LAKELAND, FL — U.S. Congressman Byron Donalds was presented with a crystal eagle Thursday after addressing hundreds of students, faculty, staff and community members during Polk State College’s Constitution Day celebration at its Lakeland Campus.
Polk State President Anastasios Kamoutsas and the College’s Presidential Ambassadors presented Donalds with the eagle as a show of gratitude for his participation and remarks to students.
Donalds, a Republican who has represented Florida’s 19th Congressional District since 2021, served as the keynote speaker for the Lakeland event. Florida Sen. Rosalind Osgood, a Democrat, served as keynote speaker during an afternoon Constitution Day event at Polk State’s Winter Haven Campus.
During his address, Donalds discussed the history and influence of the U.S. Constitution, including the Magna Carta, and encouraged younger generations to remain civically engaged and protect constitutional freedoms.
“We are the progeny of great work,” Donalds said. “The only way we’re going to keep our nation alive for another 250 years is for every generation to continue to choose the freedoms, protections, and liberties of the greatest governing document ever drafted in the history of mankind.”
Donalds also reflected on moving from New York to Florida approximately 30 years ago and building his career and raising a family in the state.
“We have inherited a great nation,” Donalds told the audience. “The way we keep this nation great is for the young people in this room, the young people all over Florida and all over this nation to always remember, first and foremost, that we have to protect our Constitution.”
Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd provided welcoming remarks during the event, while Polk State’s ROTC program, the Moccasin Battalion, presented the colors.
The Constitution Day events were part of Kamoutsas’ “Where Eagles Soar” initiative, which includes an emphasis on civic engagement and developing responsible citizens who contribute to their communities.
SOURCE: POLK STATE COLLEGE
