Progress 2008

PROGRESS2008

THE COMMERCIAL DISPATCH

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Not long after moving from Charleston, South Carolina, to Columbus, Karen Jonason was diagnosed with cancer.

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“Programming is the key to thefuture,” Dr. Del Phillips, superintend-ent for CMSD schools, said in August2007 when he first presented the ideaof magnet schools to the district’sBoard of Trustees.

“Individualized education is theway to go,” he continued. “The reasonit is so successful is because it raisesstudent achievement and it keeps stu-dents interested in school.”

“Everybody is talented at some-thing. Everyone is interested in some-thing. If you can match the right childwith the right things, wonderful thingscan happen,” Donald Waldrip,founder of Magnet Schools ofAmerica, assured board members.“You build it, you promote it, they willcome.”

If Waldrip’s prediction holds true,the fall of 2008 should see an influx ofexcited students as the doors open toCook Elementary Fine Arts MagnetSchool, Stokes Beard ElementaryTechnology and CommunicationMagnet School, Fairview ElementaryAerospace and Science MagnetSchool, Franklin Elementary MedicalSciences and Wellness Magnet Schooland Sale Elementary InternationalStudies Magnet School.

“It keeps students engaged inschool. It matches their instructionwith what the overall theme of theschool is,” Phillips said.

CMSD will have a true magnetschool concept, with every elementaryschool in the district planning instruc-tion around one of five themes.

‘True choice’“I think the biggest thing with mag-

net schools is the ability to havechoice across the system,” Phillipsoffered.

Many school systems operatingwith the magnet concept have one ortwo schools with themes. With allCMSD elementary schools offering aunique theme, parents and childrenwill have what Tommy Prude, CMSDBoard of Trustees vice president hascalled “true choice.”

Prude has long been a proponent

PROGRESS 2008 ◆ THE COMMERCIAL DISPATCH 7

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Leigh Yarborough

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Skip DescantKristin MamrackVicky NewmanDanny P. SmithJune C. Straight

Justin SuttonJan Swoope

Joey VaughanNeal Wagner

PhotographersKelly Tippett

Joe Ray RobersonMatthew West

Advertising DirectorHye Coleman

Advertising AssistantsFelicia BowenAdrian FieldsLinda Massey

Advertising SalesEvie Funk

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The Commercial DispatchP.O. Box 511

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Progress 2008Quality Matters

A publication of The Commercial Dispatch


“The next generation of any endeavorusually rests on the shoulders of thosewho went before,” believes founderGildea. “Our success includes parents,good teachers and the philosophy of Dr.Suzuki that teaches us that any child canlearn if nurtured in the right environ-ment.”

YMCA art and dramaThe YMCA offers more than fitness

and sports these days. The nationalYMCA and Columbus’ Frank P. Phillips Yview the arts and humanities as tools tobuild communities and strengthen fami-lies.

“We’ve always been big in youthsports,” said local YMCA executivedirector, Charlie Box. “I suppose thereality hit us several years ago that noteveryone is a jock that likes to playsports. It was then we started offeringart.”

The Y’s Young Artists Program offersfive classes at its downtown location —two preschool art classes, homeschoolart, after-school art and intermediate artwith focus areas in drawing, painting,

collage, printmaking and sculpture.“Many children think they can’t draw

and feel unsure of their artistic abilities,”observed Mutch. “I love to see theirfaces when they see that they can createbeautiful art. This confidence carriesover into other areas of their lives andhelps them feel good about themselves.

That is the power of art!”Drama has also become a popular

YMCA-sponsored endeavor.Under Terri Gillis’ guidance, produc-

tions including “Annie,” “Back toMayberry” and “Pollyanna” have enter-tained local audiences and infectedyoung thespians, as well as their parents,


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Nathan Parker, 8, paints during YMCA art class.

Art instructor Cynthia Mutch points to three containersof vivid paints.

“Does anyone know what these are?” she asks thegroup of 5- to 9-year-olds in an art class at the Frank P.Phillips YMCA in downtown Columbus.

Young Claire immediately stretches her hand high.“The primaries!” she eagerly answers.A 6-year-old seeing the rich red, yellow and blue pri-

mary colors through the eyes of a burgeoning artist is justone of the small artistic milestones celebrated each weekin art centers, classrooms and studios throughout the city.

The arts are the universal language, transcending allages and cultures. They educate, enrich and entertain. Andit’s no secret that a community vibrant with visual arts,music and theater has an advantage when prospectivebusinesses and professionals come calling.

So just how is Columbus going about the creative busi-ness of developing its next generation of artists, actors,musicians and art patrons?

Much of it is under way within organizations like theColumbus Arts Council, Suzuki String Program and theYMCA.

And Columbus Municipal School District parents will

artsw i t h t h e

growing up

Local groups bringing along anew generation of artists, onepaintbrush and violin at a timetext by JAN SWOOPE

photographs by KELLY TIPPETT


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“You see a lot of boating on the river,” said Miller. “It isone of the best places for bass fishing in the state, and thereare several fishing tournaments on the river each year.”

And despite its popularity, the river hasn’t gotten toocrowded to enjoy.

In fact, Miller believes the good boating practicesobserved by most who use the river keep it safe and acces-sible.

“The river is well monitored, and great care is taken tomake sure everyone is safe,” Miller, who is a member of aboating group called the Stump Jumpers, said.

“We practice safe boating and because of this, the num-ber of accidents have been down over the last few years,”she added.

And the Stump Jumpers do more than just enjoy thewater. They work to help others enjoy it as well, staging skishows and helping teach children how to ski.

The Tenn-Tom also serves as a major attraction, bringingmany different people to the city of Columbus.

It’s not uncommon to see people from northern statesenjoying their time on the river around Columbus, Millernoted.

Places such as the Columbus Marina on Columbus Lakenear the Lock and Dam, and the people who operate them,act as some of the best ambassadors for the city.

“The Marina is a great example of a place where you areable to dock, get gas and go out into town,” Miller said.

“Many people go into town during the off season that havetraveled down the waterway from the North.”

While the river provides her with great recreationalopportunities, Miller said the memories provided by theriver are just as important.

The river is dear to her heart.“My child was on the river from the time he was born,”

said Miller. “It is a great way to raise your children becauseit is a family atmosphere.”

In addition to creating a good time for a family, the riveralso allows friends to get together.

Allison Caldwell Floyd and Shane Floyd celebrate their wedding on the banks of the Tombigbee.


other places.”“I guess it’s just a lot easier for visi-

tors from other countries to fit into anew place when the people who livein that place are so patient and will-ing to help them with whatever theyneed,” added Padar, who moved toMichigan when she was about 13years old.

International offeringsAs much as the international wives

and their husbands enjoy living here,it might actually be Columbus that isgetting the better end of the deal.

International guests bring with

them the cultures and — possiblymost importantly — the food fromtheir native countries.

“Every country has a differenttaste,” said Padar. “Columbus doesn’treally have that many different tastes,but we are sharing foods from all over

the world with the other wives in thegroup and with people we meet inthe town.”

Whether it’s a plate of sushi or thefinest Thai cuisine, the wives are defi-nitely excited about sharing theirhometown — or rather home-country— delicacies with anyone they can.

“We always bring food to all our(International Spouses Group) meet-ings,” said Japanese-native MayumiYoshida. “It’s good to share Japanesefood and eat food from other places Idon’t usually have.”

“This is my first experience in theSouth,” said Giacobbi. “I love to talk


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Fourth of July, Labor Day andMemorial Day are just a few of thedays calling the Stump Jumpers to theTombigbee and their pavilion there.

“We get together and eat on the bigholidays,” Miller said. “We have evenhad a wedding out there.”

Even for those choosing to stay onland, the river still can provide someentertaining opportunities.

The Riverwalk and Jazz Fest alongwith other outdoor activities tied tothe river help provide a good time forthose who prefer to stay dry.

Often, the activities on the banks ofthe river also are enjoyed off shore aswell.

“During the Columbus Jazz Fest,there were several people in theirboats hanging out and enjoying themusic,” remembered Miller.

“People would kill to have a riverrunning downtown in their city,”added Miller.

“The river has been a part of thecommunity forever. So often, we justtake for granted the fact that it runsthrough our community.” ■

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250 Lehmberg Rd. • Columbus250 Lehmberg Rd. • Columbus329-9969

PattmanFUNERAL DIRECTORS

ments for a long time, adding crappieto the catch two years ago and catfishin 2007.

An official announcement was setfor March by the American BassAnglers verifying booking of the GrandSlam Championship in Columbus.

And Columbus has the 2009Crappie Classic national, too.

“We have a Southeast andSouthwest division, and this is wherethey’ll meet up for nationals. SinceMississippi didn’t have a single event,we knew it would be a fair spot allacross the board, and we knew wewanted to have it in Columbus becausewe’ve had our eye on it for a while,”said Deborah Talley, ABA national mar-keting director.

Although the group has about eightdivisions per state in the region,Mississippi only has one. That’s some-thing they’re looking to change in thenear future, and the city could benefit.

This Grand Slam should bringaround 200 boats to the area with onepro-angler and an accompanying non-fisherman per rig.

The official tournament lasts oneweek, but Talley said many participantscome in two weeks beforehand forpractice. Hosting the event also makesColumbus eligible to bid on three otherABA national tournaments, whichcould mean rotating a different one ineach year.

Sniffing out the new Fox hunting and bird dog trials are

another couple of major attractions.Since the first American fox hunt

was held at Waverley, the chase hasbeen a local tradition.

The local chapter of the NationalFox Hunt Association held about 20events at the Black Prairie Preserve dur-ing the past season.

And the CVB secured both theNational Derby Dog Field TrialsChampionships and the Black PrairieBird Dog Field Trials Championship forthis spring.

Although the number of teams pertournament varied, each one consistedof about five handlers who stayed intown with their animals for the two- tofive-day event.

“If these two tournaments go as wellas we’re hoping, we expect to get thenational field trials next year and theRegion 6 Bird Dog Field Trials inDecember,” said Tsismanakis. “Thesehunters and fishermen who come in forevents here really make an impact onour economy, but it’s an almost invisi-ble source of tourism unless you’reinvolved.”

FFunding the funThe CVB’s entire mission is about

drawing events to the area, and bigfun takes funding.

That capital comes from a 2-per-cent restaurant tax collected on busi-nesses that make more than$325,000 per year in food sales.

“That’s our seed money to bring infestivals and other events,”Tsismanakis said. “This year we hada $135,000 grant budget and$130,000 for sports events — andthat’s not counting the advertising,trade shows and public relations.”

That grant budget, which exceedslast year’s numbers by more than$30,000, is split between localevents to help foot the bill of bring-ing tourists to town.

It goes out in trickles: $15,000 tothe Tennessee Williams Tribute andTour of Victorian Homes, $10,000 tothe new Jazz & Blues Festival,$4,000 for Roast-n-Boast.

Additionally, it costs about $2,000to bring the celebs for the Bravescamp, $6,000 for Dizzy Dean,$25,000 for the Grand SlamChampionship and a whopping$90,000 for the Crappie Classic.

Sometimes there are sponsors tohelp absorb the expense.

They also reap the benefits of theadded tourism dollars.

That yield comes in the form ofhotel room fees, gas profits, travelnecessities and dining out.

Tourism officials estimate that forevery $1 a city spends on tourism, itreceives $8 in return.

And the more the CVB can helpbring in, the more money they havefrom taxes to make the next yeareven better. ■



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328-8656years. Shaherazad’s is open for lunchand dinner every day except Monday.

Mexican restaurantsIt’s easy to find Mexican food

establishments in the Golden Triangle,including some that serve authenticMexican dishes, along with fast-foodand chain restaurants.

In Columbus, a few include Mi

Toro on Highway 45 North, GaribaldiMexican Restaurant on Military Roadand La Fiesta and Mexican Kitchen onAlabama Street. In Starkville, ElSombrero is on Eckford Drive andMexico Tipico, Mi Hacienda and LaMagnolia are all on Highway 12.

Southern cooking is great, but whynot treat your taste buds to the flavorsof the globe? ■


sushi bar, where customers can watchthe preparation.

A new thingPang made it his mission to entice

Columbus area residents to try some-thing entirely new. It took awhile, but hecounts his effort a success.

“When we first started, about 10 per-cent customers eat sushi, and 90 percentorder from kitchen,” said Pang, whobelieves most people who do not likesushi simply haven’t tried it. “After somany years, the local customers try it,now 90 percent eat sushi, and maybe 10percent order from kitchen.”

Pang is assisted by his wife, Yen,whom he brought to Columbus soonafter he arrived here. The Pangs nowhave two young children.

“We’re so happy here. Every year, wehave a lot of good, loyal customers. A lotof people from the base, when theyleave, leave a paper on the table, saying‘Thank you for the good food.’ Theynever forget us.”

Pang has opened another smallrestaurant in Tuscaloosa, Ala., but plansto remain a Columbus resident. “Peoplehere so nice. Like family, like bestfriend.”

Little Tokyo is open Tuesday throughSaturday for lunch from 11 a.m. to 2:30p.m. Dinner is served from 4:30 p.m. to9 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, and4:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. Friday andSaturday.

Chinese cuisineWhether you’re looking for Mandarin,

Szechuan, Hunan or Cantonese, thereare restaurants to satisfy a craving forChinese cuisine, too.

To mention a few, in Columbus,there’s A Gold Star Chinese Restauranton Highway 45 North, China House onAlabama Street, China Royal, PekingChinese Restaurant and Buffet City, onHighway 45 North. In West Point, there’sChina Buffet on Highway 45 Alternate

If Japanese or Asian-inspired cuisinedoesn’t appeal to your tastes, don’tdespair. Eating out in the Golden Trianglekeeps getting easier as the choices keepgetting more plentiful. And it’s partlybecause the international table keeps

getting wider.

For ItalianThe latest, and perhaps most authen-

tic, Italian restaurant in the area isMario’s Italian Restaurant at The Abbeyin Starkville.

“We have an all-new menu andcheaper prices,” owner Mario Perez saidof the downtown Starkville eatery.

With dishes like Penne al Forno($7.50 at lunch) or portobello mush-rooms and shrimp stuffed into ravioli($8.95) along with the red-checkeredtablecloths and candles dripping downold Chianti bottles, this Main Streetbistro transports you directly to Little Italyor better yet, Rome itself.

Mario’s has no shortage of pasta rang-ing from rigatoni to gnocchi and saucesstretching from marinara to clam, or sim-ply — meatballs.

Mario’s serves lunch and dinner, andis closed on Monday.

In Columbus, diners can find Italianfare at The Green Olive owned by chefSarah Labensky.

Middle Eastern cuisineIn Starkville’s Cotton District, the

mood switches to the Middle East wherestudent life mixes with baba ghanouj, (asmooth dip-like sauce made from roast-ed eggplant,) and other Ottoman delica-cies like stuffed grape leaves and falafelsin the tiny Shaherazad’s on MaxwellStreet.

Operated by Oda Dakhlalla, his wife,Lisa Dakhlalla, along with their threesons and a little help from students atStarkville High School and MississippiState University, Shaherazad’s brings fla-vors and the ambiance of the Arab worldto Starkville.

“I wanted people to see a little aboutMuslim life, that what you don’t see onTV,” is the way Lisa Dakhlalla describedher restaurant.

Oda Dakhlalla grew up in Bethlehem,just outside of Jerusalem, and many ofthe dishes are traditional foods found inMiddle Eastern countries.

Lisa Dakhlalla is American by birth,and grew up in New Jersey. The familyhas lived in Starkville for about 26

Customers can watch as Kenny Pang, owner of Little Tokyo, prepares their sushi andsashimi. Opposite: Lisa Dakhlalla, who owns Starkville’s Shaherazad’s along with herhusband, Oda Dakhlalla, prepares food at the restaurant.


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with the acting bug.“We look for plays or musicals with a positive message of

inspiration or hope,” said Gillis, who has also worked closelywith Fairview Baptist Church’s drama team. “I really think thatwhat this theater program is about is reaching out to youngpeople who need to be inspired, who want to connect. It canbring people from the place of being unsure of themselves torealizing how truly valuable they are.”

Fine Arts MagnetFive new magnet themes are set to debut in city elementary

schools in August. While all schools will teach the same core curriculum,

each will have a specific magnet theme — fine arts, technolo-gy and communication, medical sciences and wellness, aero-space and science or international studies.

“I think exposure to the arts allows children to expressthemselves, develop confidence in their abilities to be creativeand recognize beauty through the diversity displayed in art,”Columbus Superintendent of Education Dr. Del Phillips com-mented. “And an appreciation for performing and visual artsdevelops a well-rounded child prepared to think more critical-ly about the world around them.”

The fine arts magnet school, which is planned for CookElementary School, will benefit from partnering with theColumbus Arts Council.

“The new fine arts magnet school will be a great equalizerin our community. No longer will students be able to take art,dance, strings, music and drama only if their parents canafford it,” Rowland said. “And really, isn’t that what ‘No ChildLeft Behind’ is all about?”

The Spanish cubist painter and sculptor Pablo Picasso oncesaid, “Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remainan artist once he grows up.”

Thanks to a dedicated cadre of teachers, mentors andvisionaries, many children in and around Columbus are beingallowed the chance to do just that. ■

Joy Fan, practices violin with fellow Suzuki Strings members. Inthe foreground is Daniel Jones.


In an age of air travel at supersonic speeds, it’s notinconceivable for jet setters to fly to a distant continent foran authentic international meal at the drop of a hat. Or,with easy access to inexpensive cruises, it would be entirelypossible to cruise down south of the border for realMexican food.

But for those who prefer to remain closer to home,opportunities are ample in the Golden Triangle to samplesome flavors of the greater world.

Got a taste for sushi? Forget jetting to Japan. InColumbus, Little Tokyo offers sushi (cooked fish) and sashi-mi (raw fish), as well as tempura, steaks and more.

Vietnamese immigrant Kenny Pang brought Japanesesushi to town in 2003, when he opened Little Tokyo onHighway 45 North. After immigrating to the United Statesin the early 1990s, he had worked in Jackson at a Chineserestaurant, and for a while operated a Chinese restaurant.

When he decided to pursue his own restaurant business,Pang says he was looking for something different to offercustomers, as well as a different location.

Through a friend, Pang discovered sushi, and decided tolearn how to prepare it. Then, by accident, he discoveredColumbus in 2002.

“I said, ‘What town is this? It is a pretty good town.’ Ifound The W and Columbus Air Force Base. I decided to tryto stay here.”

Pang opened Little Tokyo and introduced sushi to thearea. Pang personally makes different kinds of sushi at the

text by VICKY NEWMAN and SKIP DESCANT

photographs by KELLY TIPPETT

“We’re so happy here. Every year,we have a lot of good, loyal

customers. A lot of people ... whenthey leave, leave a paper on thetable, saying ‘Thank you for the

good food.’ They never forget us.”— Kenny Pang

Top row from left, rainbow rolls and Columbus rolls from LittleTokyo add colorful variety to traditional sashimi; eel sauceand fish eggs accent the flavor of this Little Tokyo sushi, pic-tured with tempura; sweet and sour chicken are served withan egg roll from Peking Chinese Restaurant.

platter


Golden Triangle enriched by influxof international residents

OPTIONALENGLISH

From Thailand to Ecuador,Columbus Air Force Base draws aninternational contingent of pilots,instructors and trainees every year.

