Camden County honors Thiokol Memorial Project, votes to send presidential letter supporting congressional gold medal

The Camden County Board of Commissioners on a June meeting proclaimed recognition for the Thiokol Memorial Project and unanimously approved sending a letter of endorsement to the President of the United States urging congressional recognition for victims of the Feb. 3, 1971 Thiokol Chemical Corporation plant explosion.

The board’s proclamation noted that 29 people died and more than 50 were injured in the blast at the Woodbine plant and recognized the documentary The Day That Shook Georgia, directed by Patrick and Anne Longstreth, which the board said was awarded a Southeast Chapter Emmy on June 14, 2025. The commission voted to send its letter of support on behalf of the county.

The resolution, read into the record by a commissioner at the dais, described the plant workers — many identified in the proclamation as African American women who assembled trip flares during the Vietnam War — and praised the Thiokol Memorial Project for preserving survivors’ and victims’ stories. The board said it would enclose a copy of the documentary with the letter to the President.

Members of the Thiokol Memorial Project, including public commenter Janie Everett of Woodbine, addressed the board during the presentation and public comment. Everett identified herself as a seventh-generation Camden County resident and thanked the commissioners and documentary team for the recognition.

Commissioners asked staff to send the signed letter to the President this week; a motion to do so passed with a second and a recorded “all in favor” vote. The board also posed for a group photograph with project representatives after the proclamation was read.

The proclamation ties local historical commemoration to a national recognition effort; the board’s letter accompanies materials the county will forward to the White House, as authorized in the vote.