Hometown Rankin - February & March 2016

volume 3 number 1 

Feb/Mar 2016 

storming the runway 

____________________ 

Faith Hill Country 

____________________ 

Best Desserts in 

Rankin County 

____________________ 

Miss Mississippi 

Hannah Roberts

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Hometown Rankin • 3

4 • February/March 2016

publisher & Editor 

Tahya A. Dobbs 

CFO 

Kevin W. Dobbs 

Consulting Editor 

Mary Ann Kirby 

Account Executives 

Alicia Adams 

Rachel Lombardo 

Contributing Writers 

Camille Anding 

Olivia Halverson 


Susan Marquez 

Kerri Walker 

staff Photographer 

Othel Anding 

Contributing 

Photographer 

Olivia Halverson 

Administrative 

Assistants 

Alisha Floyd 

Brenda McCall 

Layout Design 

Daniel Thomas - 3dt 

Missy Donaldson - MAD Designs 

• • • 

You’ll have to agree–Valentine’s Day is the over-arching theme of February. So, with that fact 

settled, we have assembled content in this issue that revolve around things we LOVE. 

First are celebrities! We all are caught up in the glitz and glamour of the famous. Faith Hill and 

Miss Mississippi Hannah Roberts are our own stars and you’ll LOVE reading about them. 

We also have a surprise celebrity for you–the mayor of Puckett. His talent is cue stick artistry– 

designing and creating pool cues that are sold worldwide. In fact, he’s one of 5 artisans in the world 

that makes up this elite group of professionals. 

Then there are our own hometown couples who share the beginning of their LOVE stories of 

how they first met. You’ll also LOVE our featured desserts by local restaurants that make every 

month sweeter. 

This is a perfect opportunity to say that we LOVE our readers! You 

guys give us such incredible feedback and we’re honored that you spend 

your time with us. And last but certainly not least, we LOVE our 

advertisers. Remember to thank them and show them some love by 

sharing some hometown dollars with their businesses. Every one of us 

play a vital role in their continued success. 

Regardless of February’s frosty days and the brisk winds 

of March, LOVE will always warm our hearts. We hope 

you LOVE this new issue! 

www.facebook.com 

/hometownrankinmagazine 

For subscription information 

visit www.htmags.com 

Contact us at info@HTMags.com 

601.706.4059 

26 Eastgate Drive, Suite F 

Brandon MS 39042 

• • • 

All rights reserved. No portion of Hometown Rankin 

may be reproduced without written permission from 

the publisher. The management of Hometown Rankin 

is not responsible for opinions expressed by its 

writers or editors. Hometown Rankin maintains the 

unrestricted right to edit or refuse all submitted 

material. All advertisements are subject to approval by 

the publisher. The production of Hometown Rankin 

is funded by advertising. 

On the cover: Faith Hill 

In this issue Favorite Things about Rankin County 8 

A Mississippi Girl 12 

How We Met 16 

A Leap of Faith 22 

Loving Lazarus 30 

Best Desserts in Rankin County 40 

I Love Us 46 

A Cord of Three Strands 56 

Storming the Runway 62 

Espiritu Cues 66 

Remaining Faithful 76 



Rankin County 

is one of the fastest growing counties in 

Mississippi. So it should come as no surprise 

that when we asked some of the locals to tell 

us what their favorite things were about 

living in Rankin County, the answers 

were varied and heartfelt. 

And we couldn’t have 

said it better ourselves... 


Voncille Anderson 

The best thing about living in Rankin 

County is its wonderful, small town 

environment, which helps in raising 

a family. Rankin County has an 

outstanding school district. As a 

nineteen-year Rankin County teacher 

and parent of two RCSD students, 

I know first-hand that our district 

employs the best teachers and 

administrators in the state. Rankin 

County also has amazing sports 

leagues and extracurricular programs 

that engage our children physically 

and mentally. We have incredible 

coaches who volunteer and dedicate 

their time to our children. I find comfort 

in knowing that when my children go 

outside to play, not only are they safe, 

but I also have neighbors who are 

concerned about their well-being. 