And they don’t travel alone.More than 20 pilots’ wives from

every corner of the earth have bandedtogether to share the cultures of theirnative countries, talk about their trav-els across the globe and, well, justhave a good time while they’re here inthe South.

While some may view Mississippias having a homogenous society, thesewomen couldn’t disagree more.

And, in fact, they are bringing newcultures to the area by the truckload —whether they realize it or not.

“My husband (Tech. Sgt. RobertPadar) was stationed in Hawaii before we moved here,”said Jerry Padar, who is originally from Thailand. “Believeit or not, I actually like it here more.”

Padar and a few other members of the InternationalSpouses Group at CAFB said they believe it is hard to findanother culture as unique as Mississippi.

“Sure it’s a small place, but I love it, and all the otherwives seem to like it as well,” said Karolina Giacobbi, aBeirut native and head of the International SpousesGroup.

“I don’t know how to explain it, but everything hereand all the people here just look happy. Everybody I meet

down here is kind and nice to me. If you ever have aproblem, it’s like every single person wants to help you,”Giacobbi said.

Even international wives who lived in America beforecoming to CAFB agree that Columbus — and the South— is unlike any other part of the world.

“I went to college in Utah, so I’m a little more natu-ralized than some of the other out-of-country wiveshere,” said Ecuador native Angela Adamson. “But still,Mississippi is totally different from the West and definite-ly very different from Ecuador. Everyone here is just somuch more outgoing and friendly than they are in those

text by NEAL WAGNER

KELLY TIPPETT

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Tell a native about the wonders ofColumbus and you’re probably preach-ing to the choir; show an outsider andyou may have met your new neighbor.

That’s a truth the ColumbusConvention and Visitors Bureau dealsin every day.

Sunrise to sunset, the crew labors toget out the gospel that The Friendly Cityof Possum Town is the place to be.

Unlike some of their counterparts inother towns, though, these gurus ofmaking it look good start with somepretty promising material.

Everyone knows the basics:Tennessee Williams, Market StreetFestival, Pilgrimage and FriendshipCemetery.

But now the CVB is making the citya premiere sports destination just intime for an influx of new people fromthe introduction of companies likeSeverCorr and Paccar into the GoldenTriangle.

Knocking one out of the park

Gov. Haley Barbour recently toldthe Mississippi Tourism Association thestate needs to focus on outdoortourism because it’s a virtuallyuntapped gold mine.

And there’s no outdoor pastime big-ger than baseball.

That’s one market where Columbushas hit a home run.

The city got national attention fromThe New York Times and WashingtonPost for the February celebration of thelate sportscaster Red Barber’s centenary.

Barber, who was born and lived inColumbus until age 10, earned the first-ever Ford C. Frick award from theBaseball Hall of Fame and inductioninto the Radio Hall of Fame.

The Columbus tribute included dedi-cation of a historic marker nearBarber’s childhood home, video trib-utes from sports greats like TommyLasorda and lectures from formerNational Public Radio host BobEdwards and “Voices of the Game”author Curt Smith.

The CVB donated cash to the causeand helped the Remembering RedBarber Committee promote the sold-

out celebration.“The Red Barber event was huge for

Columbus, and we’re hoping to get amuseum in here later on, but it’s notthe only major baseball event we havehere,” said James Tsismanakis, CVBexecutive director.

The Kent Willis Straight PathBaseball Camp concluded its fourthseason in January. Willis, a minorleague pitching coordinator for theAtlanta Braves, brought some of theteam down each year to train futurearea all stars ages 7-14. The talent thisyear included pitcher Kyle Davies, out-fielder Jeff Francouer and catcher BrianMcCann.

The CVB also knocked one out ofthe park in 2007 by winning a secondthree-year contract to host the DizzyDean Baseball World Series. That eventbrought about 500 participants andtheir supporters to the city fields lastyear for a four-day playoff in July.

Hooking the big ones The bureau likewise had success uti-

lizing the community’s Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway access as atourism booster.

The CVB has brought in bass tourna-

T E L L I N G O U R

Convention and Visitors Bureau talks up the Friendly City

text by MELANIE CROWNOVER photographs by KELLY TIPPETT

STORY

James Tsismanakis, executivedirector of the ColumbusConvention and VisitorsBureau, displays some literature about The Friendly City.


4 County EPA .................................................................7145 Package Store ........................................................115Alarm One .....................................................................30Ability Works .................................................................86American Eurocopter ....................................................25Annunciation Catholic School ........................................68At Home with Bassett .....................................................23Bacco Materials ...........................................................102Baptist Memorial Hospital-Golden Triangle....................13Baptist Memorial Hospital-Golden Triangle...... Back CoverBeans & Cream ..............................................................17Bella Interiors ...............................................................55Beltone .........................................................................97Bennett Ophthalmology .................................................84Brickerton Day Spa..........................................................7Cable One ......................................................................93Caledonia Natural Gas....................................................99Cash & Carry Building Supply ........................................46Ceco Building Systems ...................................................24Century 21-Doris Hardy & Associates, LLC .....................15CFC Transportation ........................................................66Children’s House of Montessori .....................................54CHS Insuragroup ...........................................................74City of Caledonia ............................................................45Coldwell Banker-West Realty ..........................................69Columbus - Lowndes Development LINK ........................65Columbus Accounting and Tax Service .............................4Columbus Bank Association...........................................68Columbus Brick Company .............................................11Columbus Cardiovascular Care ......................................70Columbus Convention and Visitors Bureau ......................1Columbus Eye Clinic ....................................................107Columbus Historic Foundation ......................................58Columbus Light and Water Department ..........................10Columbus Lowndes Recreation Authority .....................107Columbus Lung Physicians, PLLC ...................................89Columbus Municipal School District ................................5Columbus Ob-Gyn Specialty Center, PLLC .......................59Columbus Orthopaedic Clinic ........................................39Commercial Dispatch ..................................................109Community Counseling Services.....................................10Conn Construction .........................................................64Covenant Presbyterian Church .......................................45CPI Group......................................................................18Crye Leike Properties Unlimited.....................................29Domtar, Inc. ................................................................120Drs. Holzhauer & Burtman ..........................................119East End Baptist Church.................................................18Eye & Laser Center of Starkville .....................................20First United Methodist Church .......................................39Fitness Factor ..................................................................7Friendly City Mini Warehouses .......................................17Front Door/Back Door ..................................................97Galloway Chandler McKinney Insurance ........................20General Nutrition Centers ..............................................84Gilmore Memorial Hospital .........................................103Global Pharmaceutical Corporation ...............................66Golden Triangle Neurology ............................................86Goose Hollow Furniture.................................................99Granite Guys ....................................................................7Grassmasters .................................................................68Green Olive....................................................................97Gumdrop Fabrics...........................................................38Gunter & Peel Funeral Home .........................................78Harveys/Sweet Peppers Deli/Jackson Square Grill ........119Heritage Academy ..........................................................38

Homeplace of Columbus................................................91Immanuel Center for Christian Education ......................51Johnson Carpet Center ...................................................87Junior Auxiliary of Columbus ...........................................7Kudoz ..........................................................................109Kwik Kopy Printing ..........................................................3Le Gourmet Cheese & Gift Shoppe..................................81Leigh Mall........................................................................4Lighting Plus ..................................................................59Lighting Unlimited .........................................................17Lowndes County Board of Supervisors ...........................16Lowndes Funeral Home & Crematory.............................98Lowndes County Radial Tire ...........................................64Main Street Columbus....................................................39Malachi Financial Group................................................98McConnell Brothers Transfer & Storage .........................75Memorial Funeral Home & Crematory ...........................50Merchant Law Firm, PLLC ..............................................98Metso Paper ..................................................................92Microtek Medical ..........................................................40Mid-South Signs.............................................................47Mississippi Industrial Waste Development ............... 60-61Mississippi University for Women ..........Inside Back CoverMitchell, McNutt & Sams..............................................108Neel-Schaffer, Inc. .........................................................86Nephrology Associates .................................................108New Chateaux/Holly Hills Apartments ..........................109Newell Paper Company ..................................................28Newman Oil Company....................................................69Nichols, Crowell, Gillis, Cooper & Amos, PLLC ...............22North MS Hematology & Oncology Associates ................................................................................. Inside Front CoverNovus Auto Glass ...........................................................74Noxubee County.............................................................34OCH, Center for Breast Health & Imaging ......................67OCH, Center for Sleep Medicine.....................................19Ole Country Bakery........................................................33Party & Paper ..................................................................3Pattman Funeral Directors ...........................................102Pediatric Dentistry, Dr. Curtis, DMD, P.A. .......................46Phillips Contracting Company ........................................30Physicians & Surgeons Clinic .......................................106Physicians Weight Loss ...............................................114Pinnacle Hunt - The Landings ........................................54Plantation Pointe Retirement Community .......................23Ratliff Air Service ...........................................................50Re/Max Partners, Tiffany Harrison .................................91Rehab at Work ...............................................................33Rex Rentals....................................................................81Sanders Oil Company.....................................................22Saum Chiropractic Clinic .............................................115Scott K. Perkins, CPA .....................................................41Shelter Insurance, John Longmire .................................51Shelter Insurance, Priscilla G. King ................................51Smith Landscaping.........................................................87St. Paul’s Episcopal Church............................................81St. Paul’s Episcopal School ............................................58State Farm Insurance .....................................................35Steve Wallace, PLLC .......................................................74Susan’s Hallmark ...........................................................89T.E. Lott & Company ......................................................31United Way ....................................................................12WAG ...............................................................................97Woody’s on the Water ..................................................115Yarns Downtown ...........................................................78YMCA.............................................................................75

Index of Index of AdvertisersAdvertisers

with the other people here about ourdifferent cultures and share foodswith them.”

“It’s very important that you try totake a part of your country with youwhen you move somewhere new,”Giacobbi added. “Food is an easyway to do that and everyone alwayslikes trying something new.”

Language barrierJust as would be the case if a

Columbus native moved to a far-offnation, assimilation into Southernculture has been difficult for a few ofCAFB’s international residents.

And almost every internationalwife summed up their hardships withone word: language.

“I’ve been living in Mississippi foralmost two years now,” saidGiacobbi. “Sometimes I still get lostwhen people are talking to mebecause I’m not totally used to thelanguage yet.”

“We came to Mississippi in 2006and language has been the hardestpart of living here since then,” saidYoshida.

Although language is an obstaclemany of the foreign visitors mustovercome, it might also be whatbrings them together.

“I love being a part of the group,”said Adamson. “Even though I don’thave as much trouble speakingEnglish as I used to, I can definitelyrelate to what some of them aregoing through. We all try to helpeach other with the language barrier.”

“When you are so far away fromfamily, your country and everythingyou know, it’s nice to be a part of thisfamily group because it gives youcomfort talking with other peoplewho are in the same situation youare,” said Giacobbi. ■


A

Barefooting Bobby Miller, 79, is one of the three founders of the Tombigbee Stump Jumpers Ski Club.

“There is a lot of history with the river. It has always been a part of Columbus, and it will continue to be a part of Columbus.”

— Jan Miller

runs Columbus residents enjoy a loveaffair withthe Tombigbeetext by JUSTIN SUTTON

through

it

riverSome of the world’s oldest known

civilizations developed near rivers.

The Egyptians looked to the Nile as

the giver of life. Others speak of the

“cleansing” offered by the Ganges in

India.

“There is just something about the

river that draws you to it,” said Jan

Miller, a Columbus river buff.

The Tombigbee River runs through

Columbus, offering people a chance

to water ski, boat and grill on the

water. The old river also connects to

the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway

and its series of man-made lakes.

soon have the option of sending theirchildren to a fine arts magnet school,one of five magnet themes being offeredthis fall for the elementary grades.

At the Columbus Arts Council

Some of our youngest artists-in-train-ing are nurtured by a bustling variety ofyear-round classes and summer campsoffered at the Rosenzweig Arts Center.

“Classes have begun as early as birthwith our Music Together class for chil-dren, birth to 5 years, and a parent orcaregiver,” said CAC Executive DirectorHeather Rowland.

Other budding Rembrandts orOliviers — ranging from toddlers toteens — learn to express themselves inpreschool fine arts, drama, drawing, oilpainting, sculpture, pottery and evendrum. Some teens find their creative out-let through related pursuits like videoproduction or digital photography.

Rus Blackwell, an actor and actingcoach, joined the Arts Council team toteach acting for television this past year.

“He had just finished filming ‘TheCurious Case of Benjamin Britton’ withBrad Pitt and Cate Blanchett, due in the-aters this fall,” noted Rowland.

Summer camps in dance, drama,music, art and clay for children ages 5 to13, meld learning and laughter in theRAC’s studios and theater.

The arts council’s outreach extends farbeyond the physical walls of the center.“Through the Young People’s ArtistSeries, more than 5,000 children andteachers from public, private and homeschools in Northeast Mississippi andNorthwest Alabama are exposed to the-ater, music and dance each year,”explained Rowland.

The CAC also partners with MitchellElementary School to integrate fine artsteaching methods into core subjects andworks with Lee Middle School studentsafter school and in summer sessionsthrough the Crossroads Program.

The CAC also provides grants to localschools for art supplies, including arecent $1,000 award to FranklinAcademy Elementary School for its ArtEncounters program.

Other organizations such as SuzukiStrings, Girlchoir and Arts in Artesia also

benefit from CAC grants and resourcesupport. The CAC, which is assisting withthe new fine arts magnet school, alsotakes the restorative power of art toyoung people who may least expect it,conducting weekly sessions forCommunity Counseling’s AdolescentOffenders Program and the Lowndes

County Juvenile Detention Center.Columbus Suzuki Program

For almost three decades, little handsin Columbus have begun their musicaljourney with variations of “Twinkle,Twinkle Little Star,” learned on diminu-tive violins. The rhythms and theme inthe familiar strains are found in all music


Above: Claire Guill, 6, holds her painting completed in a YMCA art class. Opposite:Scott Sandifer, a member of Suzuki Strings, practices the cello at his Caledonia home.

and form the building blocks of theSuzuki teaching program.

In 1980, violinist and arts advocateTrudy Gildea founded the local stringprogram based on Dr. Shinichi Suzuki’smethods, with support from theColumbus Arts Council, Mississippi ArtsCommission and Friends of ChamberMusic.

She continues to teach today andassists instructor and program directorDiane Ford and instructor DeniseBurcham with the more advancedSuzuki Orchestra and Ensemble.

“Trudy has put her heart and soul intothe arts in Columbus,” stressed Ford.

Young musicians ages 4 to 18 comefrom not only Columbus, but Starkville,West Point, Amory and Smithville aswell, to learn violin, viola and cellothrough a combination of private instruc-tion and monthly group lessons con-ducted at Taylor Hall on the MississippiUniversity for Women campus.

“Although we teach all ages, we striveto begin teaching the young studentthrough the parent-teacher-child rela-tionship,” Diane Ford explained. “This

process instills readiness, memorization,performance confidence, techniquemastery and more.”

Ford advises interested families toobserve group or private lessons first tolearn more about the program.


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Suzuki Strings players practice during an October workshop at First United Methodist Church in this 2007 file photo.


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only “colored” businesses. In its hey-day, Seventh Avenue’s Queen CityHotel hosted entertainers such asDuke Ellington, Count Basie, FatsDomino, B.B. King and Little Richard.

Initially begun 25 years ago, theSeventh Avenue Heritage Festivalwas dormant for several years, butwas reinstituted successfully in 2004by Kabir Karriem.

Karriem said, “Last year’s festivalwas our biggest to date, with nation-al entertainers like Bobby Blue Blandand Jurnee Smallett, the actor.”

This year’s festival will be tingedwith sadness, Karriem said. Recently,the remnants of the Queen CityHotel were removed from the lotwhere the building stood for nearly a

century. After numerous attemptsover several years to save the historicstructure, it was torn down.

“My heart fell to my shoes whenthey tore it down,” Karriem said.“We were trying to make a last-ditcheffort to save it, but it was in suchbad shape. When Bobby Blue Blandcame last year, he said he remem-bered staying in the hotel during JimCrow days. There was that connec-tion to the past, the history.”

Another African-American her-itage celebration is the Columbusfestival known as Juneteenth. It fea-tures everything from barbecue andarts and crafts vendors to entertain-ment and sports. ■

“When Bobby Blue Bland came last year, he said he remembered staying in the

hotel during Jim Crow days.”— Kabir Karriem


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The market is open from the lastSaturday in April to the last Saturdayin October, from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m.on Tuesdays and Thursdays and from7 a.m. to 10 a.m. on Saturdays atSecond Avenue and Second StreetNorth. Information about the marketcan be found at its Web site,www.hitchinglotfarmersmarket.com.

The cost to rent a stall or boothto sell items is $5 for a day and$100 for an entire season.

“You’re not going to be able toset up a shop or business with lessoverhead than that,” Lehner said,referring to new growers. “You canafford to learn (gardening) lessonsthe first few weeks.”

“We certainly don’t want to loseour local growers and farmers,”stressed Imes. “A farmers’ marketenables a grower to have an outletfor what he’s producing.”

Benefits for the consumer

It certainly has benefits for theconsumer, as well.

“When you cut out packaging,you cut out travel and you cut outthe middle man, (what you are leftwith is) flavor,” said Imes. “It’s won-derful to know, actually, who isgrowing your food and to see a facebehind who grew your tomato. Tome, that’s important. And there’s adifference in the taste!”

“I think the market is an asset tothe community in several ways,”said Freeze. “First of all, it’s encour-aging local people to respect localfoods and local growers. The grow-ers who were there last year hadsuch success; they never dreamedthey were going to have the successthey did.

“Since it’s gotten to be such agathering (place) on Saturdays, it’s awonderful place to bring your kids,”she added. “And we’re exposingentrepreneurs and giving them achance to show their wares.”

Only locally grown items andlocally made crafts are sold at themarket. ■

Columbus’ Riverwalk is a mainstay for walkers, bikers and family outings.


Community.It’s an abstract concept.Few can describe it, but you know

when it’s there. For residents of theGolden Triangle, one look at a city parkor trail will prove community is aliveand well.

“We do what we do to make our citya community — not just a collection ofneighbors,” said Devon Brenner, presi-dent of walking and cycling trail activistgroup Starkville in Motion.

Each of the Golden Triangle’s threecities has its own approach to strength-ening neighborly ties through park andtrail programs.

West Point’s wandering trails

Situated in the middle of downtownWest Point, Sally Kate Winters Park pro-vides residents a beautiful location towalk, talk and even enjoy live music.

Meandering through the streets andwoods of the city on top of what usedto be railroad tracks, the Kitty Bryan DillParkway has been giving West Pointlocals almost four miles of walking andbiking trails for nearly 20 years.

“The park and the trails get a lot ofuse,” said Amber Smith, director ofcommunity development for the WestPoint/Clay County Community GrowthAlliance. “The city keeps them perfectlyclean and landscaped all the time andthey are really beautiful. It’s no wonderso many people use them.”

Throughout the year, neighbors catchup at events such as the Prairie ArtsFestival; bikers share paths with joggers,and local musicians delight familieswith their home-grown talents.

“Our park system provides a social,community-building road for WestPoint,” said Smith. “You can meet some-one you didn’t even know lived next toyou while you’re at the park.

“It gets people out of their houses

and into a great social environment.”Since 2005, Columbus residents from

all walks of life have been biking andwalking through the woods near theTombigbee River along the 1.25-mileRiverwalk trail.

