and has worked as an intake counselor, foster care worker, family counselor and court counselor.

She is also a volunteer with many groups including: Resource Mothers, the Community Action Group, Teen Pregnancy Prevention Alliance and the Public Health Planning Committee

John Varady, a finalist for the award, congratulated Rawlings after the gala's program concluded.

"After listening to everybody's resume, I almost felt that I should excuse myself and leave," he said. "These people have been at it longer than I've been alive."

Rawlings said it would have been so much better if Judge Kelly was here.

"I had to present many a case in front of him when he was presiding on the bench," she said. "He always listened to what the counselors and social workers had to say. He knew we were out there in the trenches and he really valued what we had to say.

"He was always a role model to me. It's still a great honor, but it would have been better with him here."

Teen Pregnancy Prevention Alliance Program Coordinator Susan Buelow said, "I have known Jackie since I was 18 years old.

"I dropped out of school and came to work and there was Jackie and she was a social worker and she helped me out."

Beulow was Rawlings' secretary and then she became a social worker herself.

"Her heart is children and I'm just so thankful she finally won this award," Buelow said. "I think this kind of gives her life meaning after all the children she helped support."

Rawlings was among seven finalists for the award.

The other finalists were: John Chess, Edna Jackson, Velma Lumpkin, Russ Sharp, John Varady and Dennis Ward.

Originally 25 individuals were nominated for this year's award. A committee selected seven finalists and another committee selected the award recipient.

Judge Kelly, who died in 2005, served 25 years as head of the 10th District Circuit Court. The Champion for Children Award is named after him in recognition of his many years of service and dedication to helping children.

Marc Valero can be reached at 386-5826 or mvalero@highlandstoday.com

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