Governor Josh Stein announced Thursday that the North Carolina Awards, the state’s highest civilian honor, are returning to Raleigh this November, with ticket proceeds this time benefiting two charities that serve veterans and military families. The 2026 ceremony will bring together six honorees spanning literature, public service, science, and the fine arts, and will be held at Lenovo Center on November 17.
Stein made the announcement in a post on X, writing that the event will raise money for Blue Star Families and Camp Corral, two organizations that support veterans and military families. The governor’s office separately confirmed the full slate of 2026 honorees: author Jason Mott for Literature; NASCAR icon Richard Petty, retired Lt. Gen. Kevin Vereen, and former N.C. State Chancellor Dr. Randy Woodson for Public Service; paleontologist Dr. Lindsay Zanno for Science; and painter Beverly McIver for Fine Arts, according to the N.C. Governor’s Office.
Among the honorees, Petty’s name carries a particularly local resonance beyond the racetrack. As WCNC notes, the public service honoree previously established Victory Junction in 2004, a North Carolina camp for children with serious medical conditions created in memory of his grandson Adam Petty.
A Statutory Honor Dating Back to 1961
The North Carolina Awards were established by the N.C. General Assembly in 1961 under General Statute § 140A-2, following a proposal by State Senator Robert Lee Humber, and were first conferred in 1964 as the state’s highest civilian honor, per NCpedia. Each recipient receives a 14-karat gold medal designed by sculptor Paul Manship shortly before his death in 1966, featuring the Great Seal of North Carolina and the inscribed motto “Achievement Is Man’s Mark of Greatness.”…