Dr. C.T. Wright is the recipient of the 2014 Fountain Hills Republican of the Year award.

The award was presented at the club’s annual breakfast meeting March 15.

Wright was selected for the honor for his service to the Republican Party at every level. He has been a grassroots activist for many years.

He is a member of the club’s board of directors and is a precinct committeeman. He has served as chaplain on the board of directors of Legislative District 23 (formerly LD 8).

Wright has been elected as a state committeeman and has been an elected delegate to the Republican National Conventions in 2008 and 2012.

In 2012, he was named one of Arizona’s 11 members of the Electoral College, casting his vote for presidential nominee Mitt Romney who won in the state’s Presidential Primary election.

Wright has been called upon by Arizona GOP chairmen and the state’s congressional delegation and state officials to be a liaison between them and minority communities. He is vice president of the Arizona American African Republican Committee and has been involved in the planning of the Emancipation Proclamation events in 2013 and 2014 in central Phoenix sponsored by that organization. He also has been also involved with the Organization of Chinese Americans and the Arizona Latino Republican Association.

His powerful invocations and his uplifting speeches have made him a favorite speaker at statewide GOP events and at meetings of various Republican organizations.

In his speeches, he relates how a child of sharecroppers growing up in the small town of Social Circle, Ga., rose to academic heights by employing a strong work ethic and taking advantage of educational opportunities. He went from being a small town teacher to earning a Ph.D. at Boston University and serving in high ranking posts at Black colleges and universities, including serving as President of Cheyney State University in Philadelphia, Penn., from 1982 to 1985. He also relates his own personal history of why he became a Republican.

Dr. Wright and his wife, Mary, moved to Fountain Hills in 1999 from Scottsdale. They have been active in community events. Wright is a current member and past president of the Fountain Hills Unified School District. In 2002, the Wrights founded the Light of Hope Institute which has done important human rights work in Arizona, across the United States and around the globe.

As executive director of the Light of Hope Institute, he continues to work to provide aid to students through his Social Circles of Justice Student Support Fund for enrollment in the Social Justice and Human Rights master’s program at Arizona State University.

As president and CEO of the International Foundation for Education and Self-Help, he has worked on numerous initiatives including biennial African summits and with major corporations around the world to improve corporate social responsibility.

Upon receiving the honor from the Fountain Hills organization, Wright thanked a number of individuals who welcomed and encouraged his participation in serving in public office and in GOP activities, and his wife Mary, who shares his passion for politics.

The first recipient of the Republican of the Year Award was June Post, a member who in the early days of the town, made it her mission to register everyone to vote.

Since then, the award has been presented annually to a Fountain Hills Republican Club member who has made contributions not only to the club but to the Republican Party at the district, county, state and even national levels. The winner is chosen by a committee and members are encouraged to submit nominees.