Four Decorah Middle School students perform at an awards dinner in Des Moines

Posted: Tue, Jul 24, 2018 9:49 AM

(Pictured L to R): Lauren Johnson, Larsson Shockey, Grace Gerleman, and Ruby Sullivan

Four students from Decorah performed at an awards dinner earlier this month in Des Moines. 8th grade graduates Grace Gerleman, Lauren Johnson, Larsson Shockey, and Ruby Sullivan performed in front of an audience of close to 500 people.

They were invited to perform a 15-minute play about the life and legacy of Edna Griffin at the Edna Griffin Legacy Awards Dinner—named after the 1950s Civil Rights activist and trailblazer in the Des Moines area.

Griffin was refused service at a downtown Des Moines business, then led the fight against inequity in Iowa. After conducting several interviews with Griffin's children throughout the school year, the students were asked by the Griffin family to share their performance at the banquet at Drake University.

"Attending and performing at the Edna Griffin celebration gave us a chance to give tribute to and recognize one of Iowa's most influential women in the Civil Rights Movement," said Grace Gerleman.