“When someone talks about whatColumbus has, they will name thingslike Mississippi University for Women,Columbus Air Force Base and theRiverwalk,” said Columbus’ Director ofFederal Programs George Irby. “It’s ajewel of downtown that meandersthrough the woods.”

Chances are, if you take a stroll orbike ride on the Riverwalk you will findchildren riding bikes with their families,joggers keeping in shape and soon-to-befriends meeting for the first time.

“It really helps give that sense of

community,” said Irby. “I’ve never beenwalking on the trail when I didn’t see atleast 20 friendly people.”

Plans are already in the works toextend the Riverwalk by almost a mileto give neighbors a little more room tosocialize.

“The Riverwalk is like a dream ful-filled for Columbus,” said Irby. “I amreally looking forward to its future as acommunity-strengthening tool.”

Starkville is in motionIt started with some paint. It will end

with a new kind of city.In August 2005, a local activist group

known as Starkville in Motion con-vinced the Starkville Board of Aldermento paint a bike lane along the edge ofUniversity Drive.

By now, Starkville cyclists and jog-gers have known about and used theUniversity Drive bike lane for almosttwo years.

In October 2007, a SIM surveyshowed almost 500 bikers and morethan 200 walkers used the bike path ina single day.

But few of them are aware of thelarge-scale projects currently in theworks as a result of the success of thebike lane.

“The (University Drive) bike lane wasa major early victory for us,” saidMississippi State University associateresearch professor and SIM memberRon Cossman. “After we realized wecould actually make a project like thathappen, we began looking toward big-ger projects.”

Those bigger projects came quickly.

Grants securedBetween July 2006 and December

2007 SIM secured two grants worthalmost $1.8 million from theMississippi Department of

Trail mixArea walking trails create pathways to communitytext by NEAL WAGNER photographs by KELLY TIPPETT

Amber Smith, director of communitydevelopment for the West Point/ClayCounty Growth Alliance is pictured on thewalking trail in Sally Kate Winters Park.

Transportation on behalf of Starkville.“We decided to become the solution to the lack of biking and jogging

paths in the city,” said Cossman.Pending final MDOT approval, the grants will be used to fund two major

path projects.The Lynn Lane path project will provide a multi-use path that stretches

from R.L. Jones Drive near MSU, down Locksley Way and along the entirelength of Lynn Lane. The path will also be separated from the main road by amedian.

“The path will run past two schools, a Boys and Girls Club and throughMcKee Park,” said Brenner. “A lot of kids will be using the path, so we want-ed to make sure it was completely separated from automobile traffic.”

The second project, named Safe Routes to School, will build or improvesidewalks and biking trails in the nearly five-mile area between the RollingHills and Green Oaks subdivisions. The trails will provide a safe route forWard-Stewart Elementary, Henderson Intermediate and Armstrong MiddleSchool students to walk or bike to school each day.

“Studies show that less than 2 percent of school-age children walk or biketo school in Starkville,” said Cossman. “We think if we build paths and makethem safe, then many more children — and people in general — will makeuse of them.”

Whether you bike along University Drive in Starkville, walk along theriver banks in Columbus or talk with neighbors on old railroad trails in WestPoint, Golden Triangle residents are taking to the trails to keep communityspirit alive.

For more information, visit www.columbusmainstreet.com/riverwalk forthe Columbus Riverwalk, www.wpnet.org for West Point parks and trails andwww.starkvilleinmotion.org for Starkville trail projects. ■


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by Main Street to enlarge the groupingsof plants,” Boswell said.

And the Design Committee has donemuch more.

“To celebrate fall in the South, weadded a display of native hay bales,pumpkins, corn stalks, gourds, cottonand other fall items on most corners,”Boswell said. “Comments were made bymany how this display set the mood forfall and enhanced our downtown.”

Additionally, the group enhancedLeadership Park, at the corner of FifthStreet South and College Street byinstalling a sprinkler system, new sod,concrete planters and the hanging bas-kets in the arbor; fresh plants are addedseasonally.

They painted traffic light poles andlights downtown, placed signs designat-ing the historical district, wrought ironbenches were installed by the mayor’soffice and the Lowndes CountyCourthouse and trash receptacles wereadded to the downtown area.

Other projectsThe Main Street Design Committee

also is responsible for the “Welcome toHistoric Columbus” sign painted on theconcrete wall of the Magnolia Bowl andfor adding sod and shrubbery on theproperty.

The group also purchased Christmaswreaths for the corners of Main Streetand Fifth Street, complementing thelarge native cedar tree placed annuallyas the city’s Christmas tree.

Last year, the group changed theplants in the corner pots twice and total-ly renovated the outside of the existingbuilding at the Old Hitching Lot, wherethe Farmers’ Market takes place, withdonations from local businessmen.

For that project, bricks were donatedby Al Puckett and Columbus Brick Co.;lumber was donated by Jack Chilcuttand New Home Building Store; a metalroof was donated by Roger Burlingameand CECO Building Systems; MikeBogue and APAC Mississippi Inc. donat-ed asphalt; Doug Phillips and Falcon

Construction donated equipment andlabor; and electrical services weredonated by Gordon Via and Twin RiverMaintenance.

Additionally, 18 Columbus FireDepartment firefighters donated labor,including Earnest Ross, Mark Connors,Doug Cox, Derek Lowery, JohnGrantham, Frank Upton, James Avery,Shannon Murphy, Derrick Parnell, ScottSwain, Jeff Edmonson, Dale Ballard,Richard McBride, Tony Massey, RobertBobo, Michael Miller, Lance Godfreyand Wes Mims.

More helpers“One thing I would like people in the

community to see is that it takes notonly one Main Street and one organiza-tion, it takes all these business people,”Boswell said. “I hope business peoplesee, in an effort to do anything, it’s goingto take a lot.

“We need more business people andindividuals to come forth and offer tohelp with projects,” she continued.

“It takes a community,” agreedWheeler.

“It’s never going to be one entity,”Boswell repeated, thanking ColumbusMayor Robert Smith for his support ofthe group and Federal Programs andBuilding Inspection Director George Irbyfor helping with his summer youth pro-gram participants.

“If this mayor did not help and listento suggestions, much of what we dowould not get accomplished,” she said.

“It just takes a lot of people and a lotof time,” Boswell added, noting thoseinterested in helping should contact theMain Street Columbus office at (662)328-6305.

The Main Street Design Committee’sfuture projects include adding more cor-ner pots, adding more iron trash recepta-cles, a plan to “enhance, with nativeplants, areas along the Riverwalk,” and a“plan to encourage more store ownersto add the correct size pots or plantersto enhance their store fronts,” saidBoswell. ■


“This is my home and I want it to continue for future generations.”

— Pat Wheeler

For many, history is a dingy school-book filled with outdated concepts andthe names of those long dead.

It’s the embodiment of the clichés,“hindsight is 20/20” and “ignorance isbliss,” all in one.

But not in Columbus.Here, history is more than some

abstract vision of the past.It’s a tangible presence in the commu-

nity’s present and a foundation for itsfuture.

Columbus is where history gets abreath of life.

Rewriting history One step into the local Welcome

Center and there’s no doubt whoColumbus’ prodigal son is.

Come back during the TennesseeWilliams Tribute in September and you’llalmost hear the footsteps of a wee writer-in-training tottering through the ginger-bread Victorian that was once his homeand now welcomes visitors to Columbus.

“There’s only four places in the worldthat honor his literary mark on the world,and Columbus is the place it all beganbecause this is where he was born andraised until he was 9,” said tributefounder Brenda Caradine.

The other spots — Clarksdale; NewOrleans; and Provicetown, Mass. — wereassociated with Williams’ later life.

“He changed theater history with hisemphasis on realism, but he’s significantto Columbus not only because of the visi-bility of this place in his writing but also because he bringspeople from all over the world here each year to experiencehis hometown firsthand,” she continued.

People from as many as 18 states and five countries attendthe annual celebration of the Pulitzer Prize-winning play-wright.

And it just keeps growing.What began as little more than one play and a book sign-

ing in 2001 blossomed into a weekend of multiple produc-

tions and scholarly lectures, film screenings, an art exhibit,afterparty and tours including the church where Williams wasbaptized.

The 2007 tribute added performances by professionalactors and the donation of a sketch of the playwright by afriend to the Williams memorabilia collection, which is nowtoo large for display in one showing.

The tribute also passed a landmark when Williams’ home-turned-welcome center was officially deeded to the city in

Where history livesExploring the past through the arts

text by MELANIE CROWNOVER photographs by JOE RAY ROBERSON


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January.The upcoming bill touts two perform-

ances by Richard Thomas, who playedJohn Boy on the television series, “TheWaltons.”

The sounds of the past Seventh Avenue was the cultural hub

of the African-American communitybefore desegregation.

When Jim Crow was status quo and“whites only” establishments were off-limits, artists like B.B. King, BillieHoliday, James Brown and CabCalloway filled the rooms of the QueenCity Hotel after playing Catfish Alley orlocal juke joints.

Now the magic that once filled theavenue with music makes its way backannually for what residents proudly call“Mississippi’s biggest block party” — afree weekend of blues and gospel, food

and fellowship.More than 10,000 people filled the

streets last October for the SeventhAvenue Heritage Festival when 78-year-old Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Bobby“Blue” Bland returned for the first timein decades to play the final show in frontof the crumbling hotel.

“It was amazing to think he stayed atthe Queen City so long ago during JimCrow and see him playing in front of itjust weeks before they brought it downfor good,” said festival coordinator KabirKarriem.

The demolition was a major blow forthe community, but there is talk of erect-ing some kind of memorial on the site.

Aside from one monumental perform-ance, the 2007 Heritage Fest made his-tory another way by adding outreach tothe agenda.

Officials secured actress JurneeSmollett, who recently played in “TheGreat Debaters” with DenzelWashington, to address students fromkindergarten through college on AIDSawareness, being drug and alcohol freeand staying in school.

“I don’t know what will happen withthe old building site now or how we’llfollow up a show like Bland’s this year,but we’ll continue to honor our heritageand give this community a taste of whatit once was and a look at what it couldbe if we come together,” said Karriem.

“It’s all about building on our futurefrom our past, and reaching out to ourstudents now is just another way to dothat.”

Blazing new trailsSeventh Avenue isn’t the only place

in Columbus with a music heritage.The part of Fourth Avenue South

known as Catfish Alley received a mark-er as part of the Mississippi Blues Trailback in August, and two more are ontheir way to Lowndes County in the nextyear.

Catfish Alley was one of the first 20sites to receive the honor, as well as theHowlin’ Wolf site in West Point. Anothermarker unveiling is set for the fall inCrawford, and Mississippi BluesCommission officials are consideringanother marker for Seventh Avenue.

“The possibility of having three blues

Above: Richard Ramsey, founder of WestPoint’s Howlin’ Wolf Museum holds aHowlin’ Wolf Memorial Blues Festival

poster in this August 2005 Dispatch filephoto. Left: Brook Hanneman plays

Maggie in a scene from “Cat on a Hot TinRoof,” while Lyle Tate, playing Brick, watch-

es, in this July 2007 photo taken on theporch on the Tennessee Williams

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trail markers in Columbus and LowndesCounty is a major coup because some ofthe counties in the Delta, which is con-sidered the heart of Mississippi bluescountry, don’t have that many. And wehave three more within an hour’s drive.There’s a good chance we could end upwith a separate Prairie Blues Trail herethat ties in with the larger one,” saidJames Tsismanakis, executive director ofthe Columbus Convention and VisitorsBureau. The Mississippi Blues Trail fea-tures 120 markers.

The city also got official word inJanuary it’s one of five state stops on theSouthern Literary Trail.

The collaboration — which honorsprominent 20th century American authorsin Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia —kicks off with a month of coordinatedevents in March 2009.

Columbus was included because of Eudora Welty’s two-year stint as a Mississippi University for Women student andbecause the city is Williams’ birthplace. William Faulkner alsovisited in Columbus frequently.

State events for the Literary Trail are in the planning, includ-ing scholarly lectures and exhibits.

“The names of these authors are recognized by people allover the earth, and now people can go to the landmarks that

influenced them to get a better understanding of their writing,”said SLT state representative Dr. Bridget Pieschel, director ofthe Southern Women’s Institute at MUW.

“Then if they come for the trail it’s likely they’ll come backfor other events like Welty Weekend at MUW or the WilliamsTribute,” Pieschel said. MUW hosts the Welty Weekend andthe Eudora Welty Writers’ Symposium in honor of the school’sfamous alumna each fall. ■

Gov. Haley Barbour and Barbara Marks, Chester “Howlin’ Wolf” Burnett’s daughter,admire the Blues Trail Marker unveiled in West Point in August 2007.

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talk and hang out,” said Jeffares. “Wedecided that we would put a breakbetween the music and the message sopeople can check on their children,mingle, find a seat or refill their coffee.”

Jeffares strives to give the truth dur-ing his messages. “I don’t sugarcoat it,but I try to make it understandable forthe common person.” Jeffares, who didnot receive a traditional training in the-ology, said the church will take advan-tage of several things to make the serv-ice more relevant.

“We will use videos or movie clips,”he says. “We will use anything to makethe service relevant.” To this end, thechurch used a Tom Petty song duringthe service before the Super Bowl.

While Hope has a Sunday morningservice, there is no service Sunday orWednesday evenings. Instead, thechurch has developed a variety ofsmall groups to meet the needs of thechurch.

“We offer small groups that areorganized geographically,” said Jeffares.“These groups meet at different timesduring the week, and they do differentBible studies.” Jeffares said the smallgroups benefit the congregationbecause many people come from avariety of places to attend the service.The congregation contains worshippersfrom all parts of the Golden Triangle,Mississippi State University and even

Vernon, Ala. The church has come a long way

from being a congregation that met inan office and later at HeritageAcademy. Now located on Highway 45South, the church has experiencedgreat growth in recent years.

“We have had over 100 percentgrowth in the last year and a half,” saidJeffares. He believes the rather conser-vative, Bible-based teachings of thechurch and the attitudes of those whoattend have helped the church grow.

“We don’t wear ties on Sunday,”Jeffares said. “We try to be transparentand authentic. If people come to uswith problems, we say ‘Welcome tothe club.’”

Jeffares said he invites anyone look-ing for a church home to check outtheir “club.”

“You have to come, see and find outfor yourself,” said Jeffares. He addedthat if someone could not attend thechurch, the services are available as apodcast online.

“If someone doesn’t stick with us,that’s fine,” said Jeffares. “We wantthem to find a church somewhere thatmakes sense to them and where Godspeaks to them.”

For Jeffares and the hundreds fromthe Golden Triangle who attend hischurch, that place is Hope CommunityChurch. ■


“We will use videos ormovie clips. We will useanything to make the

service relevant.”— Bo Jeffares

Bo Jeffares, lead minister at Hope Community Church leads Sunday service.Opposite: Gathered together chatting before the day’s sermon are, in center, from left, LeAnn Mathis, Teara Parker, Nena Loughrin and Holly Gannett.


People refer to them as the “garden club ladies,” but thisdetermined group of women is a big part of the reason down-town Columbus is such a beautiful place.

For visitors to the downtown area, evidence of the hardwork of the all-volunteer Main Street Design Committee —comprised of Tjajuan Boswell, Betty Dill, Barbara Hodges, PatWheeler, Mona Sanders, Kay Neese, Judy McLain, Betty ClydeJones, Janice Mauck, Doris Ebner, Sue Hatcher, CharlotteStripling and Ann Lindquist — is everywhere.

“I’ve lived here almost all my life,” said Wheeler, explainingher motivation for putting in many volunteer hours in beautifi-cation efforts. “This is my home and I want it to continue forfuture generations.”

A beautiful downtown means growth, she added, noting, “Ido like seeing things nice and neat and fresh plants and flow-ers.”

“They say it’s a proven fact,” she continued. “when a newindustry comes to town, businesses want to see how vital yourdowntown is.”

“We’ve had companies come into town that make com-ments, ‘Your town looks so good; it looks like you care,’” saidBoswell, chairwoman of the committee. “Those details that

give you that overall look, it does show you care about yourtown.

“We just care enough about our town that we’ll spend thetime, if it helps to improve (it),” she added.

The beginningInitially, the group worked in conjunction with the former

city planner, Gregg Mims, and the Garden Club Council presi-dent to “decorate the corners” of downtown, said Boswell.

It was agreed Main Street Columbus Inc. would purchaseconcrete pots and trees, the Garden Club Council would payfor and install annual plantings in the spring and fall and thecity would water the plants on a consistent basis.

“Since the first pots were installed, others have been added

Volunteers join forces tobeautify their downtown

text by KRISTIN MAMRACK photograph by KELLY TIPPETT

DESIGNINGWOMEN

Above: From left, Pat Wheeler, TjajuanBoswell, Charlotte Stripling, Betty Dill, AnnLindquist, Janice Mauck, Kay Neese, andDoris Ebner are pictured on Main Street withthe tools of their trade.

Festival timeArea festivals offer opportunities for merrymaking and commerce

PROGRESS 2008 ◆ THE COMMERCIAL DISPATCH95

DAVID CHILDS/Courtesy Photo

What’s your interest? Your hobby?Your pleasure? Your favorite food?Music genre?

Wherever people live, opportunitiesexist for frequent festivals. The formulais simple: Festivals are gatherings fea-turing food, fun and entertainment, aswell as opportunities to socialize.

In the Golden Triangle, festivals ofall kinds are organized to entertain,attract and promote the interests ofspecial groups. Many, however, havegrown into megafestivals that attemptto offer something for everyone.

Columbus greets the approach ofsummer with its annual Market StreetFestival. Repeatedly named one of thetop 20 events by the SoutheasternTourism Society, it has been sponsoredby Main Street Columbus on the firstweekend in May for 13 years. Lastyear, the event drew an estimated40,000 people into the Columbusdowntown area.

“Market Street is definitely growingevery year,” said Amber Murphree,Main Street Columbus manager. “Wetry to keep it very diverse, with some-

thing for everyone. Columbus is adiverse community.”

Over the last couple decades, mostMississippi communities have recog-nized that arts and cultural festivalsare an important tool in communitydevelopment and have establishedevents to welcome visitors. Some havebeen around for years, however.

For the artsThis year is the 30th for the Prairie

Arts Festival, held in downtown WestPoint on the Saturday before LaborDay. This festival features fine artexhibits and a juried fine arts competi-tion, crafts, down-home Southerncooking, four stages of live music,classic cars, Kidsville and more than600 exhibits. As one of the largest artsand crafts festivals in the country,Prairie Arts routinely attracts crowds ofmore than 40,000, and has been rec-ognized repeatedly by tourism agen-cies as a top event.

Another local festival leaning heavi-ly toward the arts is Starkville’s CottonDistrict Arts Festival, sponsored by

text by VICKY NEWMAN

Top: Bluesman Willie E. King performsduring the August 2007 Howlin’ Wolf

Memorial Blues Festival in West Point.Above: James Duncan shows Sandy

Sullivan his hand-crafted wooden boxesduring the Prairie Arts Festival. Sullivan

traveled to the Golden Triangle from BayCity, Texas for the September 2007

festival. Left: Posters from some 2007 area festivals

MATTHEW WEST

A scene featuring driving rockmusic, people sitting with their drinksat their seats and lower lights mightmake some people think about anevening at a Fat Daddy’s. However, thisscene is one that can be observed mostSunday mornings at Hope Community

Church. Of course, the biggest differ-ence is at Hope the drink is coffee andnot someone’s favorite libation.

