Joe Rex Sport was honored Monday afternoon with a dedication ceremony.

The mayor of Luverne, Ed Beasley, dedicated the recently renovated gazebo located in the middle of Luverne at Douglass Park.

During the ceremony, Beasley joked about Sport being able to fix anything. He told a story about Sport fixing his air conditioner a few decades back and it is still working.

Sport moved to Luverne in 1937 and graduated from Luverne High School ion 1950.

Sport was inducted into the United States Army in July of 1952.  He served 16 months in Korea with the 304 Signal Battalion.

He taught school for five years before accepting a job as a broadcast engineer with WSFA TV in Montgomery. In 1965, Sport became the principal of Highland Home School. He later transferred to the Crenshaw County Board of Education where he administered federal programs for the county schools.

In the summer of 1971, he became the superintendent of education for Crenshaw County. He retired from the position 17 years later.

Sport took up work as a mail carrier for five years following his retirement. He was appointed to the Luverne City Council in 1989 and served as a councilman until he was appointed to Mayor in January of 2003. Sport held the position of mayor for 13 years, retiring a second time in 2015.

The Crenshaw County Chamber of Commerce recognized Sport as citizen of the year in 2011.

He is a long standing member and deacon of Patsburg Baptist church. Sport is a devoted husband to Barbara Sport, and father of five children. They also have numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren.