2024 Citizen Lawyer Awards Presented
The North Carolina Bar Association honored seven new recipients of the Citizen Lawyer Award at the 2024 NCBA Annual Meeting in Charlotte. Leila Hicks, who served as chair of the Membership Engagement Committee, presented the awards.
Honoring the Citizen Lawyer Award winners, from left, Executive Director Jason Hensley, recipients Kate Gordon Maynard, B. Perry Morrison Jr., Elysia Prendergast-Jones and Afi S. Johnson-Parris, President Patti Ramseur, and recipient Diana Santos Johnson.
The Citizen Lawyer Award was established in 2007 “to recognize and thank lawyers who, in addition to their legal work or pro bono work, exemplify the ideals of a citizen lawyer by volunteering their time for worthy community or civic causes to improve the quality of life of those in their local or statewide communities. This award recognizes role models whose longstanding commitment and dedication to their volunteering inspire other lawyers to invest their time and talents in service-oriented activities.”
The honor roll of Citizen Lawyer Award recipients now lists 222 individuals following the recognition of this year’s honorees:
Diana Santos Johnson, Winston-Salem
Diana Santos Johnson is an associate with Waldrep Wall Babcock & Bailey PLLC, where she has practiced since 2021 and serves on the firm’s bankruptcy team. She previously served on two separate occasions as a staff attorney for Legal Aid of North Carolina and as an associate attorney with Bolton Law Group, P.A.
Diana is a 2005 graduate of Wake Forest University (B.A., Spanish language and literature) and a 2009 graduate of North Carolina Central University School of Law (J.D., North Carolina Central Law Review staff member).
From the outset of her career, Diana has demonstrated the true spirit of the Citizen Lawyer at every turn, beginning with her work as staff attorney for the Land Loss Prevention Project followed by her years as a staff attorney for Legal Aid of North Carolina. She has also been recognized five times as a member of the North Carolina Attorney Pro Bono Honor Society.
Civic activities include service on the Piedmont Advantage Credit Union Board of Directors, its Foundation Committee, the Winston-Salem Zoning Board of Adjustment, Smart Start of Forsyth County, Inc. (board and corporate secretary), the Forsyth County Zoning Board of Adjustment (alternate), and the Hispanic League board.
Afi S. Johnson-Parris, Greensboro
Afi S. Johnson-Parris is a partner with Fox Rothschild LLP in Greensboro. She previously served on the NCBA Board of Governors, is a current and former member of the NCBF Board of Directors, a past president of the Greensboro Bar Association, and incoming chair of the ABA Law Practice Division.
Afi is a veteran of the U.S. Air Force and graduate of the University of Miami (B.B.A., 1994, Air Force ROTC Academic Scholarship), the University of Phoenix, Southern Colorado (MBA, 1998), and the University of Virginia School of Law (J.D., 2002), where she was a member of The Raven Society, the Virginia Law Review editorial board, and president of the Black Law Students Association.
The centerpiece of her exemplary Citizen Lawyer activities has been the Guilford Education Alliance (GEA), which is an independent nonprofit “that galvanizes the community in support of quality public education for all students.” Afi currently serves as secretary of the GEA Board of Directors and previously served as co-chair of the GEA Advocacy Project. She played a prominent role in the Advocacy’s successful efforts to help secure $2 billion in bond funding for Guilford County Schools and its “Build S.M.A.R.T.” school construction initiative.
Katie King, Winston-Salem
Mary K. (Katie) King is a principal with Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP, where she serves as project management leader of the firm’s nationwide LitSmart® E-Discovery team. She joined the firm as Senior E-Discovery Attorney in 2014.
Katie graduated from Duke University in 1998 (B.A., English and studio art) and Emory University School of Law (J.D., 2005). She also received the School of Professional Studies Certificate in Integrated Marketing Strategy and Planning from Wake Forest University in 2022.
The attributes of the Citizen Lawyer have been engrained in Katie throughout her career. She previously served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Gabon, Central Africa, where she helped develop STD and HIV/AIDS education programs in the schools, and serves on the Family Advisory Board of the Concussion Legacy Foundation.
In addition, Katie has served as a member of the Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest NC Capital Campaign, as a founding member and past chair of the Trellis Foundation Leadership Council, as a former member of the Architecture & Interior Design Programs Advisory Board at Forsyth Technical Community College, and as a former member of the Arts Council of Winston-Salem and Forsyth County capital campaign.
Kate Gordon Maynard, Charlotte
Kate Maynard serves as general counsel for Robinson Bradshaw. She joined the firm in 2000 following her clerkship with Chief Judge Boyce F. Martin of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.