The focus on making church morerelevant to the lives of those whoattend serves as one of the drivinggoals of Hope Community Church. The

way Bo Jeffares, the lead minister forthe church, sees it, if members of acongregation drink coffee every morn-ing and listen to rock music every day,the service they attend on Sundayshouldn’t be that different.

The story of Hope Church began

Community church focuses on relevance in today’s world

text by JUSTIN SUTTON photographs by KELLY TIPPETT

Building

Hope

Above: A congregation member raises a hand in praise during Hope CommunityChurch’s Sunday worship service. Left:From left, Brian Ferguson and DrewBickmann perform during worship service.


nearly 10 years ago with the goal of asmall number of believers, accordingto Jeffares. He said this number, whowanted to make a church service morerelevant, has expanded to an atten-dance that averages more than 300worshipers each week. However, peo-ple may be surprised to know thechurch membership is much smallerthan that figure.

“We got rid of our membership,”

said Jeffares. “We couldn’t find being amember of a church in the Scripture.”

Jeffares said he views another pas-sage of Scripture as an important partof the church’s mission. “Paul usedeverything he could to win people toChrist,” said Jeffares.

“That is kind of our mentality.”Jeffares added that there are more thansix billion people in the world, and thechurch needs to find a way to reachthem.

To this end, Jeffares said Hope per-forms a variety of services to meet theneeds of the community.

“We are the regional contact for theAngel Food program,” Jeffares said. “Itis not a handout, and it is not free, butit helps people who are on a tightbudget. Tons of people use this pro-gram, and they may never step footinto our church. However, we still getto help them.”

In addition to the program, whichprovides food at a reduced cost,Jeffares said the church also has groupsfor people recovering from addictionsand for mothers of young children.

When it comes to church services, aservice at Hope may seem slightly dif-ferent from what one might expect. Theservice starts with about 20 minutes ofworship, which may include playinginstruments such as the electric guitarand drums. After the worship time, themembers of the church have an oppor-tunity for fellowship.

“We noticed that people were com-ing to church early or staying late to


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Starkville Area Arts Council and heldon the fourth Saturday of April.

Upriver, uptracksIf the lonesome train whistle sound

sends shivers up your spine, there’s afestival especially for you. A few milesnortheast, in Amory, the AmoryRailroad Festival attracts more than40,000 visitors each year and is citedby the Southeast Tourism Society asone of the Region’s Top 20 Events. Thefour-day festival is held during thefourth weekend in April.

Not far from Amory, Aberdeen’sBlue Bluff Festival takes place the sec-ond weekend in October on theTennessee-Tombigbee Waterway.

Music and more Music is often a festival feature, and

occasionally it’s the main reason for afestival.

In the mid-1990s, West Pointlaunched the Howlin’ WolfMemorial Blues Festival, honoringnative son, blues legend ChesterArthur “Howlin’ Wolf” Burnett. Thisyear will be the 13th annual event.

Organizers say interest has grownin the blues fest each year. Last year,the Point City Fest, at nearby WaverlyWaters, also was staged Labor Dayweekend, offering opportunities forblues and barbecue.

Blues are a requisite for manyMississippi festivals and are thegreater part of Willie King’s FreedomCreek Festival in West Alabama. Kingbegan his festival at Old Memphis,Ala. (near Aliceville), a dozen yearsago. This year’s event is scheduledfor May 30-31.

Other music genres are represent-ed by festival organizers, as well. In2007, three new events stirred inter-est and brought throngs of visitors tothe area. The Columbus Jazz & BluesFest was staged this past fall alongthe Columbus Riverwalk.

The driving force behind the Festwas New Orleans blues musicianBrice Miller, a Hurricane Katrinaevacuee who sought refuge, then res-idency, in Columbus.

“It was important for me to pro-vide cultural enrichment for

Columbus,” Miller said. “I was walk-ing on the Riverwalk one day, and Ihad an idea of how it would be aperfect place to celebrate my her-itage and show I am grateful to thiscommunity.”

The two-day event takes place thisyear Sept. 26-27.

Music isn’t the only focus for fes-tivities around the region. Columbusand Aberdeen both draw visitors totown each spring with annual pil-grimages of antebellum homes. TheColumbus Pilgrimage, held this yearMarch 24-April 5, is sponsored bythe Historic Columbus Foundation,which also promotes African

American history through tours ofhistoric sites each February.

Forgiving the man Last Nov. 2-3, the late, great “Man

in Black,” Johnny Cash, was posthu-mously pardoned for his long-agowrongdoing in Starkville — pickingflowers well past curfew in the 1960s.The Johnny Cash Flower Pickin’Festival in Starkville was billed as“Three Days Celebrating One Night InStarkville.” This year, the festival takesplace Oct. 17-19.

Organizer Robbie Ward said hehad moved to Starkville from SouthCarolina on the anniversary of Cash’s

Top: Suzuki Strings players perform at Market Street Festival in May 2007. Above: The Seventh Avenue Heritage Festival drew more than 10,000 people for its21st annual celebration of local African-American heritage in October 2007.

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death, and he learned the story aboutthe singer’s night in the drunk tank ofthe city jail. “I thought we should beconnecting with Johnny Cash’s color-ful history with Starkville, and the ideaof redemption,” Ward said.

Also last year, The Charles H.Templeton Sr. Ragtime Music Festivalwas launched. The festival this yearwill be held in March at MitchellMemorial Library on the campus ofMississippi State University. All-dayevents will be held in the library,where the Charles H. TempletonMusic Museum is located, and con-certs will be held in the evening atLee Hall Auditorium.

Not all festivals are about music.Other media claim a share. In 1997,the Magnolia Independent FilmFestival was begun in West Point bythe late Ron Tibbett, as a way to pro-vide screening opportunities for inde-pendent filmmakers.

Today, the event is sponsored bythe Starkville Arts Council.

Festivals are not staged only in thelarger towns of the area. They also are

a mainstay for smaller communitiesand even in neighborhoods.

In West Alabama, Aliceville holdsthe Dogwood Festival each spring andVernon stages the Scarecrow Festivaleach fall.

Back on this side of the state line,Caledonia started the Caledonia DayFestival a few years ago, and the townof Artesia holds its Artesia DayFestival.

Several area churches hold gospelmusic festivals.

For 22 years, Macon has held theDancing Rabbit Festival each fall tocelebrate Noxubee County’s heritage.Festivities range from arts and craftsvendors to talent contests, sportsdemonstrations, music performancesand various other events.

In Columbus, the Seventh AvenueHeritage Festival takes place in thearea around the site of the old QueenCity Hotel. It celebrates the African-American business community thatdeveloped in the area during theSouth’s Jim Crow days, when lawsforced people of color to frequent

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dents for college for more two decadesnow.

“We were created by the Legislaturein 1987 to provide an educationalopportunity to the gifted student popula-tion in the state, especially in the areasof mathematics, science and technolo-gy,” said Charles Brown, interim directorfor school advancement, who was direc-tor of academic affairs in the early ’90s,when MSMS saw its first class of gradu-ates. “Arts and humanities are also a partof our mission.”

“Every public school in the state hasthat group of highly motivated studentsthat maybe just doesn’t fit in the regularclassroom or needs something morechallenging than you can do in a regularhigh school setting,” continued Brown,who was on the selection committee forthe first class of MSMS students. He alsowas a principal at a school in Yazoo City.

“I had kids in my sophomore classwith a 30 on the ACT,” recalled Brown.“Even with my advanced offerings, it wasapparent to me that they needed some-thing more challenging than I had tooffer.”

And to make the grade at MSMS, hisstudents had to go through three selec-tion committees — an applicationreview committee, campus interviewcommittee and final selection commit-tee.

Early yearsThe first class had an enrollment of

about 150, the number of beds theschool had to offer.

“In the early years, many of theColumbus families served as host fami-lies because 20 years ago, the idea ofboarding high schoolers was a realchange for the state of Mississippi,”Brown said. “Those host families reallyhelped kids to adjust to being away fromhome and also helped those parentswho were concerned about sendingtheir high school junior off to schoolhundreds of miles away.”

Now, enrollment is about 240 juniorsand seniors. And the students rely oneach other and their teachers to helpthem adjust.

“It’s like a big family,” said Caves. “Ithink it’s been worth it to leave myfriends and family because I have gained

so many more friends and family.”Trist agreed.Being at MSMS is “like a whole

’nother family,” she echoed.“It’s a different experience being in

the dorms. You bond more,” JeremyPorta, a senior at MSMS and son ofLaura Reynold of McComb, noted.

Wide impactAnd the students are impacting much

more than each other while at theadvanced school.

“The interface with the community,when you think about it, it’s local, but it’salso statewide,” said Dr. Bill Odom, ascience instructor at MSMS.

The school partners with schools allover the state including Mississippi StateUniversity, University of Mississippi,Jackson State University and University ofSouthern Mississippi.

Through the partnerships, students areable to perform original research.

“It introduces them to the true worldof sciences ...” Odom commented.

One graduate is on the verge of find-ing a cure for psuedomonas infectionwith research begun at MSMS.

The same research won the recentMSMS grad, Madhavi Gavini ofStarkville, more than $70,000 in scholar-ships and Best of Fair at the annual IntelInternational Science and EngineeringFair.

MSMS students also have been pub-lished in national and regional maga-zines for their research efforts — SiemensNational, Mississippi Academic andScience Journal and Cerebral Cortex, toname a few.

And the science-savvy students showoff their knowledge of physics, chemistryand biology to thousands of local ele-mentary school students at an annual sci-ence fair held at the Trotter ConventionCenter.

But science is just the tip of the ice-berg when it comes to MSMS studentprojects and community involvement.

“History interfaces with the ColumbusLibrary for Tales from the Crypt and CityBlocks,” Odom said.

For the Tales from the Crypt project,students research a person buried in thehistoric Friendship Cemetery and create amonologue based on his or her life. They


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then perform the monologue in eveningperformances during the annualColumbus Pilgrimage.

Historic Blocks, another innovativehistory project, sends students on a tripto the Columbus-Lowndes PublicLibrary’s archives to study people, placesand the environment of times past. Thosestudents also perform a dramatic recre-ation of the lives of people researched,standing on the “historic blocks” inColumbus where they may have workedor lived.

After hours of intense history assign-ments, Virginia Harris, senior MSMS stu-dent from Benton, likes to wind downwith art class.

“I just had two hours of analytical his-tory,” she said as she took her brush tothe canvas. “This is very relaxing.”

Benton is the daughter of Scott andLiz Harris.

“And when you think of people whoare good at math and science, you don’treally think of people who are artistic,”admitted Trist. But the potential mathe-maticians and scientists at MSMS defythe odds. Painting, sculpting, impression-ism and figure drawing are also undertheir belts by the time they leave MSMS.

Well-rounded“It gives me a well-roundedness,” said

Wrijoya Roy, a senior. Roy is the daugh-ter of Dr. Diben and Rita Roy ofColumbus.

“I moved from West Virginia, and itwas a big change,” recalled Roy. “Andthe only thing I’d been looking forwardto is going to this school because of theacademics, and that’s a huge advantagefor me,” said Roy, as she put the finishingtouches on a painting.

And it’s not unusual at MSMS to seethe same students performing in anorchestra as would be elbows deep incompetitive science projects or moldingclay.

“You’re faced with so many differentpeople and different ethnicities and cul-tures and religions,” said Caves.

And along with those differencescomes the desire to expand their breadthof knowledge and broaden their hori-zons.

“The difficulty,” Odom admitted, “ischoosing what they are going to do.” ■


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ownership interest in the track inlate January.

“We have the inflatable jumpersfor the kids, so the parents can turnthem loose and pick them up whenthey’re worn out around 10:30 orso. We’re known for our cleanlinessand family atmosphere. You canbring your lawn chairs and spreadout. There’s not a bad seat in thehouse. They feel at home here iswhat people tell me.”

Cook raced motocross bikes,karts and drag racers from 1970-78before getting involved with racepromotion.

Two of Magnolia’s anchor racesare the annual Governor’s Cup andthe Cotton Pickin’ 100. Payouts insuper late model division rangefrom $5,000 to $15,000, Cook said,and the track can hold 3,800-4,000fans for a big race.

Like Columbus Speedway,Magnolia has both grandstand seat-ing and space available in the pitarea.

“We do sell alcohol, but we’vehad no problems whatsoever,” Cooksaid. “We have restricted areas forthat.”

Tailgate areaCook says Magnolia is unique

because of its tailgate arrangementwhere cars can park right up at thefence and watch the race.

“With the motor home hookupsand tailgate parking around thetrack, it gives a different atmospherearound the race,” Cook said. “We

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always do fireworks and little extrasto make it a big event.”

In addition to racing, Magnoliahosts a barbecue cook-off and a carshow throughout the year, and thetrack’s new ownership group hopesto expand on the offerings on weekswhere there is no race scheduled.

“Last year one of our big drawswas the car-eating dragon,” Cooksaid. “We’re going to bring in amonster truck to give kids rides, andthere are a couple of extreme showsplanned for this year, crazy thingswe’ve not been able to do in thepast. We just keep getting better.”

Cook says preconceptions peoplemight have about dirt track racingdon’t apply, and people should giveit a shot.

“I encourage people to come outbecause this track is so differentfrom anything else in dirt racing,”Cook said.

“Give us a try. People get theimage of old beat-up cars kicking upa bunch of dust. But we’re alwaysclean and neat. We have great foodand a lot of activities for kids.” ■

KELLY TIPPETT

From left, J.M. Bruton of Moulten, Ala.,Hershel “Papa” Perry of Columbus; andBobby Putt of Macon look on as the 2008Carl Hogan Honda Winter Classic beginsat Columbus Speedway Feb. 2.


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Quality has always been a priority forMississippi State University head footballcoach Sylvester Croom.

Granted, quality of performance isimportant to Croom, but character hasalways mattered more.

When he became the coach of theBulldogs on Dec. 1, 2003, Croom notonly broke a barrier in becoming thefirst African-American head footballcoach in the Southeastern Conference,he began to shape and mold a programback to respectability.

Mississippi State athletic directorLarry Templeton said Croom’s reputationwas something that kept coming to the

text by DANNY P. SMITH

Croomprinciple

The

MSU’s SylvesterCroom has builta winner the oldfashion way — by

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MANSEL GUERRY/MSU Media Relations


forefront as the school was searching forits 31st football coach.

“In the process of selecting the coachwe wanted to go after, everyone I talkedto asked if we had talked with SylvesterCroom,” Templeton said. “The thing theysaid was ‘you are not going to find a bet-ter person.’ He has not only provided theleadership, he has carried that character-istic over to the young guys on our teamand in our program.”

A season to rememberCroom and the Bulldogs reaped the

benefits from four years of building witha season to remember in 2007.

The Bulldogs had their first winningseason under Croom’s leadership at 8-5,which included a 10-3 victory againstthe Central Florida Knights at theAutoZone Liberty Bowl.

Along the way, Croom was recog-nized by his peers, The Associated Press

and other media outlets as the SECCoach of the Year and was a finalist forthe Paul “Bear” Bryant National Coach ofthe Year.

“It’s very rewarding and more for himthan for us,” Templeton said. “Goodthings happen for good people.”

Croom was flattered with the honorssent his way and appreciates Templeton,Mississippi State president Robert “Doc”Foglesong and the rest of the administra-tion for staying behind him.

“It’s an affirmation, first of all, of thecommitment to diversity that our univer-sity has, a commitment to building aprogram the right way,” Croom said.“This has not been an overnight kind ofdeal. It’s been a gradual buildingprocess. The changes in the program firstwere not seen on the outside, but wecould always see them on the inside.”

Laying a foundationBefore Croom could build, he knew

he had to lay a foundation.“I came here with the idea that we

were going to build a brand new pro-gram,” he said. “We basically had tostart all over because it has been myexperience that when you are in a losingprogram and you need to get it out,you’ve got to clean it all out and startover.”

In Croom’s first season of 2004, theBulldogs had a five-game losing streak,but recorded a 38-31 upset of 20th-ranked Florida to end the skid. After alsobeating Kentucky, Mississippi State lostits last three games of the season to fin-ish 3-8.

The Bulldogs also ended 2005 with a3-8 record and had a seven-game losingstreak. The bright moment of that seasonwas beating in-state rival Ole Miss 35-14at home in the final game.

One more game was added to theregular season for the first time in 2006,but Mississippi State still struggled. TheBulldogs were only able to win threegames and suffered nine losses, but didmanage to beat Alabama 24-16 on theroad.

The win against Florida in 2004, thevictory against Ole Miss in 2005 and thetriumph against Alabama in 2006 gaveMississippi State reason to hope.

Croom continued to have the backing

MSU head football coach Sylvester Croom, middle, appreciates the commitment thatplayers like Royce Blackledge, left, and Jason Husband, right, have made to the program. Opposite page: Croom has overseen a positive change in the Bulldogs on and off the field.

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“We get Air Force folks; we getsome traveling people comingthrough town,” Stokes said.

Magnolia MotorSpeedway

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year, forgoing a weekly series toconcentrate on its bigger races.Magnolia is also chasing the familyfun angle hard.

“Here at Magnolia, our big drawis the family atmosphere,” said trackmanager Chuck Cook, who sold his

Competitors warm up before this year’s Winter Classic at Columbus Speedway.

KELLY TIPPETT


Local dirt tracks are the place to be on summer Saturday nights

Left: Johnny Stokes, ColumbusSpeedway promoter and driver, is pictured at the speedway. Above: Magnolia Motor Speedway manager Chuck Cook stands nearthe race track entrance.

text by JOEY VAUGHAN photographs by KELLY TIPPETT and JOE RAY ROBERSON

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Above: Car No. 33 takes a practice run around Columbus Speedway before a Feb. 2race. Opposite: Car No. 58 joins the parade of drivers making runs at ColumbusSpeedway.


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“I felt like something was wrong with the way it wasbeing operated,” Imes said. “(But) I was just a one-manband at the time. This was just my preliminary thinking.”

Fittingly, it was over many of the things bought andsold at the market that the rest came together.

“At a Super Bowl party, I met Anne Freeze,” Imesremembered, referring to one of the three women whohelped her revitalize the market.

“Of course, standing in the kitchen, we were talkingabout food. She was very much involved with and inter-ested in local food and good food. I asked her to helpme with the farmers’ market, and she agreed.

“Right after that, I met Jennifer Lehner, at a dinnerparty, over food,” she continued. “Before the eveningwas over, she said she would (help).”

Jennifer Brady soon joined the group.“I didn’t know these women, but we all had a love of

good food and knew the importance of (supporting)local things,” Imes said. “(The issue was) we were losinggrowers, so how do we encourage growers?”

By raising money, adding locally made crafts to theofferings and lining up more growers, Imes, Freeze,Lehner and Brady again have brought glory days to themarket. The Saturday markets, with their live music andchildren’s art workshops, take on the air of an outdoorfestival.

But they still want to do more.“This year, we’re wanting to add workshops,” Imes

said. “Everything happened so quickly last year, we did-n’t have enough hours in the day to get our ideas going.But we do want to encourage new growers and to edu-cate people in how to have a small, backyard garden.I’m hoping we can just educate people on how to havea garden again, how to compost, how to save seeds.”

Good for children“It is a wonderful, wonderful activity for a parent to

do with a child,” said Lehner, who noted farmers’ mar-kets encourage a “healthy lifestyle.”

