MOULTRIE — Looking straight ahead to posterity, a three-dimensional bronze likeness of the late Honorable George A. Horkan Jr., longtime Superior Court judge, was unveiled Friday at the third floor of the courthouse.

The plaque hangs at the entrance of the room where Horkan lowered his gavel countless times during more than 25 years of service to the Southern Judicial Circuit.

Several attending a reception hosted by Horkan’s family commented that the judge, an unassuming public servant, wouldn’t have wanted all the fuss. The reception was a testament to the man’s steely integrity. The George A. Horkan Jr. Courtroom was full of court and government officials from one end of the circuit to the other. Rep. Richard Royal and Colquitt County Commission Chairman Max Hancock read to the crowd resolutions passed at the local and state levels in honor of Horkan.

The relief of Horkan was created by Double Play Trophies. County Clerk Deborah Cox, assisted by Chief Judge Arthur McLane, has been perfecting the order since the judge’s death in February, she said, wanting it to properly capture the face of the man they so highly revere.

Horkan’s wife, Ginger, was too moved to watch the unveiling. When she did finally go over to look at it, tears welled in her eyes.

“For George first of all was family, but the courtroom had a special place in his heart. He loved it so,” she said, adding that Horkan believed that the justice system should at all times protect the people.

“He was a polite gentleman, but when the occasion called for stiff and stern, he could handle it,” she said.