Kent Zickfield

It's our honor every July to recognize one deserving individual, among those nominated by you, our readers, as the recipient of the Southeast Missourian Spirit of America Award. Before last night's demolition derby and fireworks at Arena Park sponsored by USA Veterans, we recognized this year's recipient, Kent Zickfield.

In addition to Zickfield's leadership in downtown Cape Girardeau, he's been an active member of several community organizations and his church. He's also a veteran, having served eight years in the Missouri National Guard.

One of his passions is supporting the youth of this community, which he has done through his involvement in local sports teams, Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts.

"Kent Zickfield is a true reflection of the Spirit of America," said Old Town Cape, in their nomination of him. "His hard work and leadership in this community have helped preserve our history as well as build our future." We agree and offer our congratulations to Zickfield and Old Town Cape, the organization he chose to receive the $1,000 cash prize.

One of the challenges with this award is selecting the winner. Each nominee is deserving of recognition, whether for their community involvement or military service. To each we offer our thanks. Thank you for caring. Thank you for serving. And thank you for demonstrating the spirit of America.