“My boys sold lemonade at a market last season, andI just think it would be such a great thing, from begin-ning to end, for a parent to plant a small garden for theirchild to sell (the results) at a market.

“It’s about commerce,” Lehner continued. “It’s aboutscience and marketing. It could be a really great project.(And) this would be the ideal project for the person whois retired or has free time on a Saturday to enhance theirincome by learning something new, like gardening. Orwhat if someone were to raise a couple of goats andlearn to make goat cheese?”

Some in-demand items include arugula, watercress“and more exotic ingredients than what we can typicallyfind in this area,” Lehner noted.

“There’s a huge demand for these types of things, andif somebody wants to try it out, we welcome new grow-ers,” she added.

KELLY TIPPETTLucy, left, and Laura Sandifer play violin at the farmers’ marketin this June 2007 photo. Their parents are Ricky and DeniseSandifer of Caledonia.

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But racing fans don’t even have toleave Lowndes County to get a tasteof the action. Two local tracks liewaiting to provide all the thrills andspills of a good car race but on asmaller, dirt-track scale.

Columbus Speedway in NewHope and Magnolia MotorSpeedway at the intersection ofHighway 82 and Highway 45Alternate each give race fans plentyof opportunities to see grassrootsracing.

In the summer, with college andhigh school sports off and no MajorLeague Baseball team closer thanAtlanta, dirt track racing is one ofthe best sporting events going onlocally. Plus, it’s something thewhole family can get into. Kids lovecars.

“For the money, you get moreentertainment than about anythingelse you can do around here,” saidColumbus Speedway promoter andrace car driver Johnny Stokes.

“For the weekly races, $12 getsyou in and it lasts about three and a

half or four hours. It’s real exciting.You’ve got cars going 100 miles perhour side by side sliding on dirt. It isthe No. 1 spectator sport in theworld. Columbus Speedway is agood family-owned racetrack.”

Columbus Speedway, located at574 Lacy Road, bills itself as “TheBaddest Bullring in the South.” It’sbeen in operation since 1965,according to Stokes, who began rac-

ing there in 1970. The Bullring hostsabout 25 races a year, starting with awinter race in January and continu-ing each Saturday night from Marchto September.

About 3,000 spectators can sit inthe grandstand surrounding thethree-tenths of a mile dirt oval. Thepit area can hold another 3,000 peo-ple, Stokes says.

People come out from all over on

KELLY TIPPETT


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warm Saturday nights to hear theroar of the engines, watch the carsslide around corners and occasion-ally trade a little paint.

“They wreck quite often,” Stokessaid. “People come for the wreckstoo.”

Columbus Speedway hosted thefirst nationally televised dirt trackrace in the state of Mississippi lastyear when the Lucas Oil Seriescame to town. The race was shownon the Speed Network. ColumbusSpeedway’s signature race, theMagnolia State 100, featured a huge$25,000 payout to the winner in2007.

“That’s the biggest race that’s everbeen in the state of Mississippi,”Stokes said.

The weekly races feature a cast ofcharacters from mostly the sur-rounding areas, but the bigger racesdraw drivers from all over the coun-try.

“Everywhere,” Stokes said. “Forthe Lucas Oil race, we had about 21states represented.”

Columbus Speedway does notsell beer, but spectators can bringtheir own coolers and lawn chairs.

KELLY TIPPETT

Drivers make practice runs around Columbus Speedway before a Feb. 2 race.

From left, MUW students CodyHammack, a junior from Berry,Ala.; Tim Steele, a junior from

Gulfport; Michael Sipp, a juniorfrom Pascagoula; Aaron Chu, a

sophomore from Pascagoula; andJosh Graham, a senior from

Fulton, chat outside of Reneau Hall.


Campus life has changed a lot since senior nursing majorMike Dodson first came to Mississippi University for Womenin 1986.

Just four years after the Supreme Court forced The W toadmit its first male student, Dodson was a business manage-ment student who transferred to MSU after two yearsbecause he didn’t want his diploma to come from a“women’s college.”

Newspapers were filled with stories of animosity for themale newcomers by students, alumnae and some staff —just as repeated squabbles over changing the universityname to include the entire student body in recent years havefurther fueled the idea that men are still somehow second-class students at their alma mater.

Were all that true, Dodson said, he would never havereturned to MUW for another degree.

Women, take up your armsIn the beginning, there was no state-supported higher

education system designated for women.Then the Mississippi Legislature created the Industrial

Institute and College, the first public women’s college in thecountry in 1884.

That educational groundbreaker later became MississippiState College for Women, and in 1974, MississippiUniversity for Women.

“Our state decided after the Civil War that it was an eco-nomic investment to make women both educated and self-supporting to help bring Mississippi out of a depression. Itwasn’t for the elite, although segregation meant it was all

white. That’s one reason it’s unique, though — it was a placeset aside to give middle- to working-class women a leg upon being independent,” said Dr. Bridget Pieschel, director ofMUW’s Southern Women’s Institute.

Training advanced over time from vocational to colle-giate, including the top-of-the-line nursing program thatbrought Joe Hogan’s noticeably masculine foot in the door in1982.

The W offered the local nurse a chance to take classes onaudit status, but Hogan sued on grounds of discriminationafter he was denied full admission.

Finally, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled The W nursingschool’s admissions policies violated the Equal ProtectionClause of the 14th Amendment. And that decision applied toall programs at the university.

What’s good for the ganderThe Hogan suit opened the door for scores of men like

Dodson who’ve broadened the definition of a “W” student,who were once only known as “W girls.”

But fate added a tinge of irony for those who opposed themove as a strike against women’s lib.

It actually did just the opposite.“It really set the standard for how and when to deal with

gender-based discrimination. There was only one otherwomen’s college at the time that could be affected by theverdict, so the primary effect was gaining women entranceto all-male institutions,” said Wil Colom, Hogan’s lawyer,during the 1982 case.

It later became a legal precedent in high-profile cases

A fewSMARTwomen

Creating a new definition of the ‘W’ student

text by MELANIE CROWNOVER photographs by KELLY TIPPETT

of Templeton even after three years.“We’ve had some very special

moments,” Templeton said. “I think youfind out who your friends are whentimes aren’t as good as they are now.

“When we weren’t having much suc-cess on the field, we both could seethere was progress being made. Whenhe needed someone to talk to, fortunate-ly I was there and quite frankly, when Ineeded someone to talk to, he wasthere.”

Going into his fourth season in 2007,Croom knew that attitude, work ethicand talent level had improved, but theBulldogs still had not showed they couldwin consistently on the field.

After Mississippi State took a 45-0beating at the hands of the eventualnational champion LSU, some fans ques-tioned if success would ever come.

Not Croom.“The loss does not change my mind

about those players in that locker room,”Croom said after the LSU game. “Afterthe game, I feel even stronger now aboutthe possibility of us being a very goodfootball team because some questions I

had were answered.”The Bulldogs shook off the LSU loss

and won the next three games againstTulane 38-17, Auburn 19-14 andGardner-Webb 31-15 to match the victo-ry total of the previous three seasons.

After a 38-21 road loss at SouthCarolina, Mississippi State defeatedUniversity of Alabama–Birmingham 30-13 at home to achieve four wins in aseason for the first time under Croom.

With a rugged schedule left againstseveral ranked teams, there were somewho felt the UAB victory would be thelast of the season and were satisfied withthat.

Fighting backBut, the Bulldogs showed they had

more fight left in them.Mississippi State lost its next two

games against Tennessee 33-21 andWest Virginia 38-13, but earned whatcould have been the most important vic-tory of the season — a 31-14 decisionagainst then 14th-ranked Kentucky onthe road.

That spring-boarded the Bulldogs to astrong finish with wins against Alabama17-12 and Ole Miss 17-14 at home withone hiccup at Arkansas 45-31 to finishthe regular season with a 7-5 record.

“I’m very pleased with the attitude ofthis football team and have been all sea-son with their work ethic and team-work,” Croom said during the laststretch of the season. “They have elevat-ed the standards and made a clear iden-tity.”

Mississippi State showed it could bea team that could come back from adeficit to come out on top. The Bulldogstrailed Ole Miss 14-0 before winningand fell behind Central Florida 3-0before rallying to claim the LibertyBowl.

“I am extremely thankful for ourteam, our coaches and our supportstaff,” Croom said after Mississippi Statewon the Liberty Bowl.

“We’ve got a lot of good people inthis program. I think their character,their ability to overcome adversity, theirteamwork and their spirit of oneness,they have shown through all year.”

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The players have become fond of theman they have come to know as CoachCroom.

Defensive end Titus Brown developedinto one of the SEC’s most dominant passrushers during his time under Croom’swatch.

Brown participated in the Senior Bowlon Jan. 26 and is expected to be takensomewhere in the National FootballLeague draft. He credits Croom andMississippi State for helping him get intothis position.

“If I hadn’t been at Mississippi Statewhere these guys worked so hard tohave a winning season, I wouldn’t be inthe spot where I am now,” Brown said. “Iurge the guys behind me to press for-ward and do the right things to getwhere I am today.”

Sophomore running back AnthonyDixon and Croom had some minor off-

field issues last season, but when rumorssurfaced that Croom might be contactedby professional teams, Dixon made histrue feelings known.

“He’s a tough one to play for, butnone of us want to see him go becausehe loves us and fights for us,” Dixonsaid.

According to Mississippi State strengthcoach Ben Pollard, Croom has a uniqueway of getting his point across to theplayers.

“I’ve never been around a head coachwho always says the right things to theplayers and we’re not talking about foot-ball things,” Pollard said. “If the charac-ter things and the true heart issues are inorder, the football will take care of itself.If a kid is working hard, going to school,taking advantage of his opportunities andbeing the right kind of citizen, then foot-ball is easy.

“Every day I hear him address theteam after practice and I am soimpressed with what he has to say. Asa parent, I would want my son to hearthe things he’s got to say.”

Croom now believes he has theBulldogs in a position to where theycan at least compete for an SECChampionship.

Being able to pursue that goal withquality players on and off the fieldgives Croom peace about the directionMississippi State is headed.

“At the end of the day, I can livewith the way we’re doing it,” Croomsaid. “I’m very proud of this footballteam and what they have done. Theycould have quit on us a long time ago,but we’ve put some fight, some char-acter and some class into this pro-gram. Now we’ve got to build onthat.” ■

“They could have quit on us a long time ago, but we’ve putsome fight, some character and some class into this program.”

— Sylvester Croom

against both The Citadel and VirginiaMilitary Institute, the country’s onlystate-funded, all-male military colleges,during the 1990s.

Although the ladies broke into thegentlemen’s clubs with the law on theirside, few of them at first made it tograduation at their chosen schools,much like Hogan — who attendedMUW, but never even made it throughcore curriculum requirements to enterthe nursing program.

But Colom said the battle was stillworthwhile on a personal level for hisclient.

“It’s not unusual for a trailblazer notto get the rewards of their struggles —Moses didn’t make it to the PromisedLand, you know,” Colom said.

“I think he (Hogan) left because the

situation was too tough to deal withevery day after how he got in, but hewent on to get his degree in Louisianaand was practicing in New Orleans thelast thing I heard. And because of Joe,the son of the judge who ruled againstus in district court got to leave Ole Missto finish school at MUW.”

Then and nowBack in the 1980s, Dodson was con-

sidered part of a minority at MUWbecause of his gender; now he says hisstatus as a non-traditional student setshim apart.

“At the time there were already sev-eral guys in my math and science class-es I took for my major, so I didn’t reallyfeel like the only one here,” the 39-year-old said as he studied for finals last

fall with children Taylor, 9, and JohnCurtis, 4, in the background.

His wife, Missy, holds both a bache-lor’s and master’s from the same pro-gram.

“I was actually more worried aboutthat when I went into nursing becausethe national average is less than 10 per-cent male, and the percentage of malesis already so small here, but both timesI’ve been here I’ve never felt treated lessthan anyone else.”

The W’s male nursing stats are actu-ally a little higher than the nationalaverage, with six of Dodson’s 54 class-mates men.

But it’s the opportunities for men toget involved beyond the classroom thathave really changed in the past 26years.

More than 80 organizations nowmake up the campus roster of extracur-riculars — the majority of which havehad males in leadership roles.

Dodson is currently head of thelocal Student Nurses Association.

Big brothersAfter a new addition last semester,

there are four nationally recognized fra-ternities.

Most of The W’s eight tradition-steeped women’s social clubs haveopened up participation to the malepopulation by way of big brother pro-grams in the past decade as well.

And men transferred from Goen,which was regularly regarded as one ofthe least desirable dorms on campus, tobetter housing a couple of years ago.Now first-year men room at co-edKincannon Hall and higher classifica-tions have the option of refurbishedColumbus Hall.

“I think when men first started com-ing here it was mainly for the nursingprogram or out of convenience, but thisschool has changed pretty dramaticallyover the past 30 years,” said Buckywww.columbusfamilyhousing.com

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“ ... I knew the education I would get here and was old enough to look beyond that women’s school tag of that diploma. I came

because I knew this is where I needed to be.”— Mike Dodson

Wesley, vice president of student serv-ices.

“Now they’re drawn here because ofthe whole life of the campus and ouracademic reputation, and our alumsand students see now how much thesemen contribute to what The W isbecoming,” he continued.

Not all changes are monumental,though.

One prime example is the way theschool reaches out to prospective malestudents.

The attachment of the phrase “andsmart men, too” to the university nameon marketing pieces is probably thebiggest strategy specifically to drawmen over the past two decades.

However, there are no scholarshipsset aside solely for males, though manyare on scholarship.

‘Face of the ‘W’ man’No study has pinpointed the “face of

the ‘W’ man” to aim recruitment to tar-get specific ages, majors, races orlocales.

Instead, university-sponsored studiesfocus on specific types of students to

determine the makeup of that portionof the population. The student body hashovered at about 15 percent male forseveral years, even when the more than2,000 student total enrollment tradi-tionally drops in the spring.

Wesley said W recruitment is “main-stream-based” to present to as manypeople as possible a picture of a uni-versity in transition with a world of pos-sibilities ahead. Beneath those possibili-ties lies the question of how to fullyengage an entire student body andbuild on tradition when history andmission are so steeped in the better-ment of women.

But change is one thing The W hastaught well from the start.

“I know a lot of men don’t comehere because they don’t realize theycan, but that’s just a matter ofresearch,” said Dodson. “I came herethe first time because it was close tohome and came back because I knewthe education I would get here and wasold enough to look beyond thatwomen’s school tag of that diploma. Icame because I knew this is where Ineeded to be.” ■

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78 THE COMMERCIAL DISPATCH ◆ PROGRESS 2008

with their opinions, which helps themfeel that their voice makes a difference.”

Daily radio duties fall in the middle ofwhat are often 18-hour workdays for theColumbus native, who now owns Helen’sKitchen, the family’s landmark restauranton 15th Street North, locally known formouth-watering soul and comfort food.

Fourth generation“Helen’s Kitchen, named for my moth-

er, represents a fourth generation ofrestaurant owners in our family inLowndes County,” he relays with pride.

The lively eatery — where Karriemgrew up helping out before and afterschool, and on lunch breaks, too — is apopular hub where many of the talkshow’s topics percolate daily among din-ers.

“I have to go to the radio station torest,” he jokes. “Our catering in particularhas increased tremendously since mybrother, Hussein, returned to Columbuslast year. He’s a chef, graduated from theCooking and Hospitality Institute ofChicago and can do fantastic things withfood.”

And “Ms. Helen” still keeps a hand inthe eatery. “Mother says she’s technicallyretired, but she’s here a lot to make sureeverything tastes just right,” the matri-arch’s youngest son shares with a smile.

The family’s deep roots in the city’sSeventh Avenue historic district havehelped inspire Karriem’s commitment tocommunity.

As chairman of the annual SeventhAvenue Heritage Festival, he shares hispassion for the preservation of the dis-trict’s rich history. “I think this area is likeColumbus’ hidden treasure. It was thebusiness and entertainment district. For along time, it was all that the African-American community had,” he says.

“The festival ... shows what can beaccomplished when we all really worktogether,” Karriem reflects. It just might bethat the cornerstone of Kabir Karriem’sphilosophy can be found in the sign-offhe leaves listeners with each weekday atthe end of the show: “Start where youare. Work with what you’ve got. Do thebest you can, and, I promise you, Godwill take care of the rest.” ■


Those who visited the OldHitching Lot Farmers Market inColumbus last year experienced avibrant, thriving market wherecraftsmen displayed their wares;fresh, locally grown produce wasbought and sold; children partici-pated in special activities and musi-cians performed for the crowds.

But it wasn’t always that way.In 1976, the Columbus Farmers

Market was established by a groupof local farmers and “growers,”including Lacy Freeman.

But recently, a longtime patron,Beth Imes, noticed the market wasdying.

“I started going less frequentlyeach year,” she explained. “Buteach time I would go, Lacy Freeman would just shakehis head with worry, saying, ‘We need new growers.’ Itwould just kind of eat at me, but I never thought about

doing anything.”Early last year, she decided to

take action.“I decided, not knowing any-

thing about it, I would step for-ward, learn fast and try to do some-thing,” she recalled. “I was trying tofigure out how to get more growers.You need more growers, before youcan expect more customers tocome.

“I kept asking myself, why don’tI go regularly?” she continued.“The thing that popped into myhead, No. 1, was if I realize it’smarket day and it’s 7 o’clock in themorning, I would think everything’sall gone. (I would think) it wouldall be picked over and gone, so

why bother?”People she spoke with agreed. Newcomers said they

couldn’t even find the market.

MARKET DAYS text by KRISTIN MAMRACK photograph by JOE RAY ROBERSON

Local women revitalize Columbus farmers’ market

Zachary Lehner, 4, accepts a payment from cus-tomer Rufus Ward as his brother Jake, 6, mans thecash register at the farmers’ market, in this May2007 photo. Above: From left are Anne Freeze,Jennifer Lehner, Jennifer Brady and Beth Imes,who’ve each done their part to breathe new life intothe local farmers’ market.

MATTHEW WEST

COMMUNITYRADIO

Kabir Karriem hosts “Karriem & Company” on WTWG-AM 1050.

Kabir Karriem does not consider himself a radio per-sonality. He simply sees his role as host of WTWG-AM1050’s noontime talk show, “Karriem & Company,” as acommunity service.

“We don’t communicate enough,” the 34-year-oldbusinessman believes. “This news talk show deals withour entire community, and particularly with issues thataffect the African-American community.”

The hour-long show, which airs live Monday throughFriday, has become a town square on the airwaves. “It’s away for people to voice their opinion on everything fromeconomics, religion, politics, entertainment — anythingthat is in the news,” explains Karriem.

“If you want to know what’s going on,” he adds with achuckle, “just listen in.”

The calls Karriem and his on-air guests welcome everyday reflect the public pulse. A recent program ran thegamut from the much-publicized Columbus school bondreferendum to appreciating city workers and the criticalimportance of better parenting.

And sometimes the show helps reveal relevant hotspots. “Like an addict,” Karriem asserts, “until you admitthere is a problem, you can’t work on it. This gives us alla tool to vent, to talk, to debate if we need to.”

“Karriem & Company” first aired on WTWG on Aug.13, 2007. “When I was younger, I used to hang aroundthe radio station all the time, hearing men like JamesHull, Tony Dean and my brother, Kamal, on the air,” theMississippi State University graduate remembers.