I am proud to say that Rankin County 

is my home. 

Clay Parker 

My favorite thing about living in Rankin 

County is that each city is still able to 

give you that small-town feeling. 

I love working for and being a part 

of a community that gives so much 

support to our community’s first 

responders police, fire and EMS. 

Veronica Moore 

What I enjoy and love about living in 

Rankin County is that it’s reminiscent 

of my childhood home. I love the 

“country feel” of being removed from 

the busy interstate and the leisure it 

provides. It’s important to me for my 

children to have a similar culture 

passed to me from my grandparents. 

Aggie Cunningham 

What I enjoy the most about living in 

Rankin County is the hometown feel 

of a small town community. The 

people are friendly, always willing to 

help when needed, and very giving. 

Scott Hill 

We have made such great friendships 

since moving to Rankin County in 2008. 

We can’t imagine calling anywhere 

else home. 

Jamie Perry 

What I love most about living in Rankin 

County is the quiet, beautiful country 

life with the convenience of being close 

enough to the town of Pelahatchie and 

Brandon for shopping! Pelahatchie is 

a small town filled with so many great 

businesses and people. 

Allie Enis 

Hard to pick just one favorite thing 

about living in Rankin County, but I 

would have to say my church family, 

my close knit neighborhood friends 

and the wonderful teachers my 

children have been blessed with in 

Brandon are at the top of my list. 

Tina Rials 

Just a few reasons I have loved living 

in Rankin County my whole life are the 

friendly folks, hometown pride and 

convenience of the big city, but with 

a small town feel. 


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Overcoming Anger 

Do you ever get angry? 

Feel your anger gets out of control? 

Can anger even be controlled? 

What if you were told you didn’t even 

have to get angry? 

In the following interview, anger is the topic of 

discussion between Jim Thorn of 103.9 WYAB 

Radio and Dr. Perry Sanderford, a licensed 

professional counselor at Crossroads 

Counseling Center. 

Jim Perry, everyone has found himself or herself getting 

angry. From your perspective, how is anger defined? 

Perry Anger is an emotion of the body that is designed 

to reach a goal. Anger has an objective, it wants to 

accomplish something. 

Jim Is anger natural? 

Perry I would say, yes. It is instinctive. We begin in 

early infancy to use our body to get what we want. 

Jim Are there any times when it’s healthy to be angry? 

Perry We want to think that anger is good. For example, 

the recent act of terror in Paris. Anger was our initial 

reaction–one that we may think should accompany 

the response to such a horrible act. But the truth is that 

anger, itself, is not necessarily the most effective tool for 

responding. We can and should respond decisively to 

such horrific acts of violence, but most of the time the 

anger, in itself, doesn’t really accomplish all that much. 

What you can do with anger, though, can be just as 

effective, or perhaps even more so, in solving 

problems–even very large ones. 

Jim How can we suppress the anger emotion that 

bubbles up so quickly? For example, when we are on the 

road someone unexpectedly pulls out in front of us. 

Perry I don’t believe it’s possible to suppress anger 

surging in the moment–simply because anger is a 

trained and instinctive reaction of our body. To not 

instinctively react in anger, we have to have something 

in place internally before the incident occurs. Again, I 

want to make it clear I am not saying that we do not act. 

I am simply saying using anger is not necessarily the 

most effective problem solver. 

Jim Are you saying we can eliminate anger altogether 

from our lives? 

Perry Pretty much. But to do so, one has to have 

confidence they have the ability to think and the ability 

to respond purposefully to solve the problem. Without 

that kind of confidence, we instinctively resort to anger. 

For example, a spouse who feels disrespected or 

controlled by an angry spouse often responds, in return, 

with anger. The problem here is that we now have two 

angry people–which, more often than not, creates an 

even greater explosive situation. On the flip-side, when a 

spouse is confident they can think and act appropriately 

to the reality of the situation, they then are in a position 

to respond with greater clarity and decisiveness. 