She is a 1995 graduate of Wake Forest University (B.A., cum laude) and a 1999 graduate of the Louis D. Brandeis School of Law at the University of Louisville (J.D., summa cum laude, senior editor, Brandeis Law Journal, 1998-99)
Kate has engaged in a wide array of Citizen Lawyer activities during her career with numerous organizations, including the Levine Museum of the New South, Myers Park United Methodist Church, Charlotte Country Day School, Boy Scouts of America and Odyssey of the Mind.
Of special significance is the prominent role Kate has played in the establishment and implementation of the Charlotte Legal Initiative to Mobilize Businesses, or CLIMB. She is a co-founder of the nonprofit legal services organization, which was launched in 2021 to provide pro bono representation to historically under-represented entrepreneurs and low-wealth small business owners.
The program, which received the Filling the Justice Gap (Pro Bono) Award at the 2023 NCBA Annual Meeting, focuses its services on persons of color, women, members of the LGBTQ+ community, persons with disabilities, and veterans.
B. Perry Morrison Jr., Wilson
Perry Morrison is the owner of the Morrison Law Firm, PLLC, which he opened in 2004 following 15 years of combined practice with two firms. He focuses his practice on Workers’ Compensation and Social Security Disability, and he is also a DRC-Certified Superior Court Mediator.
Morrison is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (A.B., history, 1984) and UNC School of Law (J.D., 1988, Holderness Moot Court). He is a past chair of the NCBA Litigation Section and Communications Committee.
Morrison has provided Citizen Lawyer leadership to several local organizations, serving as president of the Wilson All-America Kiwanis Club and the local chapter of the American Heart Association, as well as chair of the Wilson County Transportation Committee. He has also provided board service to the Salvation Army Boys Club, Wilson Community Foundation, Trustees of the Wilson County Public Library, the Wilson County Historical Association, Preservation of Wilson, the Mental Health Association, Central Wilson Association, Downtown Development Corporation, Diversified Opportunities, and the Barton College Board of Advisors.
His affinity for history has been evident in numerous roles, including 24 years of service as a member of the N.C. Historical Commission and two terms on the National Register Advisory Committee, as well as his active leadership in The Society of the Cincinnati. Morrison has served as a Senior Visiting Fellow for the International Studies Program at Barton College, through which he has helped lead over twenty international excursions including the “Band of Brothers” and “Citizen Soldier” tours of Europe.
Elysia Prendergast-Jones, Raleigh
Elysia Prendergast-Jones serves as Managing Attorney for the Raleigh office of Legal Aid of North Carolina. She joined LANC in 2017 as a supervising attorney and has held her current position since February 2024.
Elysia is a 2001 graduate of Coker College (B.A., psychology, English) and 2008 graduate of North Carolina Central University School of Law (J.D.), and also holds master’s degrees in counseling psychology (M.A.) and business administration (MBA).
The enduring spirit of the Citizen Lawyer permeates both her professional and personal contributions to the betterment of the community. For example, Elysia has been a volunteer with Capital Area Teen Court, presiding as a judge over juvenile criminal cases, and the Cary Police Department’s Camp Confidence program, facilitating mock trials for at-risk youth.
Beyond the legal community, Elysia fosters dogs and puppies on behalf of Pawfect Match Rescue and Rehabilitation, and devoted six years of service on the board of Triangle Area Parenting Support, where she worked with new and expecting parents. She has also held countless volunteer roles within the NCBA and NCBF, provided mentoring to Campbell Law School students, and since 2014 has served as a law student adviser at North Carolina Central University School of Law.
Susan Vanderweert, Durham
Susan Vanderweert is a partner in the Law Offices of James Scott Farrin, where she has practiced since 2015. She is an N.C. State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Workers’ Compensation Law, where she focuses her practice.
Susan is a graduate of the University of Minnesota Duluth (1979, B.A., political science, B.A., communication), Duke University (1999, M.A., liberal studies), and UNC School of Law (2002, J.D., Editor-in-Chief, North Carolina Journal for International Law and Commercial Regulation).
Her contributions as a Citizen Lawyer have been best described as compassionate advocacy on behalf of those who cannot advocate for themselves, especially children and pets. Through years of sponsorship with Global Vision and Child Fund International, Susan has supported children in Africa and Asia. Through her work with Best Friend Pet Adoption, a Wake County-based rescue organization devoted to all breeds of dogs and cats, she has helped find permanent homes for countless pets.
Susan has also volunteered with Campbell Law Connections, which is a Wake County Bar Association mentorship program pairing law students with practicing attorneys, and the Wake County Bar Association Foundation Endowment Fund Committee, where she has helped select rising second-year and third-year law students with Wake County ties for the annual Foundation Scholarships.
Russell Rawlings is director of external affairs and communications for the North Carolina Bar Association.