The local faith-based, social advocacy group NAOMI awarded Brad Karger its social justice award at its annual Martin Luther King Banquet.
Northcentral Area Congregations Organized to Make an Impact honored the Marathon County administrator for his participation in the peace march “Save our Children,” held at The 400 Block last summer, and for handling the subsequent fallout with grace, said Maysee Her, who presented the award. The county board suspended Karger for 30 days without pay for participating in the march, which upset local law enforcement officials.
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Karger told attendees that his concern was for both children involved in the incident that precipitated the march. Then 15-year-old Dylan Yang is now serving a 13-year prison term for stabbing and killing 13-year-old Isaiah Powell in a fight. Karger said Monday that he had no intention of taking sides in the case but was most concerned about a 15-year-old boy being held in adult jail and potentially being sent to adult prison.
