City of Knoxville, TN
03/06/2026 | News release | Distributed by Public on 03/06/2026 14:03
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East Knoxville neighbor Sylvia McLaurin received the Diana Conn Good Neighbor of the Year Award at the 2026 Neighborhood Awards Dinner, held Thursday, March 5, 2026, at The Brookside in Happy Holler.
The fourth annual event, planned and produced by the City's Office of Neighborhood Empowerment, recognizes the activities of individuals and organized neighborhood groups that contribute to a healthy, active, safe and beautiful city.
Mayor Indya Kincannon presented the awards and thanked all nominees for their contributions. After accepting the night's big award, McLaurin expressed her appreciation for everyone in the room, indicating our collective role in creating and sustaining community. She received a standing ovation.
In McLaurin's nomination, neighbor Krista Rines wrote: "Her projects consistently require significant time, physical labor and the thoughtful gathering of resources, yet she approaches every effort simply because she wants to make her neighborhood a better place for everyone. Because of her, East Knoxville is not only cleaner and more beautiful, but also more connected, more compassionate and more engaged."
The selection committee, comprising members of the Neighborhood Advisory Council, chose McLaurin for her diligent and selfless actions to improve life in East Knoxville for all.
A member of the Town Hall East Board of Directors, McLaurin planned the Holston Hills Cleanup during which volunteers, supported by Keep Knoxville Beautiful, collected 18 bags of trash. She has drawn on her 25 years as a Master Gardener and her doctorate in Landscape Architecture to revamp neighborhood pollinator gardens, lead significant tree plantings, and redesign teacher breakrooms at nearby schools.
All finalists received proclamations honoring their contributions of time, energy and personal expense to making their neighborhoods safer, cleaner and more beautiful places to live. Those finalists are:
• Geoffrey Cavalier, Maplehurst Park
• Gail Frank, Northwest Hills
• Lindsey Lee, Edgewood Park
• Rita McKinnon, Mechanicsville
• Nicholas Poker, Parkridge
• Janice Tocher, South Knoxville
• Sally Wilcox, North Hills Garden Club
All nominees demonstrated qualities exemplified by the late Diana Conn, for whom the award was named and given posthumously. Members of her Old Sevier Community described Conn as a generous, caring and devoted neighbor.
Additional individuals and groups received recognition:
• Knoxville Police Department Officer Travis Schuler received the Carol Scott Officer of the Year Award, with Officers John Williams and Myriah Hamilton recognized as finalists.
• Healthy Knoxville awards went to the Westwood Homeowners Association, Timbercrest Neighborhood Association, Edgewood Park Neighborhood Association and West Hills Community Association.
• Timbercrest, Edgewood Park, West Hills, Fountain City Town Hall and Mechanicsville Community Association received Neighborhood Achievement Awards.
Learn more about the Office of Neighborhood Empowerment and its many programs and resources at http://KnoxvilleTN.gov/Neighborhoods.
The fourth annual event, planned and produced by the City's Office of Neighborhood Empowerment, recognizes the activities of individuals and organized neighborhood groups that contribute to a healthy, active, safe and beautiful city.
Mayor Indya Kincannon presented the awards and thanked all nominees for their contributions. After accepting the night's big award, McLaurin expressed her appreciation for everyone in the room, indicating our collective role in creating and sustaining community. She received a standing ovation.
In McLaurin's nomination, neighbor Krista Rines wrote: "Her projects consistently require significant time, physical labor and the thoughtful gathering of resources, yet she approaches every effort simply because she wants to make her neighborhood a better place for everyone. Because of her, East Knoxville is not only cleaner and more beautiful, but also more connected, more compassionate and more engaged."
The selection committee, comprising members of the Neighborhood Advisory Council, chose McLaurin for her diligent and selfless actions to improve life in East Knoxville for all.
A member of the Town Hall East Board of Directors, McLaurin planned the Holston Hills Cleanup during which volunteers, supported by Keep Knoxville Beautiful, collected 18 bags of trash. She has drawn on her 25 years as a Master Gardener and her doctorate in Landscape Architecture to revamp neighborhood pollinator gardens, lead significant tree plantings, and redesign teacher breakrooms at nearby schools.
All finalists received proclamations honoring their contributions of time, energy and personal expense to making their neighborhoods safer, cleaner and more beautiful places to live. Those finalists are:
• Geoffrey Cavalier, Maplehurst Park
• Gail Frank, Northwest Hills
• Lindsey Lee, Edgewood Park
• Rita McKinnon, Mechanicsville
• Nicholas Poker, Parkridge
• Janice Tocher, South Knoxville
• Sally Wilcox, North Hills Garden Club
All nominees demonstrated qualities exemplified by the late Diana Conn, for whom the award was named and given posthumously. Members of her Old Sevier Community described Conn as a generous, caring and devoted neighbor.
Additional individuals and groups received recognition:
• Knoxville Police Department Officer Travis Schuler received the Carol Scott Officer of the Year Award, with Officers John Williams and Myriah Hamilton recognized as finalists.
• Healthy Knoxville awards went to the Westwood Homeowners Association, Timbercrest Neighborhood Association, Edgewood Park Neighborhood Association and West Hills Community Association.
• Timbercrest, Edgewood Park, West Hills, Fountain City Town Hall and Mechanicsville Community Association received Neighborhood Achievement Awards.
Learn more about the Office of Neighborhood Empowerment and its many programs and resources at http://KnoxvilleTN.gov/Neighborhoods.
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