Jim From a Christian perspective you mentioned 

replacing anger with something else. Talk about anger 

from a Christian perspective. 

Perry Therein lies the very essence of Christianity. 

Christians have a great confidence in the sufficiency of 

God to provide for our every need. Christianity is not just 

a label, it is “trusting in God”. If Jesus can be crucified, 

placed in a grave, and then come back to life, then 

Jesus can certainly be trusted to protect us in any given 

situation. Confidence in Christ is what keeps us from 

being angry. And by the way, we don’t have to win every 

disagreement. In fact, Jesus said we can lose and still 

win. Now that’s powerful. 

Jim Often anger comes up because we defend our 

perspective and what we think is right. But are you 

saying that sometimes it’s best to kind of back away 

even if we stand firmly on our position? 

Perry I’m saying we can be powerful in the story. We 

don’t have to be a doormat. But we can be more powerful 

if we remain calm. We can think, and then if necessary, 

express ourselves with confident actions. We are not 

asking people to be stupid. You can distance yourself 

from someone that wants to harm you. Don’t make 

yourself available to somebody who attacks you. But at 

the same time, you don’t necessarily have to respond 

immediately with a fight. For Christians, there is a 

greater force within us and we can trust Him. 

Jim I would imagine that someone who gets angry 

fairly regularly would take a little more time to re-program 

in order to get back to the position that you are talking 

about. 

Perry Getting angry regularly is a way of saying we 

have programmed our body to use anger to problem-solve. 

But we can ‘un-train’ ourselves, too. It requires confidence 

and practice. It’s like jumping out of an airplane. You 

believe the parachute is going to hold you up–but you 

really don’t know until the ripcord is actually pulled. 

You hope life will go better if you don’t respond in 

anger, but you are not 100% sure until you try it. The 

more you practice trusting God and not attempt to solve 

problems with anger, the more confidence you build in 

this process. 

It’s a matter of learning how to do life in a way that works 

better. But, you may insist you can do life better with 

anger, and if so, then keep doing it. But my observance 

in everyday life is that people not only accomplish very 

little with anger, but they actually make the situation 

worse. 

Jim What would you recommend for someone that 

struggles with anger? 

Perry: Chronic anger means something in life is not 

working. If something is not working, you don’t want to 

keep doing it. A lot of people do, however. They go to 

their grave using that same anger that has accomplished 

very little. The definition of insanity is doing the same 

thing over and over again expecting different results. If 

anger is not working for you, consider doing something 

different. 

However, you may not know what to do. If I know where 

I want to go but am not sure how to get there, I use a 

map plotting the pathway to the desired destination. 

If you want to overcome anger but don’t know how, 

then find someone who knows, and ask. A good Christian 

counselor is actually a life-coach who can teach you 

how not to be angry. Remember, lots of people say they 

know the pathway to living well, but they may only be 

guessing. Guessing, when in error, has its own negative 

consequences. 

That’s why I think Christian counseling is the finest 

source of information available to the world. Jesus was 

the smartest human that ever lived. He knows how to 

live well. This information has been proven reliable for 

thousands of years or it would have died out by now. 

A confident life in the pathway provided by Jesus Christ 

is truly living well–even in overcoming anger. 

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 

For more information, please contact Dr. Perry Sanderford at Crossroads Christian Marriage & Family Counseling. 601-939-6634. 



A Mississippi Girl 

Hannah Camille Roberts was crowned Miss Mississippi in 2015 

and went on to compete for the title of Miss America 2016 where she was named as first runner-up. 

As a graduate of the University of Southern Mississippi, Hannah majored in biochemistry with a minor in biology. 

After getting to know her here, we were quick to realize that she’s as smart as she is beautiful. 

We are so proud of this Mississippi girl! 

At what age did you first begin dreaming 

of being Miss America? 