“When a time slot came open, I thought I had some-thing to offer. I didn’t have on-air experience, but Ithought the show could be a conduit to keep the com-munity informed.”

The station’s owners, state Sen. Bennie Turner and hiswife, Edna Turner, think so, too.

“Kabir is doing a fantastic job bringing issues of localinterest to be discussed on the air,” Edna Turner offers.“He’d never been on radio, but he is handling it like apro.

“Local talk is vital to the community,” she adds. “Itgives citizens an opportunity to learn what is going on insurrounding areas. Listeners are encouraged to call in

Talk show host offerslocals a public forum

text by JAN SWOOPEphotographs by KELLY TIPPETT

“If you want to know what’s going on ... just listen in.”

— Kabir Karriem


The name is a little deceptive.Because peppered among the math

and science courses are sections onsculpture, literature, architecture andmusic.

Artists, lawyers and teachers, as wellas mathematicians and engineers, haveearned diplomas from Mississippi Schoolfor Mathematics and Science.

And students with their sights set oncareers in political science, microbiologyand history, to name a few, today gracethe halls of MSMS buildings.

Housed on the campus of MississippiUniversity for Women, MSMS is not justa school for math and science — it’s aschool for challenge, a school for com-munity, a school for creativity, a schoolfor opportunity.

And the opportunities afforded at theschool are far from lost on the teenagestudents.

“I think MSMS is one of the greatestexperiences I’ve ever been through. I’ve

learned so much more than academics,”said Rachel Trist, a senior at the school.Trist is the daughter of Sheri and EddieTrist of Hernando.

From time management to responsi-bility and the challenge of college-levelclasses and professors, students sayMSMS has offered them valuable lessonsthey’ll take with them for the rest of theirlives.

“I don’t think you can compare thekinds of relationships with people,friends, faculty and staff. I cherish that somuch more than anything I learned in aclassroom,” said Katie Caves, also a sen-ior.

Caves is the daughter of James andLori Caves of Brookhaven.

“I am so much more prepared than Iwas at my old school. It prepared me alot more for college,” she added.

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MSMS prepares state’s top students for the world beyond high schooltext by GARTHIA ELENA BURNETT photographs by KELLY TIPPETT


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the library throughout the day wouldnotice that a variety of users visit thelibrary for different reasons. Localbusiness owners take advantage ofthe atmosphere and wireless Internetto complete work. Others come toread magazines or newspapers.

Petersen said some adults currentlyuse the library to teach themselveshow to read. Petersen said these arebut a few of the examples of how thelibrary helps the community. “Overthe course of the day, you see all thedifferent user groups come throughthe door,” he said. “Where else canyou go and look up whatever youneed?”

While Petersen said the libraryserves a variety of important func-tions, he worries it will face chal-lenges in the future without properfunding. “If we don’t see increasedfunding, we risk degrading the quali-ty of the library,” he said.

Petersen said the library, whichhad more than 230,000 visits lastyear, is too important for the commu-nity to accept that risk. “We don’tnecessarily come up with the projectsand ideas of our community, but wedo serve a resource to make the proj-ects and ideas of our community bet-ter,” he said.

While the library may afford theseopportunities to the area, Petersenbelieves work must still be done tomake the library a place that ade-quately serves everyone. Accordingto Petersen, the lack of night hourshas hurt the library and workingpatrons. “We need night hours,” hesaid. “We had an immediate drop inour door count and circulation whenwe cut back our hours.”

Petersen said many people whomove to Columbus are shocked whenthey learn the library does not stayopen past 6 p.m. “It is a quality-of-life issue. Many people move herefrom other cities, and they feel thatthey can’t use the library because it isclosed when they finish working.”

“We need increased funding fornight hours and staff pay,” saidPetersen. “This community needsthose hours back,” he said. ■

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For 59-year-old Mark and 56-year-old Marilyn Leonard, residents of oneof Richardson’s apartments above thePaint Store on Main Street, a commit-ment to Columbus blossomed as soonas they moved from their house inNew Hope in 2006.

“I never realized what a neat townColumbus is until I moved down-town,” Mark said. “When you taketime to look around, you really findout how much the town has to offer.”

Twenty-eight-year-old Mary NeffSeabergh and her 31-year-old hus-band, Nick, fell in love with down-town Columbus shortly after movingfrom Memphis, Tenn., to a loft aboveThe Suitcase on Fifth Street South,more than three years ago.

“Downtown was definitely our firstchoice when we were looking tomove here,” said Mary Neff. “It wasnice to move from a big city to asmaller one and still feel like you’re inthe middle of everything.”

And with restaurants, events likethe Market Street Festival and dozensof stores all right outside their door,the downtown residents always havesomething to do.

“I am a social animal,” Mark said,adding, “Now that we’re here, we cango all kinds of places and take advan-tage of different events without evenstarting the car.”

Unique dwellings“This is my favorite part of the

apartment,” Mark said as he gazeddown at College Street from his backbalcony. “It makes our apartmentunique because only a few apartmentsdown here have balconies. We use itall the time when the weather is nice,and it even gives us great seats forbands at the Market Street Festival.”

The Seaberghs enjoy the old-timefeel of their 1890s-era dwelling.

“You just can’t get this kind ofarchitecture anywhere else,” saidNick. “The 16-foot ceilings and hard-wood floors we have here are reallyhard to find in houses or modernapartment complexes.”

Every apartment in downtown hassomething to set it apart from theapartment next door.

“Adding seven to 10 businesses ayear might not be much for a bigtown, but for us it’s huge. Every littlebit helps when you’re a small cityand county with limited fundsbecause if you don’t draw in morebusinesses to broaden you tax baseyou have to raise your people’staxes,” Boykin continued.

With $3-a-gallon gas raising priceson everything else, either increasingtaxes or leaving residents with littleoption but to drive an hour for fastfood wasn’t acceptable anymore.

The additions also meant moretraffic for existing businesses.

“Now that whole area is an eye-catcher for the people driving by,”Boykin contended. “With only onerestaurant out there, you’re alreadypast it before you realize, and youpass the city by without a thought.

“Now drivers see the grouping ofbusinesses from a distance and thinkmaybe they should stop in for a bite,and that can lead them into town tocheck it out as well.”

The community’s new civic center

was built along the same line ofthought as the bypass boom.

For years, residents of Macon andNoxubee County had no option butto take events like wedding recep-tions, organizational meetings andfamily reunions down the road toColumbus and over to Louisville’sLake Tiak O’Khata.

That exodus was a loss of bigtourism dollars for the area and aninconvenient truth for the citizens.

The answer was a more than4,000-square-foot building acrossfrom Noxubee High School andadjacent to the Agriculture Center onHighway 45 South.

The project became realitybecause county officials workedtogether to get a $1 million grantfrom the Appalachian RegionalCommission.

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Not Jackson.Not Biloxi.Not Meridian.Columbus has more upper-level

apartments than anywhere else inMississippi.

And residents of downtown’s nearly

130 apartments and condominiumunits couldn’t imagine living anywhereelse.

“This may be a smaller town, butpeople still want to be in the center ofthe action,” said Kazie Richardson,owner of seven Main Street apart-ments.

With homes as different as theirpersonalities, several loft-dwellers arefinding unique ways to carve their wayinto city life.

Some moved to Columbus from thecountry; some moved from a largercity.

But they all have made a movetoward rejuvenating downtownColumbus.

“When people move downtownthey are making a statement,” saidRichardson. “They are saying theybelieve in Columbus and they believein the future of downtown.”

Lofty livingUpstairs apartments create a sense

of community in downtown Columbus

text by NEAL WAGNER photographs by KELLY TIPPETT

Left: Mark Leonard, 59, and his wife,Marilyn Leonard, 56, stand on the back balcony of their downtown apartmentabove the Paint Store on Main Street, overlooking College Street. Opposite: NickSeabergh, 31, and his wife, Mary NeffSeabergh, 28, sit in the study of their loftabove The Suitcase on Fifth Street South.

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“We have a lot of friends who livedowntown and none of our apart-ments are alike,” said Mary Neff. “Alot of the lofts have been remodeledby their owners, so even when theyare in the same building, they don’tlook alike.”

Despite being within 50 yards ofeach other, the Seaberghs and theLeonards don’t share much when itcomes to their apartments’ appear-ances.

While both lofts sport hardwoodfloors, elegant furniture and a homeyfeel, each one reflects its residents’lifestyles.

The interior of the Leonards’ 1,300-square-foot apartment was hard to dis-tinguish from a house. With two bed-rooms, two bathrooms, dark woodenfurniture and a large living room andkitchen, their apartment is reminiscentof the home they moved from twoyears ago

“This place is actually about 100square feet bigger than the first housewe lived in in the 1970s,” Mark said.“Our loft kind of combines the home

feel with the downtown convenience.It’s not for everybody, but we think itwas the right decision for us.”

The Seaberghs’ slightly smaller1,000-square-foot apartment reflectsthe style of a big-city downtown loft.

Their one-bedroom, one-bathroomresidence provides an excellent viewof the constant movement of cars andpeople along Fifth Street South. Theinterior is a unique mixture of state-of-the-art amenities with old-fash-ioned 1800’s architecture.

“This (apartment) has the same feelas a loft in Memphis,” said Mary Neff.“We tried to set everything up in hereso it would have the look of a big-cityloft.”

Comfortable commuteHowever, there is at least one thing

downtown residents are glad theydon’t share with larger cities — traf-fic.

“Sometimes I walk to work andsometimes I drive,” said Nick, who isa sous-chef at Harvey’s restaurant.“It’s so close that, even when I drive,

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Town of CaledoniaA place for family growth & development

Caledonians are proud of their town and community. Caledonia is a very unique place to live. We are very friendly and always willing to help our neighbors.

The Park & Recreation Authority is gearing up now for another year at Ola J. Pickett Park. There are lighted fi elds to accommodate all the nightly sports activities. The town and community are very proud of the Ola J. Pickett park endeavors. Also, the YMCA has been a wonderful asset for our community.

Caledonia has its own Court System with Judge Peggy Phillips presiding. There are three part-time Marshals, Lamar Peacock, Steve Hatcher and Larry Swearingen. Constable Willie “Hoot” West also makes himself available when needed.

The Caledonia Water/Sewer Department serves about 1,700 customers. The department is always in the process of providing our customers with good service and good water. The water department is

under the supervision of Benny Coleman. With a variety of restuarants to choose from, Frisby’s

Restaurant is the newest selection-the location opened a few months ago. Mimi’s Ice Cream is a great stop for a

hot day. Caledonia Quick Stop serves breakfasts and plate lunches as well as specialty sandwiches.

A new clinic is under construction in downtown Caledonia by Pioneer Community

Hospital and will open sometime in April of this year.

Town Hall is open from 9:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. Mayor Bill Lawrence & Town Clerk, Judy Whitcomb will be available

during this time for town business. Our office number is 356-4117.

We attribute much of our growth in the Caledonia area to our excellent school system. The area has grown so quickly, with new houses and businesses and we are thankful for a

great community of wonderful people.


counselors and each other, the stu-dents adapted well to the situation,going to classes in varied locationsand navigating around the fenced-indamaged areas.

“People do what’s expected ofthem in difficult times when theyknow up front what the situationcalls for,” Putnam said.

And what stands in place of thewreckage — after cleanup crews,insurance adjusters and architectshave had their say — is opportunity.

“We’re going to look and see if wecan’t solve some of our problems,”said Lowndes County School DistrictSuperintendent Mike Halford.

Among the campus’ “problems” isthe need for an elementary schoolgym.

“It is quite old, antiquated, paint-ed floors,” noted Halford, who hasproposed building a gym largeenough to accommodate Caledonia’smiddle and elementary school.

High school plans“Another thing we’re looking at

too is — and there’s need at all thecampuses — but there is definitely aneed for a new high school atCaledonia,” Halford continued. “Twoyears ago, we added 20 new class-rooms. They are all in use.”

Along with overflowing class-rooms comes the need for moreteachers; at Caledonia schools thereare about 22 students to eachteacher.

“The problem is, if the boardwould give me 10 additional teach-ers, I don’t have 10 classrooms forthem to go in,” Halford said.

Lowndes County School District’sBoard of Education purchased a 17-acre parcel of land in August of lastyear for about $380,000.

The land stretches, in patches,from Confederate Drive to UnityCemetery, but as of now, the boardhas made no plans to put a proposednew high school on the property.

“We’ve taken no action on thatland. We’re discussing severalparcels of land,” said Halford with-out divulging the locations of the


The wreckage could be seen as faraway as Main Street.

Rubble. Twisted metal. Brokenglass.

Walking along Confederate Driveallowed a much more intimate view.

The school marquee was gone.The band hall was gone.

The middle school gym was gone.The vo-tech building was gone.Mass destruction was in their place.A long mass of metal was bent, sus-

pended in the foundation of the vo-tech building.

“Blue Bird,” it read.It was a school bus before an F3

Fromtheground

Turning the tragedy of the Caledonia tornado into an opportunity for growthtext by GARTHIA ELENA BURNETT photographs by KELLY TIPPETT

Up

tornado redefined it, leaving thechassis separated from the body.

Cars lay atop each other. ...Crushed.

Standing by the high school gym,there was a pile of wood, metal,glass and a deformed window airconditioning unit.

That was the day after theThursday, Jan. 10, storm.

Cleaning upBy the weekend, the scene in the

parking lot — broken glass andsmashed cars and buses — hadbecome just a vivid memory.

Weeks later, the Mona Lisa, aserene jungle scene and a calm pud-dle of water, all painted on the artroom walls, were also only memo-ries.

The colorful tempera paint camedown with the building and wasswept away with the rest of thedebris.

The band hall — home to middleschool and high school Confederatebands — also fell victim to the tor-nado.

And what was left of it wascleared away with bulldozers, butmuch of the equipment was sal-vaged.

“We were very fortunate in thatwe were able to salvage most of theband instruments and uniforms.Some of them are damaged, butwe’ll be able to make repairs anduse them,” said Mike Putnam, princi-pal of Caledonia High School.

The storm swept the campus,leaving the middle and elementaryschools intact but the high school’scomplementary buildings and athlet-ic facilities devastated.

And while the twister didn’t claimany lives, it took with it much morethan bricks and mortar.

Student morale was also weak-ened after the storm.

Hard first days“They had a hard couple of first

days,” Putnam said a week beforecrews began clearing the damagedbuildings.

But with the help of teachers,

Mike Putnam, principal of Caledonia High School, stands in front of buildings damagedby the Jan. 10 twister.

Lowndes County School District isin the midst of planning a vast con-struction project to rebuild theCaledonia campus after an F3 torna-do ripped through the schoolgrounds.

But the district’s two other cam-puses — one of which is a dividedcampus — have not been forgottenin the process. New Hope and WestLowndes schools are also in need ofimprovements.

“Traffic at New Hope is a prob-lem,” Mike Halford, superintendentof Lowndes County School Districtsaid, noting the area is congested.He also expressed a need for addi-tional buildings.

One site for WestLowndes?

“And I would love to see the WestLowndes campus all on one site,” hecontinued, noting the idea of havinghis child attend the entirety of theelementary and secondary years onthe same campus was a major drawfor him.

“But can we do it?” he asked. “Idon’t know. Does the communitywant it? I don’t know.”

West Lowndes is the only of thethree county school campuses withits schools on separate sites.

“There’s also a need for a softballfield at West Lowndes,” Halford said.

He also would like to see a cen-tralized academic school for children

with special needs, a centrally locat-ed district office and central alterna-tive and vocational schools.

But with many of his campus anddistrict improvement projects still ona wish list, Halford has spent theduration of his five-year tenure withthe county schools focusing on thethings he can take action on.

One of those has been to main-tain art, physical education andmusic at all three elementaryschools, an effort he has called aresearch-proven way to improve testscores and promote well-rounded-ness.

Testing programsEncouraging high performance

from students has been a priority forthe district as it’s begun using testingprograms such as the StudentProgress Monitoring System and EZTest Tracker.

The initiatives have proven suc-cessful with consistently high testscores and state accreditation ratings.

The focus of the district, saidHalford, has returned to academia.

“For too long, the focus inLowndes County schools has beenon athletics rather than academics,and we’re starting to see a changewhere the focus is put on academicsmore than athletics,” he said. “Andthat has been a long time coming. Itis a welcome change.”

County schools focusing on the future


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futures.

properties.Some considerations in finding a

place for a new school, he said, arebeing respectful of the growing com-munity and trying to keep the schoolaway from areas of heavy traffic.

“As a school district, we want tobe respectful of that area,” Halfordcommented, noting the town has alimited amount of land for expan-sion.

“If you tie up the land, where elsewould you go for the city ofCaledonia?” he asked. “And to me,the growth of the school and thegrowth of the city go hand in hand.”

Assessing damageAnd as insurance representatives

assess the damages to the highschool, school leaders are realizingthey may have to spend districtfunds to rebuild the Caledonia cam-pus.

“The thing that’s going to give usproblems is, I can’t build a newbuilding for what a 35-year-oldbuilding was worth. ... It’s going tobe real hard to rebuild Caledoniawith just insurance money,” Halfordsaid.

That realization begs the question:Where will the extra money comefrom? Options include raising thedistrict’s millage, an unpopular solu-tion with the school district’s boardmembers who’ve adamantly kept themillage rate at about 47 mills for thepast several years. Tapping into in-lieu-of tax money from theSeverCorr steel mill, which startedmaterializing in February, is anotherunpopular option since those mon-eys have already been budgeted.

But, as Halford said, recoveringfrom the tornado is about more thanmoney and restoring old facilities.

“It’s also a time to be progres-sive.” ■

“And to me, the growth of the school and thegrowth of the city go

hand in hand.”— Mike Halford



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connected and tied together so thatthey relate and enhance eachother,” said Emison.

“And you know what ties themtogether — planning,” he addedwith emphasis. “The idea to say wehave a vision of what Starkville canbe, and we’re going to have a col-laboration between the public sec-tor and private sector to get there.”

Still out thereBuilding a better Starkville will

surely take vision, communityinvestment and mostly — courage— say its residents. And it’s a goalEmison summed up simply, as herecalled the eulogy Sen. TedKennedy delivered at his brotherBobby’s funeral nearly 40 years agofrom St. Patrick’s Cathedral in NewYork City, when the youngerKennedy quoted his brother.

“He said, ‘Some men see thingsas they are, and say why. He sawthings as they never were, and said,why not.’” ■

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it only takes me about a minute to getthere.”

Mary Neff and Marilyn — bothteachers in New Hope — said theconvenience of living downtown out-weighs the 20-minute commute towork. Mary Neff teaches art at NewHope Middle School, and Marilyn isa speech pathologist at New HopeElementary School.

“Sure, it was nice to live where Iworked,” said Marilyn, “but I wouldmuch rather make the drive and beable to live downtown like I do now.”

Her husband Mark, who is the gen-eral manager of the CaledoniaNatural Gas District, said his com-mute has gotten much shorter sincemoving downtown.

“It sure is nicer driving from hereto Caledonia than it was when I hadto drive from New Hope toCaledonia,” he said.

However, proximity to family andfriends can sometimes be moreimportant than proximity to work.

“Two of our three grown childrenlive within two or three blocks fromus and the other lives in East

Columbus,” Mark said. “They loveour apartment and, on a good day,we can even walk to their houses.”

