2018 Mayors' Christmas Motorcade
Annually, in support of the Mayor’s Motorcade, staff from the Jessamine Place and People First present both gifts and a check in support of individuals who are still housed in Central Georgia State Hospital in Milledgeville. Pictured are (L to R) Constance Foster, Mcleatha Burnett, Mayor Jim Puckett, Brad King, People First of Fitzgerald President, Tropecca Rose, Ann Searcy, Shirley B. Brooks, Executive Director of The Jessamine Place, Sandra Sheppard, and Marian Jackson.
GMA (Georgia Municipal Association) began the Mayors’ Christmas Motorcade in 1959 at the request of Betty Vandiver, wife of then-Governor Ernest Vandiver, as a way of providing holiday gifts for the patients of Georgia’s mental health and retardation hospitals. Originally established to provide gifts to clients at Central State Hospital in Milledgeville, the program was expanded in the 1980’s to support state regional hospitals. Without the Mayors’ Christmas Motorcade, many of the clients would not receive a gift for the holidays. The Christmas spirit demonstrated by cities during the Motorcade extends beyond the holiday season. Any gifts not handed out during Christmas are used for client birthdays or given to newly arrived clients, who may need basic items. In this way, cities help the hospitals celebrate special occasions year-round and help the hospitals meet the needs of their clients.