Southfield Mayor Kenson Siver received the Icon Award from the Torch of Wisdom Foundation at their 8th Annual Honoring Local Heroes awards banquet on October 25 at the Skyline Club.

The Torch of Wisdom Foundation, affiliated with the Southfield Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, is dedicated to providing youth and families with educational support, mentoring and recreation in addition to awarding grants to organizations that help improve the living conditions for targeted individuals throughout southeastern Michigan. The Icon Award is the foundation's top honor which is given to an individual who has made major contributions to scholarship, cultural arts and community enrichment.  

Dr. Kenson J. Siver was sworn in as the sixth mayor of Southfield on November 16, 2015.  He was previously elected to the Southfield City Council in 2001 and subsequently re-elected to the City Council in 2005, 2009 and 2013. Mayor Siver has lived and worked in Southfield since 1967.  He taught English, journalism and American history at Thompson Junior High School from 1967 to 1977. From 1977 to 1986 he was on a split assignment teaching journalism at Southfield High School and serving as the Southfield Public Schools Community Relations Officer.  In 1986, he was promoted to Director of Information Services and in 2004 to Deputy Superintendent of Schools.  He retired from Southfield Public Schools in 2011 but continues to serve as a school volunteer in addition to being a founding member of the Southfield Martin Luther King Task Force, Southfield-Lathrup Democratic Club, Southfield Historical Society, Magnolia Neighborhood HOA, Southfield Parks & Garden Club and numerous other organizations. Dr. Siver holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Oakland University and a Master’s and doctorate from Wayne State University.

Mayor Siver was instrumental in establishing the Southfield Public Arts Commission to enhances the City's image, heritage, diversity, and character through public artworks integrated in the architecture, infrastructure, and landscape. The city of Southfield took possession of the 18-piece Northland art collection in 2015. The collection was purchased for $500,000 through a city-arranged, low interest loan. The Mayor’s Office and the Southfield Public Arts Commission raised approximately $800,000 to repay the loan and has continued to raise additional funds to restore and place the art throughout Southfield. Most recently, the fountain at the Southfield Public Library was restored and reconfigured including installation of the refurbished Moby Dick sculpture.

About Torch of Wisdom Foundation Inc.

In 1993, the Torch of Wisdom Foundation, Inc., a 501c3 tax-exempt public charity, was established to provide charitable-giving initiatives and to award grants to organizations that help improve the condition of and the education for targeted individuals living in Southeastern Michigan. Each program grant addresses values-based objectives to find sustainable solutions that increase economic, social, and educational opportunities, creating boundless possibilities…Changing Tomorrow Today.