“It’s crazy; if someone would havetold me 10 or 20 years ago that Iwould be living downtown — Iwould have laughed,” he added. “Sofar, we have been really happy aboutour choice to move down here.” ■

Above: The Seaberghs’ living room is a cozy nook overlooking FifthStreet South.


“We had an excellent exhibit withour Tennessee Williams exhibit,” saidPetersen. “The library was able to hostperformances of his plays during theTribute (week in September).”

In addition to hosting variousexhibits, Petersen said the libraryoffers an excellent opportunity forpeople to learn about the history ofthis area. More than 1,000 cubic feetof space in the library has been dedi-cated to archives of local historicalrecords dating back to 1820.

Petersen said one of the largestchanges for libraries over the yearshas been the use of the Internet andcomputers, which have “revolution-

ized” the way a library operates. “Atone time, we had card catalogues,and we signed cards out of the backof a book,” said Petersen. “Computershave made the process much easier.”

In addition to using computers tomake record keeping easier, Petersensaid computers also have facilitatedresearch and are a lifeline for themany residents who don’t have com-puters at home.

“People without (computer) accesscome to the library,” he said, notingthat for many Columbus residents thelibrary computers offer their only linkto the Internet.

With the number of services pro-

vided at the library, it may be easy toforget perhaps the most basic service,providing books for patrons to read.

According to Petersen, the librarycurrently has more than 100,000items in its collection. This includesbooks, books on tape, videos andmagazines. Non-fiction books makeup a large portion of those seen onthe shelves of the library; however,there are other books that few peopleever see in the library. “Popular booksof the day make up a significant partof our circulation,” said Petersen.“They go on hold, and people con-stantly check them out.”

Petersen said someone observing

“People can come here and explore ideas, find out information and make a connection with others.”

— Ben Petersen

If not evident to random passers-bys on Highway 45 South, Maconresidents have seen some majorchanges on the main drag into townover the last year.

The strip has evolved since thecity annexed the bypass area a fewyears ago, and seven businesseswere added to the landscape in 2007alone.

The Noxubee Civic Center alsoopened there in December, and adeal for construction on the upcom-ing Noxubee Sportsplex was final-ized about the same time.

So how did a city with only about3,000 citizens go from barren tobustling in such a short time?

The key was cooperation.

Little by littleWhat looks like overnight success

to the naked eye was actually the

result of years of work. However, thespontaneous appearance of so manybusinesses at once was coincidence.

“For a long time we were trying topull in something besides our onerestaurant out there, and after a cou-ple of more businesses signed on, itwas like the flood gates opened.Now it’s one business after another,”said Macon Mayor Bob Boykin.

The solitary Kentucky FriedChicken ruled the roadside until itgot company last year from aSubway, Fresh Market Cafe, Exxon,Fred’s Dollar Store, Secrets Garden,

Mexican Kitchen and ParadeRestaurant — and city officials werealready in talks the last quarter of2007 with three other businesseswanting to sign on in 2008.

Those new businesses have meantmore jobs and revenue for the area.


N o x u b e eCENTRAL

Community pulls together to build civiccenter, draw in new retail businesses

JOE RAY ROBERSON

text by MELANIE CROWNOVER

Above: Mayor Bob Boykin stands inMacon’s new retail strip. Opposite:Brian Wilson, Noxubee CountyDevelopment Alliance executive direc-tor, stands in front of the new NoxubeeCounty Civic Center.


As with most things in life, libraries have changed in the 21st century. Goneare the days when a library was simply a place to look up information andcheck out a book.

The Columbus-Lowndes Public Library has the potential to serve the residentsof Columbus in a variety of ways, said Ben Petersen, local library director.

“We serve as a meeting place for the community. People can come here andexplore ideas, find out information and make a connection with others,”Petersen said.

The services provided by the Columbus library, in most areas, rival thoseoffered anywhere in the state, Petersen believes. He is especially proud of thequality of the library’s programs and the audience they draw. “We had over10,000 people attend the library’s programs last year,” he said. According toPetersen, children’s programming constitutes a large part of the library’s offer-ings, but he said the library plans events for adults as well.

BOOK SMARTLocal library works to meet the needs of today’s patrons

text by JUSTIN SUTTON photographs by KELLY TIPPETT

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A school bus sits on top of the vo-techbuilding at Caledonia High School theafternoon of Jan. 10 after an F3 tornadoripped through the campus, causingmajor damage but only minor injuries.The wheels and some of the bus’s frame-work were separated from the chassisand landed in another part of the building.

and politicking.The facility features a 3,145-

square-foot main room, which canbe divided into two sections forsimultaneous events; a 698-square-foot board room to accommodatemeetings or luncheons; and a cater-er’s kitchen. Reservations can bemade for the whole space or for sec-tions.

Although the civic center had lessspace, fewer available rooms and notas deluxe accommodations as its twomain competitors in neighboringtowns, the price difference has madea big impact.

“I had to turn down a few peoplefor this past weekend because wewere full, even for Sunday, and wehaven’t even had our official grandopening yet,” said site managerColeen Stottlemire in February.

“We started renting it out inNovember (2007) to give it a testdrive and now we have bookings foras far out as 2011. But we had peo-ple wanting to rent the space beforethe water and sewage were finishedlast September.”

Half of the larger room rented for$150 to county residents; non-resi-dents were $250. The entire spacewent for $350 for residents and $600to non-residents. The boardroom was$50 for residents, $100 to non-resi-

dents or $15 to resident tax-exemptnon-profit organizations. The extranon-refundable clean-up deposit forthe kitchen was $50.

Catching eyesAbout two years ago, Noxubee

High School started working to getnew baseball and softball fields.

“We were looking at buildingdesigns from architecture firms andstarted taking bids on the project, butthey were all so high that our budgetcouldn’t take it,” said Superintendentof Education Dr. Kevin Jones. “We’retalking $300,000 for just the dirtwork, and we’ve only set aside$600,000 for the whole thing.”

Then serious talks began aboutentering an interlocal agreementbetween the school district, city andcounty to build the NoxubeeSportsplex — a set of baseball, soft-ball and soccer fields next to thecivic center to serve as home forschool teams and a site for commu-nity sports and tournaments.

The $1.2-million constructionprice tag was split between the threeentities with a $50,000 city,$100,000 county and $300,000school district contribution eachyear. That money was already fac-tored into each budget beforehand toavoid related tax hikes.

“It’s something none of us couldhave pulled off on our own, so wepulled together to find a way aroundit. We tried to get grants, but thoseare just hard to come by. So we eachthrew in to make it happen for all ofthe people we serve,” said Boykin.

Officials expected the construc-tion to take two years, with the firsttwo Phase 1 fields completed andready for play by 2009.

The city also agreed to maintainthe fields for the first five years; thecounty agreed to contribute$100,000 worth of in-kind dirt workfor the project.

Supervisors awarded the contractto Roland Koehn Construction ofEpes, Ala., in January; and workshould begin by March. ■


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STATUS REPORT:

Columbus/Lowndes CountyMany of the changes discussed by the former Lowndes County Board of Supervisors have

yet to be taken up by the new board, which took office the first week in January.And some projects in the city of Columbus are progressing, albeit slowly.

text by KRISTIN MAMRACK photographs by KELLY TIPPETT

Old river bridge renovation a step closer

Efforts to renovate the old bridgecrossing the Tennessee-TombigbeeRiver in downtown Columbus got abig boost last year with the awardingof a $250,000 Department ofTransportation grant for the project.

The money will be used for astudy of the bridge’s structural integri-ty.

But Federal Programs and BuildingInspection Director George Irby said

the bridge likely wouldn’t be renovat-ed this year.

“We’ll have to take bids, find anengineer and (do various studies),” hesaid, noting plans for the bridge havenot been set, although some have sug-gested using it as a pedestrian walkway,which would help “develop the otherside of the (Tennessee-TombigbeeRiver).”

The city likely will begin consideringmore suggestions for the bridge once itis renovated, Irby added.

The old Tombigbee Riverbridge near the ColumbusRiverwalk is targeted forrenovation as a pedestrianwalkway, with a $250,000grant awarded to get theproject started.


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A certified Excel by 5 cityIn May 2007, the city became the

second certified Excel by 5 city afternearly three years of trying to meet fourpages worth of criteria.

Funded by Chevron Texaco and theMeridian-based Phil Hardin Foundation,this pilot program focuses on pre-kindergarten children in West Point,Cleveland, Pascagoula and Petal andindicates a community has standards forparent training, child care, health andcommunity participation.

“I would think that as people moveinto the Golden Triangle area, one ofthe things they’re going to consider isour certification as a retirement commu-nity. Certification as an Excel by 5 com-munity means it’s a great place to raisechildren — that should get someone’sattention,” West Point Mayor Scott Rosssaid.

EMCC campus in West PointAfter Sara Lee’s closing, it was back

to school for many of the company’sformer employees.

Utilizing state-funded programs,workers could attend training classes atEast Mississippi Community College’sMayhew campus, but amid rising gas

MAT

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A new East Mississippi CommunityCollege branch will serve West Point and Clay County.

Annjo Lemons, Excel by 5 director, presentsWest Point Mayor Scott Ross a certificatedesignating the town as an Excel by 5 com-munity during an “Excelebration” at SallyKate Winters Memorial Park Aug. 8, 2007.

STATUS REPORT:

West Point/Clay Countytext by JUNE C. STRAIGHT photographs by KELLY TIPPETT

Sometimes setbacks can turn intoopportunities. In March 2007, West Pointlost one of the city’s largest, oldest andmost reliable employers when Sara Lee,formerly Bryan Foods, left West Pointafter nearly a century. With more than1,000 jobs lost and what seemed likefew prospects for economic develop-ment, the future of West Point and ClayCounty residents seemed dismal.

“There was a mindset that you wouldgo as far as you wanted to get in schooland that you would eventually go andget a job at Bryan. There would alwaysbe a job for you at Bryan,” said TimClimer, president of the West Point/ClayCounty Growth Alliance. “So many peo-ple in West Point and Clay County grewup here, so all of us were very tied to the

plant emotionally,” Climer said. “Bryan provided 1,650 jobs in 2006.

That all went away in 2007,” he noted.But before the year’s end the commu-

nity attracted several new employers, cre-ating more than 1,000 jobs and hadadopted several new community enhanc-ing programs. And the key to keeping themomentum going?

“We believe that West Point and ClayCounty has got to do everything well,”Climer said. “You’ve got to recruit, you’vegot to expand, you’ve got to retain andyou’ve got to enhance your quality oflife.” In the community’s mission toenhance the area, Clay County hasworked to make strides in education,economic development and communitycohesiveness to create opportunities.

Safe Routes to School grant program

In August, the city announcedWest Point students would be amongseveral school districts in the state tobenefit from the Safe Routes toSchool grant program awarded by theMississippi Department ofTransportation.

The city was awarded a grant for$563,064 to initiate the programwhich was designed to ensure stu-dents have safe walking and bikingroutes to use on their way to school,said Safe Routes to SchoolCoordinator Cookie Leffler.

“We have a lot of young, youngchildren walking to school so it’simportant to us to see that they havea safe place to walk,” West PointSchool District Superintendent SteveMontgomery said.

Community must look at new avenues for growth with Sara Lee gone

Sidewalks like this one near a West Pointschool are the target of a Safe Routes to

School grant program.


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eral public policy changes the citi-zens and local leadership need toaddress.

“Religious fundamentalist aside,we need Sunday beer sales,” saidLandrum. “It gives us a backwoods,small town image.”

Quality doesn’t come cheap

Creating options and diversitynever comes cheap. Infrastructureprojects like sidewalks, bikinglanes, better parks, undergroundpower cables and improved streetstake money, say citizens and elect-ed officials. And that’s a hill whichsomehow must be climbed.

“While Starkville takes somepride in having low property taxes,it cannot at the same time takepride in its structures and the con-dition of the city’s infrastructure,”said resident Milo Burnham.

“As far as outside perceptions, Ihear comments about how unat-tractive our city is. Let’s be honestwith ourselves, Highway 12 andHighway 182 are really ugly andthose are the routes most peopletake coming into town,” saidLandrum, who complimented theimprovements made to downtownand MSU.

Improving throughplanning

Expanding and joiningStarkville’s parts to make one uni-fied “quality place,” is where plan-ning comes in, and it’s where plan-ners like Emison begin to look todynamic leaders in both the publicand private orbits.

“Starkville in Motion is doingwhat I believe is the right thingwith the idea of advocating bikepaths. But what we need inStarkville is not a bike path. Whatwe need is a bike plan,” Emisonemphasized. “We need a planabout where you’re going to havetrails. We need a network thatworks together.”

“But options like a variety ofrecreation or transportation or evenentertainment must be somehow

the Civil Rights Era when variousoptions for public schools sprang up inresponse to integration.

“The history of magnet schools istied to the 1960s protest over schooldesegregation and the educationalreform model of public school choiceas a way to address educationalinequity,” according to the MagnetSchools of America Web site.

Magnet Schools of America wasfounded in Texas but now has its officein Washington, D.C., representingsome 2,000 magnet schools nation-wide.

CMSD is set to join those numbers.

New middle schoolAnd by 2010, CMSD will have a

middle school designed to continue itselementary school offerings.

A $22-million bond issue to build anew middle school garnered a 79 per-cent approval rate in a Jan. 29 referen-dum. The new school — planned towelcome students in August 2010 —will be constructed in such a way as tofoster smaller learning communitiesand drive the magnet school concept.

“I think it gives us an opportunity to— when we design the building — tobenefit the magnet school concept,”Phillips said.

The high school has also begun itstransition to growing with the magnetschool concept.

“In the high school, because of the($1.3-million) Smaller LearningCommunities Grant, we’re in theprocess of starting IB,” noted Phillips.

InternationalBaccalaureate programs

The International Baccalaureateoffers three programs — primary years,middle years and diploma — to devel-op the intellectual, personal, emotionaland social skills for a rapidly globaliz-ing world.

There are more than 554,000 IB stu-dents at 2,094 schools in 125 coun-tries. The IB diploma — the programthe high school will offer — is recog-nized throughout the world.

IB requires a year of planning andan additional two-year waiting periodbefore a school officially can offer anIB diploma. Traditionally, IB diplomarecipients can begin at most accreditedcolleges as a sophomore.

The beginning of magnet schools forthe district will also see the end ofMitchell and Union elementaryschools’ use as classroom space forCMSD students. The two historicschools — the system’s most financial-

ly inefficient, in terms of dollars perstudent — are set to be closed at theend of the school year.

But the spaces won’t go to waste.“At the end of the day, if we’re not

using those school sites, we want tomake sure that those buildings arebeing used to give back to the commu-nity,” said Phillips.

Non-profits eye old buildings

A number of non-profit organiza-tions and tutoring programs are look-ing at occupying the soon-to-be-vacat-ed buildings, Phillips has said.

Whoever calls Union and Mitchellhome in the fall of 2008, he said, “wewant them to be a positive impact onthe community.”

CMSD’s redesign — complete withmagnet schools and a new middleschool, housing grades six, seven andeight — will have its own positiveimpact on the area, according to com-munity members.

Prude has called the move the“most electric thing” to happen foreducation in his lifetime.

Longtime Columbus resident andRealtor Doris Hardy’s sentiments aresimilar.

“It is the most progressive, innova-tive move that has happened in the 26years that I have lived in Columbus,”she said. ■


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STATUS REPORT: WEST POINT/CLAY

New jobs coming to the cityThough city and county officials

were set on improving the communi-ty’s quality of life through advances incommunity relations and education, aprimary concern has been recruitingindustry to the area.

In January 2007, InternationalMilitary and Government, a manufac-turing plant contracted by the govern-

prices, many from West Point struggledto make it to the classes.

To solve the problem, the West Pointand Clay County governments collabo-rated with EMCC to open the WestPoint and Clay County EMCC satellitecampus.

The government entities providedfunding and a workforce to renovatethe old Tennessee Valley Authoritybuilding while EMCC agreed to pro-vide funds for computers, classroomfurnishings and welding equipment, aswell as instructors and instructionmaterials.

EMCC President Rick Young estimat-ed about 1,000 students alreadyenrolled at EMCC could benefit fromthe West Point/Clay County center.

“Our mission is very simple, andthat’s to bring opportunities to the peo-ple so that the people can have theresources, the tools that they need totake the next step,” he said.

“The very jobs and skills they’regoing to teach here, there are jobsavailable for right now,” Ross said.“There’s no question it’s going toincrease our employment level and bea source of pride for the community.”

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Community-buildingactivities

To bridge gaps within thediverse community that is WestPoint, a number of citizens andorganized groups have beenspearheading programs aimedat opening a dialog betweenmembers of the community.

In July, West Point nativeNadia Dale invited the GoldenTriangle community to cometogether for “A FamilyGathering,” a two-day eventfeaturing presentations, groupsessions, education and discus-sions focused on healing thecommunity through buildingthe family.

While most of the workshopfocused on exploring personaland community issues amongpeers within discussion groups,it was the panel discussion, “AConversation AmongGenerations,” that allowed thegenerations to hear from each

other and discuss the issuestogether.

“It’s very important for theyoung people to speak to theold people and the old peopleto speak to the young people,”Dale said.

In October, the city of WestPoint partnered with theWilliam Winter Institute forRacial Reconciliation at theUniversity of Mississippi tohold a one-hour discussionroundtable to tackle the issueof race relations in West Point.

“The Welcome Table: AYear of Dialogue on Race,”led by Dr. Susan Glisson, wasdesigned to create a safe envi-ronment for individuals to airissues related to racial tension.

“We’re hoping just to initi-ate some dialogue to see ifthere’s interest in having along-term process to encour-age race relations ..., ”Glisson said. ■

STATUS REPORT: WEST POINT/CLAYment to build mine-resistant, ambush-protectedvehicles, employed 30 people. Today the plant hasabout 900 people on its payroll, having securedmore than $1 billion in government contracts.

In addition to IMG, the city has also seen thearrival of a Hudson’s Dirt Cheap, a Wal-Mart SuperCenter and a CVS pharmacy in recent months,bringing even more jobs.

And West Point officials also are working to helpexisting industries. A new way to do that is throughthe e-Synchronist program, a computer programthat provides a systematic means of acquiring infor-mation from existing industry.

According to Climer of the Growth Alliance, theprogram helps the area make necessary adjustmentsto retain existing industry.

“It helps us be responsive to their needs,” Climersaid. “Our first goal is to keep and expand existingindustries. Beyond that we recruit.”

Keeping with its mission to attract and retainbusiness, the city government is also in the processof improving the city’s high-speed broadbandInternet services.

In August, the city was awarded $200,000 by theAppalachian Regional Commission for this project.

“(This grant) prepares us for the jobs of the futureand it keeps us competitive,” Ross said.

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STATUS REPORT: COLUMBUS/LOWNDES COUNTY

Courthouse expansion at standstill for now How and where to expand county administrative facilities currently housed in the

overcrowded Lowndes County Courthouse were hot topics during the 2007 electionof the Lowndes County Board of Supervisors.

But the new board has yet to officially discuss the matter.The former board decided not to make an offer to purchase Franklin Academy for

county facilities, as suggested by Board President and District 1 Supervisor HarrySanders.

But all current and former supervisors agreedsomething must be done.

“We’re looking at some other pieces of proper-ty,” said Sanders, declining to name specific prop-erties under consideration.

