Mark Hawkins and Marian Impastato have been selected as the recipients of the State Bar of Michigan's Liberty Bell Award. Hawkins is a lifelong Flint resident who helped to galvanize his community in the aftermath of a fatal school shooting last year. Marian Impastato, has been highly praised as "a true volunteer" who has made numerous contributions to the justice system and to her community.

The two will be recognized at a luncheon, Thursday, September 13, at the State Bar of Michigan Annual Meeting. The Liberty Bell Award recognizes "outstanding service performed by a non-lawyer citizen who has given of their time and energy to strengthen the effectiveness of the American system of freedom under law in keeping with the spirit of our Constitution."

Hawkins, a General Motors employee and an active member of UAW 598, was the recipient of the Genesee County Bar Association Liberty Bell Award. He was recognized for helping to unite the community after the shooting of a six-year old Caucasian child by an African American classmate. Just weeks after the shooting, Hawkins raised over $100,000 from within the UAW to build a playground for the children at the school where the shooting took place. Hawkins was also responsible for getting a bicycle company to supply bikes at cost for every fourth grader at the school, with the money that was left over from the playground project.

Marian Impastato is dedicated to working on programs with children and the law, helping as a Law Day essay and poster contest judge, and as a tri-county area mock trial participant. She was a contributor and advisor for the State Bar's publication, "You and the Law," a founding member of the Center for Civic Education Through Law and a charter member of the Michigan Supreme Court Historical Society. She played an organizational role in Courageous Decisions, a drug and alcohol program for middle and high school students so that they can have the "courage to make the right choice." A Macomb County 2001 Liberty Bell winner, Impastato is considered to be a person who goes out and "gets the job done."

Impastato is a past President of the State Bar Lawyers' Auxiliary, the Macomb County Lawyers' Auxiliary and The Italian Lawyers' Wives. She is currently a member of the Grosse Pointe Lawyers' Auxiliary.