I’ve watched Miss America every year since I was 

a young girl and I have always looked up to those 

women. 

Were you a regular in pageant competitions 

growing up? If so, were you encouraged by 

your results? 

I truly did not compete in a lot of pageants as a 

child. Other than Miss Mississippi, I have only 

competed in Jr. Miss/Distinguished Young Woman. 

Describe a typical day during your time 

at the Miss America competition. 

The days at Miss America typically included a 

rehearsal time in the morning until mid-afternoon 

and then a night event such as dinner. 

Who did you consider to be your biggest 

competitor in the talent division? 

I definitely considered Miss Georgia, Betty 

Cantrell, now Miss America, to be my biggest 

competition. She has one of the best voices 

I have ever heard in any pageant. 

What kind of food did you eat at the 

competition and was it all provided 

by the pageant? 

Our meals were all catered or provided by the 

Miss America pageant and were selected by a 

dietitian. I have never been a huge fan of dieting 

or restricting food so I had everything from salad 

to ice cream during those two weeks! 

What was your most enjoyable part of the 

pageant? 

The most enjoyable part of any pageant is meeting 

other young women. I made so many friends at Miss 

America and stay in touch with them all the time. 

What is something you learned at the pageant 

that most people would never know? 

Many people assume that “pageant girls” are mean 

or snobby. But through this organization, I have 

learned that these women are real girls. They all 

have struggles and they aren’t perfect, but they are 

supportive and loving and want to make a 

difference in the world. 

What was the most difficult part of the 

pageant competition? 

The most difficult part was not being able to see 

my family. My family arrived in Atlantic City very 

early in the week, but I had very little time to 

communicate with them and did not get to see 

them until Tuesday night. We are a very tight-knit 

group, so this was a struggle for me. 

Give some pointers to other girls who aspire 

to being Miss America. 

Being competitive at Miss America is all about 

preparation. If this is your dream, start preparing as 

soon as you can. Whether it’s developing a talent, 

creating a fitness plan, or learning about politics 

and interview skills, starting early is a huge benefit. 

Describe your interview with the judges. 

My Miss America interview was the most difficult 

10 minutes of my life! It’s set up like a press conference 

and all types of questions are fired at random. 

What was the one food on your “can’t eat 

list” that you craved the most? 

Although it may have been a good idea to have a 

“can’t eat list,” I never made one. However, my 

favorite “bad” food is Taco Bell all the way! I am 

known for showing up to interview practice with 

a take-out bag in one hand and my interview 

notebook in the other. 

Was there ever a time in the week that you 

wished you were back home living your 

normal life? 

Absolutely not. Only one girl from Mississippi gets 

to go to Miss America each year, and this year it was 

me! There was not a single moment that I regretted 

being there and I soaked up every second of it. 

What is your favorite memory from the 

competition? 

Sunday night (crowning night) after the top 15 

were announced. I was announced 14th and one 

of my best friends, Miss Arkansas Loren McDaniel, 

was announced 15th. I think I screamed louder 

when her name was called than I did for my own. 

I was very close to all of the girls that made it into 

the Top 15 and we were all so excited for one 

another. That is a moment I’ll never forget. 

What are your goals for the future? 

I will begin medical school at UMMC in August 

and plan to specialize in pediatric reconstructive 

plastic surgery. I hope to live in Jackson or Oxford 

once I graduate. 


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Hometown Brandon • 15

How 

We Met 

Everyone has their 

“How we met” story. 

From meeting in the first grade, 

to sharing classes in college, 

to being set up by mutual friends, 

everyone’s story is unique. 

Here are just a few “How we met” 

stories from some of our readers. 

16 • February 2016

Julie & Donny Parker 

Brandon 

Melissa & Scott Crawford 

Pearl 

Donny and Julie sat beside each other in Mrs. Simpson’s 

first grade class at Iuka Elementary School. Their friendship 

developed through the tenth grade when Donny asked 

Julie out on a date to see the movie, “Three Men and a 

Little Lady” and dine at Taco Bell. Several more dates and 

a few high school dances later, the couple graduated from 

Iuka High School in 1992. 