“We’re going to get with the judges and see ifthere’s some way they can schedule the courtdates, so we don’t have all three judges in LowndesCounty at the same time,” he added. “That way wecan delay building or moving to a new (facility).”

The new supervisors likely will begin discussingthe matter sometime in the spring, Sanders said.

“I don’t think we’re going to discuss that issueuntil the new county administrator (RalphBillingsley) gets his feet on the ground and (thenew supervisors) get familiar with what they needto do.”

“We’re working on what we need to do,” heconcluded.

City’s annexation planscenter on retail area

Previously, the Columbus CityCouncil agreed to annex propertyin a phased approach, studyingsix areas for annexation, althoughfinal boundaries had not beendetermined.

Now, saidthe city’s chiefoperations offi-cer, DavidArmstrong, thecity only isfocused onannexing onearea: propertynear the inter-section ofHighway 82 and Highway 45South, where a retail develop-ment, named University Park, isexpected to bring big-box retail-ers, smaller shops, restaurants andhotels.

Annexation would allow salestax from the stores to go into city

Armstrong


Cari Varner, 28, a researcher inMississippi State University’s CarlSmall Town Center, would like to seemore businesses, other than the big-box retailers like Wal-Mart, open onSundays in Starkville. It would giveher time to do some shopping onwhat is usually a day with little goingon.

“And also, more businesses openafter 5 (p.m.),” she added.

Devon Brenner, a mom, collegeprofessor and president of Starkvillein Motion, would like to seeStarkville put forward a curbside

recycling program as well as growthe city’s bike and pedestrian routes.

Julie Landrum, also a mother, aswell as a local real estate agent,would like better sidewalks andcleaner and neater entrances toStarkville, rather than the randomclutter lining Highways 182 and 12.

Common chordThe chord each of these residents

seems to be plucking is one of manytones and tempos, but the harmonyis the same. It’s what writer RichardFlorida, who wrote “The Rise of the

into realityTurning potential

text by SKIP DESCANT photographs by KELLY TIPPETT

Starkville works to create a better community

John and Carmen Rodgerseat lunch in Starkville’s

Cotton District. Opposite:Shelby Cauthen, of

Starkville, walks Panzy, her8-month-old puppy, along

University Drive inStarkville.

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LOWNDES COUNTYBOARD OF SUPERVISORS

District 1 - Harry SandersDistrict 2 - Frank FergusonDistrict 3 - John Holliman

District 4 - Jeff SmithDistrict 5 - Leroy Brooks

Administrator - Ralph Billingsley Chancery Clerk - Lisa Younger Neese


Comprehensive plan still months away

A volunteer committee ofcommunity and business lead-ers met several times in 2007

— with various communities inthe county and as a committee— to help develop a compre-hensive plan, detailing whereLowndes County should be inthe next 20 years.

The committee is using com-ments received during public

meetings held in New Hope,Anderson Grove, WestLowndes, Crawford and at theTrotter Convention Center toform goals, objectives and poli-cies in seven areas: intergov-ernmental cooperation, eco-nomic development, generalinfrastructure, transportationinfrastructure, education, long-range planning and land-useregulation.

The planning consultanthired by the county, ChrisWatson, of Oxford-basedBridge and Watson, led themeetings and will formulate theplan, to be approved by theLowndes County Board ofSupervisors.

Once approved, the planbecomes policy.

“We’re probably still severalmonths away from taking some-thing before the Board (ofSupervisors),” Watson recentlysaid.

coffers and would provide theimpetus for city utilities to cross theTennessee-Tombigbee Waterway,opening up new avenues for devel-opment west of the river.

“We’re in the process of waitingright now,” Armstrong said ofannexation efforts for the property.“We’ve delineated the propertywith legal descriptions. The ball isin the court of the developer. Themall is still in a negotiating stagewith possible tenants. We’ve doneeverything we can legally do rightnow and we’re ready to proceed.”

Once the city gets word fromthe developer, the City Council willbe asked to pass a resolution,which then will go to the ChanceryClerk, asking for an order onannexation.

“There will have to be a fire sta-tion there and we have to decide,ultimately, where that will be,”Armstrong added. “We’re waitingon the mall developer.”


Chris WatsonFile Photo

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for individualized education plans,beginning from elementary school andfollowing students all the way to theirdiploma.

“I think that every child that comesto our district, we ought to have aplan,” Prude said during a March2007 school board retreat. “And weought to follow that plan all the waythrough.”

“Once this thing is all said anddone, we’re going to have a schooldistrict that’s very different and veryunique and that nobody in the state ofMississippi has,” Glenn Lautzenhiser,CMSD’s board president told commu-nity members during a January 2007Lowndes County Republican Women’smeeting.

And though the magnet school con-cept is foreign to the area, it’s far fromthe new kid on the block.

“This is not new. People have beendoing this for 45 years, and they’vebeen successful at it,” Phillips said. “Ithas a proven track record in districtsall across America.”

Magnet schools have their roots in

Cook Elementary School kindergarten students Jayden Hayden and C’Asia Grangerfinger paint an Indian corn mosaic Nov. 15, 2007, in Lea Brackin’s class. Starting thisfall, Cook will be the Columbus Municipal School District’s Fine Arts Magnet School.Jayden is the son of Tyrone and Shannon Hayden, and C’Asia is the daughter ofShanteasius Granger.


Creative Class,” calls “quality ofplace,” a somewhat more accuratetwist on that other overused cliché,“quality of life.”

How our communities adjust totheir growing spurts brought on byNortheast Mississippi’s robust econ-omy and anticipated growth willhave enormous impact on whatkind of place Starkville andOktibbeha County becomes. Andplanners say it’s not just enough tomake a community available topeople or industry. What countstoday is making a community aplace people and businesses wantto be.

And Starkville, said MSU politi-cal science and public administra-tion professor Dr. Jerry Emison, hasthe potential to be one of the nicestsmall towns for a university in theSoutheast.

“But it’s a potential. It’s not areality. And I think the communityought to be frustrated, becausewe’re not doing what we need todo to realize that,” added Emison,who also serves on the StarkvillePlanning and Zoning Commission.

“You want to give people choic-es,” is the way Emison summed uphis thinking one afternoon from hisoffice at MSU, noting this couldlead toward a more diverse pool ofcitizens who choose to live in thiscommunity or any communitywhich follows this strategy.

Choices key to success“One of the things we can learn

out of this, these places, whetherit’s Austin or whether it’s Durham,N.C., or wherever, they succeedwhen they provide choices. Theysucceed when you’ve got a public-private partnership going,” saidEmison.

And indeed, it’s “choices” thatmany residents and visitors toStarkville point to when they beginto qualify why they’ve chosen tolive here.

“The campus is nothing like itwas. The town is nothing like itwas,” said Coordinator of CapacityDevelopment at the John C. Stennis

Dr. Jerry Emison, MSU political science and public administration professor

“One of the things we can learn out of this, these places,whether it’s Austin or whether it’s Durham, N.C.,

or wherever, they succeed when they provide choices.”— Dr. Jerry Emison


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ing them in the appraised area, bringing theacreage to 146.4, Short said, noting the apprais-al amount — $3,044 per acre or $476,000 total— is “a lot higher” than expected.

“We were anticipating, at the most, $1,000an acre,” he explained, noting CLRA then decid-ed to seek an “independent appraisal.”

Recently, the independent appraisal cameback, with the price at $1,086 an acre, or$170,000 total for the property.

Now, the CLRA is in contact with the localCorps of Engineers office, in an effort to lowerthe price from the Corps’ estimate.

“(We’re going to) see what kind of responsewe can get and maybe get direction on what wecan do now,” Short said. “If we can strike somekind of median between those two prices, wewill go to the Board of Supervisors and ask forthe money to see if we can get the support topurchase the property.”

Securing the property is Phase I for the proj-ect.

“Then, it will be crunch time putting themoney together to do a soccer complex andadult softball complex,” Short added. “I don’tknow if we’ll have to do a bond issue or thecounty will have the money to move forward.”

County Health Department in need of revampThe supervisors recog-

nize the county’s HealthDepartment facility rap-idly is deteriorating.

Sanders believes thefacility is worth renovat-ing, but the previousBoard of Supervisorsdecided to build a newfacility instead of reno-vating the existing build-ing, located off MilitaryRoad.

Last year, they rejected plans to purchase 1.5 acres of proper-ty, at the intersection of 15th Street South and College Street, tobuild a new Health Department, because of environmentalissues with the property.

And the new board has yet to discuss the matter, althoughthey likely soon will begin.

“I don’t know where we’re going to start with that,” saidSanders. “We’re going to have to address that issue, but we’vegot some transitional, getting-to-know-you, job-type stuff.”

The supervisors likely will ask District 3 Supervisor JohnHolliman, a building contractor, to examine the HealthDepartment facility to estimate what it would take to renovatethe building, he added.

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Sportsplex land negotiations ongoing

A multipurpose sportsplex project,which has been in the planningstages for years, is closer to becomingreality.

For about the last 15 months,Columbus-Lowndes RecreationAuthority officialshad been waitingfor an appraisalfrom the U.S. ArmyCorps of Engineerson property nearthe end of theRiverwalk and theHighway 82 bridgeover the Tennessee-TombigbeeWaterway.

Initially, the CLRA wanted 93.35acres of property and for the Corps ofEngineers to maintain “strips” ofproperty around the desired area,said CLRA Executive Director RogerShort.

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School improvements getting under way

The Starkville Board of Aldermen hassigned off on the master plans for addedclassrooms and other buildings on theSudduth Elementary School, Hendersonand Armstrong Middle School campus-es. Shelton Jones and Associates, theStarkville architecture firm commis-sioned to design the building improve-ments, which are set to cost up to $26.5million, said construction crews wereexpected to break ground in summer2008.

Justice complex may see revival

The new year has given theStarkville Board of Aldermen newmomentum to awaken once again,discussion of a new municipal court-house and police station complex.

In May 2007, the board had settledon a block of land downtown at thecorner of Jefferson and Lafayette streetsas the location of a new “municipalcampus.” That plan seems to be theone the aldermen are looking to revive.

amphitheater. The basketball courts canalso be covered to accommodate ban-quet seating for 350 people.

“So it’s a very flexible building that Ithink is going to work well in thefuture,” said Shafer.

Henderson Intermediate School is one of a number of Starkville City Schools’campuses seeing upgrades.

Property at the corner of Jefferson andLafayette streets is a possible location for Starkville’s new municipal courthouseand police station complex.

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Institute of Government PhilHardwick, speaking one morning atStarbucks in the new ColvardStudent Union at MSU, and point-ing out the degrees Starkville andthe university have improved in thelast several years.

“The irony is a lot of people arelooking for this kind of community,”remarked Hardwick. But the choiceof whether to live in a typical sub-urban home with the requisite lawnand driveway or live in a cluster ofstudent apartments is not enough,say residents. Or, for that matter,when transportation options forworkers to get from home to theoffice don’t get much further thanthe car, this is a problem.

Emison adds that communitieswith amenities like connecting side-walks and bike paths or even apublic transit network free up citi-zens from relying only on automo-biles to get around.

“You don’t have to solely rely onthe car to get around. You don’thave to rely solely on one kind ofrecreation opportunity. You have a

variety of amenities — restaurants,festivals, sports events. There are arange of housing opportunities,”said Emison, summing up what heand other observers and plannersmean by “options.”

And it’s these options whichbegin to make communities uniqueand sought after.

Uniquely Starkville“I’m not going to leave my Wal-

Mart in Jackson to come to yourWal-Mart,” said Hardwick. “But Iwill leave my weekend in Jacksonto come to your Johnny Cash festi-val.”

And though Starkville has madeheadway in giving itself a personali-ty, said Emison — particularlythrough assets like MSU, the CottonDistrict and downtown — thesearen’t enough.

“The university and the city needto figure out some kind of accept-able bus service,” said fellow publicpolicy professor Dr. Bethany Stich,who has done extensive research inareas like transportation. “Really,we are the embarrassment of theSEC in this regard — and mostmajor university cities,” sheremarked in a recent e-mail.

And when asked if Starkville isperceived as a “modern communi-ty,” most respondents — likeHardwick, who gravely shook hishead, signaling no — point to sev-

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Starkville/OktibbehaEven if most public projects in Oktibbeha County and Starkville seem

to be only inching along at a glacial pace, at least one is skipping ahead and due to be complete on schedule.

text by SKIP DESCANT photographs by KELLY TIPPETT

Sportsplex’s new gym barreling along

When it opens in January 2009, thenew multipurpose gymnasium at theStarkville sportsplex will be adding morethan 40,000 square feet of indoor bas-ketball courts, meeting rooms, walkingtracks and performance space to a parksand recreation department alreadyregarded as one of the best in theGolden Triangle, if not NortheastMississippi.

“So get your sneakers on. It’s justabout time,” architect Gary Shafer toldthe Starkville Rotary Club in January,when he updated the group on the pro-ject’s progress.

The design and plan for the buildingbegan more than a year ago through a

series of publicmeetings wherepark users identi-fied needs thebuilding ought toserve as well asthe image itshould present asan entrance to theSportsplex.

“We knew wewanted to createa new image forLynn Lane and afront to the Sportsplex,” said Shafer.“We really wanted this to look like acivic building when we finished.”

The $5.5-million gymnasium, paidfor through Starkville’s 2 percent food

and beverage tax collections, willinclude racquetball courts, an overheadwalking track, four basketball courts, apresentation stage, administrativeoffices and, if funds allow, an outdoor

Construction was under way in February on the new Starkville Sportsplex multipurpose gymnasium.


together for better schools

ATTRACTION

If you build it, they will come.

Columbus Municipal School District is building a new mid-

dle school, building new programs and building a school

district unlike any other in the state — a district marked by

its drama programs, noted for its science labs, touted for its

cultivation of higher-order thinking skills, a district where

fine arts, aerospace, medical sciences, international studies

and communication are gateways to the three R’s.

text by GARTHIA ELENA BURNETT photographs by JOE RAY ROBERSON


On a recent rainy afternoon, Iwas sitting in my van outside alocal coffee shop having a conver-sation with a newcomer toColumbus. “You know,” he said,apropos of nothing we were talk-ing about, “I just love this place.”

In light of having to write thisintroduction for our 2008 Progressedition, I wish I had the presenceof mind to ask him why.

But maybe if I sit quietly andlisten, my wife, Beth, will answerthat question. I am writing thiswhile on a flight to Atlanta. Acrossthe aisle, Beth is doing a sales jobfor Columbus with a young manserving at Columbus Air ForceBase. She is saying somethingabout the library. She’s alreadymentioned the Arts Council,downtown and the Riverwalk. I’msure the newly revamped Farmers’

Market will work its way into theconversation.

Several rows back, seven excit-ed teachers from Sale ElementarySchool are on the first leg of a tripto New York for the first of fourseminars on the InternationalBaccalaureate program that willbe implemented at their EastColumbus school this fall.

There is much to be excitedabout with the Columbus CitySchools. In January voters with anastounding 79-percent “yes” voteapproved a $22-million bondissue to build a new middleschool.

In Columbus, teachers and thecommunity have embracedSuperintendent Del Phillips’ visionfor a new school system — andthat is big news. In less than ayear, Phillips has transformed atti-tudes and managed to instill anew sense of purpose among fac-ulty, staff, students and parents.

Much has been said and writ-ten about the recent explosion ofeconomic growth in the GoldenTriangle. With the influx of new-comers, who have come with thatgrowth, we have been forced tolook at ourselves and our commu-nity through the eyes of others.And in some areas we have beenfound wanting.

In this, the 2008 edition ofProgress, we have taken for atheme, “Quality Matters.” Webelieve that we as a communityneed to give the same emphasis toquality-of-life issues that we have

given to industrial growth — forobvious reasons.

We do this by making goodschools, by developing and main-taining public spaces, by support-ing and encouraging the arts andthe many festivals that bring peo-ple together, by planning ourgrowth, by preserving our archi-tectural treasures.

That we have done a good jobwith historic preservation is nosecret. In February the NationalTrust for Historic Preservationselected Columbus as one of adozen “Distinctive Destinations”in the country for 2008.

Good communities don’t hap-pen by accident or on their own.We have preached this sermonmany times. Vibrant communities— places that cause people likemy friend to blurt out “I just lovethis place” — are the result ofinformed and engaged residents.We urge you to find your place inthe life of your community. Andyou have a place, whether it is tohelp at your children’s school,offer yourself for public office orvolunteer in one of the manyorganizations working to makethis a better place.

In this issue of Progress we arehighlighting and celebrating someof the movements and people whoare enhancing the livability of ourregion. We hope their stories willnot only inform, but kindle actionon your part.

Thank you for joining us. — Birney Imes

From the editor

Quality matters

Columbus School District2630 McArthur Drive • Columbus, Mississippi 39705

PH: 662.241.7400 www.columbuscityschools.org

It’s a Great Day to be a Falcon!It’s a Great Day to be a Falcon!

Fine Arts MagnetFine Arts Magnet Cook Elementary

Aerospace & Science Magnet Aerospace & Science Magnet Fairview Elementary

Medical Sciences & Wellness MagnetMedical Sciences & Wellness MagnetFranklin Elementary

International Studies Magnet International Studies Magnet Sale Elementary

Technology & Communication MagnetTechnology & Communication Magnet Stokes-Beard Elementary

“Whatever your child dreams,

Columbus School District has a Magnet Program for you!”


About the cover

Table of ContentsMagnetic Attraction 8

14

19

21

26

32

36

42

Status Reports —Columbus

Starkville

West Point

Turning potential into reality

Noxubee Central

Lofty Living

From the Ground Up

48Book Smart

In our cover photograph, Lee Middle School children express excitementover the prospect of a new Columbus middle school, which was approvedin a bond issue referendum earlier this year. Once it opens in fall 2010, thenew, state-of-the-art school will replace Lee and Hunt Intermediate schools,both of which date to the 1950s. Pictured, from left, are (top row) WymonMixon, son of Nicole Shirley; Jabari Edwards, son of Jabari and JewellSherrod-Edwards; Willie Riley, son of Willie and Maurice Riley; (secondrow) Ylan Smith, daughter of Montoya Smith; Avery Dennison, daughter ofMatt and Lisa Dennison; (third row) Shelby Hughes, daughter of Kennethand Rochelle Hughes; Katelyn Hicks, daughter of Dave and Jennifer Allen;Landon Williams, son of Hilbert and Shirley Williams; (fourth row) RavenPonds, daughter of Stephen and Rebecca Williams; Lacy Nelson, daughterof Paul and Betty Nelson: Tyler Blevins, son of Jeffrey and SharonWashington; (fifth row) Clay Harmon, son of Wesley and Nora Harmon; andSkyler Gordon, daughter of Wade and Geraldine Gordon. The cover wasdesigned by Jackie Taylor, and the photograph was taken by Kelly Tippett.


MAGNETICA community comes

“Programming is the key to the future.”

— Dr. Del PhillipsShowing support for the Columbus Municipal School District’s bond issuereferendum at a press conference Jan. 25 on the Lowndes CountyCourthouse steps are, from left, Columbus-Lowndes Development LinkCEO Joe Higgins, District 5 Supervisor Leroy Brooks, Link Education TaskForce Chair Roger Burlingame, Columbus Mayor Robert Smith and otherlocal business and civic leaders. The Jan. 29 referendum passed with morethan 79 percent of the voters casting ballots in favor of the bond issue.


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PROGRESS2008

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Progress 2008