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The Southern Foodways Alliance (SFA) hosted the inaugural Egerton Prize Awards Ceremony on Sunday, August 12 at the Nashville Public Library.
A ticketed reception followed in the Main Gallery at 21c Museum Hotel Nashville, a short walk from the library. Bites from the Gray & Dudley culinary team and a local guest chef were inspired by Egerton-family recipes.
The 2018 Egerton Prize Awards Ceremony featured remarks by Alice Randall, author and writer-in-residence at Vanderbilt University, who spoke about John Egerton: his life, his work, his contributions to the city of Nashville, his role as a leader in the study of Southern regional foodways, and his legacy as a founder of the Southern Foodways Alliance. Chuck Reece, founder and editor of The Bitter Southerner, introduced the honorees and shared stories of their work. Attendees also viewed original films about the honorees, produced by the SFA.
In 2018, SFA offered two prizes. One prize was awarded to Fresh Future Farm, an urban farm and grocery market serving the local community in North Charleston, South Carolina. Germaine Jenkins, CEO of the farm and market director, represented the organization. The second prize was awarded to The Neighbor’s Field in Comer, Georgia, a project of Jubilee Partners that assists former refugees independently practicing sustainable agriculture. The Neighbor’s Field will be represented by its coordinator, Rebecca Smith.
For his work in chronicling and championing the cause of civil rights in America, and for his contribution to our understanding of the power of the common table, SFA established the John Egerton Prize to recognize artists, writers, scholars, and others–including artisans and farmers and cooks–whose work, in the American South, addresses issues of race, class, gender, and social and environmental justice, through the lens of food. While the awards were founded in 2009, this year marks the inaugural standalone ceremony, taking place in Egerton’s hometown of Nashville, where he lived from 1965 until his passing in 2013.