The Christmas before the two of them went to 

Mississippi State, Donny proposed. Their engagement 

lasted all through college until Julie finished her student 

teaching. She said, “I finished student teaching on a 

Thursday, graduated from Mississippi State on Friday, 

and got married on Saturday.” Today, Donny and Julie 

live in Brandon. They have three children: Benton, Anna 

Scott, and Lila. This year, Donny and Julie will celebrate 

their twenty-first wedding anniversary. 

Scott and Melissa met in Hawaii in the summer of 

1986. Scott was serving as a minister of youth intern at 

First Southern Baptist Church of Pearl Harbor. That 

summer, Melissa helped Scott with ministry activities for 

the youth group. After that summer, they returned to their 

homes. They wrote to each other and spoke on the phone 

as often as they could. Melissa eventually asked Scott to fly 

out to California to meet her family. That week Scott said, 

“The Lord confirmed to both of us that he was calling us 

to each other.” 

Scott went back to New Orleans Baptist Theological 

Seminary and finished his master’s degree. Melissa continued 

with her college education at UCSB. She flew out to see 

Scott graduate from NOBTS in December of 1990. Scott 

proposed marriage to her that Christmas. To his delight, 

Melissa said yes. After a long engagement with multiple 

relocations for both Scott and Melissa, they ended up in 

Las Vegas doing ministry together. They were married on 

May 22, 1993 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Three children and 

eighteen years later, Scott and Melissa moved their family 

back to Scott’s hometown of Pearl. Scott has been the 

pastor at First Baptist Church of Pearl since 2012, and 

Melissa teaches at Park Place Christian Academy. 


Judy & Barry Kirkpatrick 

pearl 

Heather & Ben Bryan 

Flowood 

Barry was sent to Meridian Navel Air Station in 1961. 

Upon arriving, one of his roommates set up a double date 

for them. The roommate was going on the date with Judy 

and arranged for Barry to be with one of Judy’s friends. 

From the first minute they met, Barry knew he wanted to 

get to know Judy better. A couple of days later, Barry found 

out Judy was going to take her niece to the Meridian County 

Fair. He made sure he was there. Barry said, “We had a 

great time until we rode the Ferris wheel. After coming 

down I threw up–not a very good impression to make.” 

Barry did not have a car at that time so they didn’t go 

out much until Christmas when he went home and bought 

a 1957 Pontiac. When Barry returned after the holidays, he 

ran into snow south of Butler, Alabama. The weather got 

pretty bad, and a neighborly couple hosted Barry for the 

night. The next day, Barry drove in over 8 inches of snow 

on the roads. He went to Judy’s home, then called his duty 

officer and said he couldn’t make it back to the base. Barry 

spent another week at Judy’s parents’ home. They got 

married June 29, 1962. In June, Barry and Judy will 

celebrate their fifty-fourth wedding anniversary. 

Ben and Heather spent their whole lives less than a mile 

from each other. It wasn’t until they were ages 20 and 21 

that the two actually met. Their college roommates were old 

friends, and eventually Ben and Heather found themselves 

in the same circle of friends. They started dating in the 

spring of 2008. Heather said, “I remember calling my mom 

after our first date to tell her I had just met the man I was 

going to marry.” 

Today Ben and Heather jokingly talk about how from 

day one they were sure that marriage was in their future. 

Ben and Heather both finished their degrees at Ole Miss 

and moved home to join the real world. Ben proposed 

the day after Thanksgiving, his favorite holiday, in 2009. 

They were married July 10, 2010. Since then, Ben and 

Heather’s family has expanded and they have two 

wonderful children: Caroline born March 20, 2013 and 

Josh born December 8, 2015. 

The couple currently resides in Flowood. Ben works 

at Morgan White Group as an accounting associate, and 

Heather teaches at Norwest Rankin High School. The 

Bryans are excited to raise their family in the same 

community they both grew up in. 


Juniper & Delwin Wallace 

Flowood 

Whitney & Marcus Canoy 

puckett 

Juniper and Delwin met in August of 2002 while both 

teaching in the art department at Brandon High School. 

They ended up in the same group of friends where five of 

them would go out to dinner once a month. Juniper would 

often ask Delwin for help with big projects like painting 

sets for the theater program. Their students would always 

say to Juniper, “You and Mr. Wallace should date.” Sure 

enough, by February of 2003, Delwin and Juniper started 

dating. They were engaged in July of the same year but 

decided to keep their engagement a secret. 

When they came back to school after that summer, a 

coworker grabbed Delwin’s hand to see if he was wearing 

a wedding band. She suspected Delwin and Juniper had 

eloped over the summer. Delwin said, “What are you 

looking for?” He grabbed Juniper’s hand with the engagement 

ring on it and said “This?” 

Delwin and Juniper got married outside at the Mississippi 

Ag Museum in June of 2004. About fifty students attended 

the wedding as they were closely invested in Delwin and 

Juniper’s relationship. Today, the Wallaces live in Flowood. 

Delwin teaches art and Juniper teaches theater at Northwest 

Rankin High School. They will celebrate their twelfth 

wedding anniversary this year. 

Marcus and Whitney were both students at Mississippi 

College, but never actually met until Marcus’ friend stepped 

in. He told Marcus that his girlfriend worked with a girl at 

Ulmer’s Stride Rite named Whitney. They thought Marcus 

and Whitney should meet. Marcus said, “I was a bit nervous 

at the prospect of participating in a blind date for lots of 

reasons. Still, we both agreed to a double date and I fell in 

love at first sight.” 

Twenty years later, Marcus and Whitney have remained 

inseparable. They live in Puckett, where Marcus is the pastor 

at Puckett Baptist Church and Whitney is a part-time 

physical therapist at St. Dominic’s. Whitney is also a fulltime 

mom to their three children, Kayleigh, Nolan, and Jase. 

The couple just celebrated their eighteenth wedding 

anniversary on January 3. That date is also special because 

their cancer-surviving daughter turned 13 on the same day. 

Marcus said, “No marriage is perfect, but God is, and we 

know that God brought us together. He has blessed our 

marriage and our family.” 




A Leap 

of 

Faith 


On December 19th, the Mississippi 

Country Music Trail unveiled a trail 

marker honoring Faith Hill at the 

corner of Main and Mangum 

Streets in Star, Mississippi. 

As a young girl growing up in Star, Faith 

found her passion for music and singing and 

followed her heart to Nashville at the young age 

of 19. She has now been a force of nature in the 

entertainment industry for over two decades, 

having achieved unprecedented success in the 

worlds of country and pop music as one of the 

top-selling and most-awarded female artists of 

all time. Over the course of her career, she has 

had fourteen #1 singles and multiple albums 

topping both the Billboard Top 100 and 

Country charts, with six multi- platinum studio 

albums and selling more than 30 million albums 

worldwide. She’s won five Grammy Awards, 

twelve ACM Awards, four Billboard Music 

Awards, four American 

Music Awards, four 

People’s Choice Awards 

and three CMA Awards. 

We had the chance 

to ask Faith, and her 

close-knit family, a few 

questions and got a 

peek of what it was 

like for her growing 

up in Star. 

What is your favorite memory of growing up 

in Star/Rankin County? 

One of my fondest memories of growing up in Star was the 

winter that Highway 49 froze over completely from a big 

northeastern storm that fell down into the deep south in 

the early ‘80s. Highway 49 and everything else was closed. 

This is the day that Gaye McCann, now Gaye Knight, and 

I would become best friends. We played all day on the 

highway…sliding, falling, running, laughing, sliding, falling, 

and laughing again and again. 

What is the one thing you miss the most about 

living in a small town? 

Life in a small town is something everyone should have the 

opportunity to experience at least once in a lifetime. Dreams 

seem bigger when you come from a small town; although, 

somehow they seem more obtainable because either you have 

the support of friends and family, which gives you strength to 

work hard and be successful or you have so much drive to get 

out of the small town that it motivates you to work even harder. 

I miss my family and I miss knowing every road and where 

each one leads. There is power in that knowledge; the power 

of knowing where you are going, as well as the power that 

comes from the drive to get out of something so familiar and 

discover what the world has to offer. 

Is there a favorite tradition that you and your 

family had growing up that has been carried 

over to your family? 

There are many things that I have 

carried over to my family. Lots of 

traditions–and most all of them are 

related to food and faith. My 

parents had the most incredible 

vegetable garden. My brothers 

and I had the chore of weeding, 

shelling peas, butter beans–whatever 

was required. I absolutely 

hated it when I was growing up 

and usually found an excuse to 

not always be home when I 

needed to help. 


But once I moved away, I realized how valuable that garden 

was to my parents and our family for so many reasons. After 

my brothers and I moved into our own homes, my parents 

worked the garden and would split the harvest evenly between 

us siblings. There is no one that can cook green beans and butter 

beans like Edna Perry. I do know the secret and I cook them for 

my family but they just never seem to be as good as my moms. 

When did you know that you wanted to be 

a country singer? 

I always knew I wanted to sing. Truthfully, there was never any 

doubt whatsoever. I just never thought of doing anything else. 

It was as if singing chose me. My soul was set on fire every 

Sunday with music from the church. That music transformed 

me to another place and still does to this very day. The soul of 

those old gospel hymns just resonated in me from as far back 

as I can remember. After seeing Elvis Presley in Jackson when 

I was 12 years old, I knew there would be no other path I could 

take but to sing. However, it wasn’t until high school that I 

decided country music was the music I wanted to sing. Country 

music was not as popular then as it is now, so without question, 

I was in the minority when it came to this style of music. 

Were your parents supportive of your decision 

to move to Nashville? 

My parents have always been supportive of all of their children. 

They worked hard and instilled in us a strong work ethic that 

my brothers and I share. We were taught that nothing comes 

without hard work, to treat people with respect and dignity, 

and never take one day for granted. 

Education was important as well. I begged to move to Nashville 

straight out of high school but my mom insisted I go to college 

before making my final decision to move away. The fact that I 

only attended college for one semester probably broke my mom’s 

heart! And as a parent of three teenage daughters, with one in 

college, one on the way to college, and another not far behind, 

I can only, now, imagine the worry that I must have caused my 

mom. However, my parents raised us in faith and I know that 

they could not have survived what I put them through without 

that faith and without lots of prayer. 


If you could give one piece of advice or 

encouragement to anyone with big dreams, 

what would it be? 

Do what you love. Find your passion in life and work hard 

to make it happen. Nothing comes without hard work. 

Be a good person and treat people with respect, always… 

that is something that never goes out of style. Kindness is 

a universal language and no matter how far you climb and 

no matter how successful you become, always be humble 

and kind. 

You have represented Mississippi and your hometown 

well. How did it make you feel to be honored with a 

marker on the Mississippi Country Music Trail? 

I am proud to be from the great state of Mississippi and I am 

humbled to be included in a list of so many great artists that 

came before me. 

You have won numerous awards and accolades, but 

what do you feel is your biggest accomplishment? 

My biggest accomplishment in this life has been my children. 

I thank God everyday for my family. I was born to sing but 

I was raised to be mom. That is my greatest joy. 


Brother 

Wesley Perry 

What is your favorite memory of living in Rankin County? 

My family moved to Plantation Shores when I graduated high 

school…1978…yes, I’m old! I can remember playing in Hwy. 49 

one winter because there were no cars. The road was covered 

with snow and we played in the highway. 

Were you and your siblings close growing up? 

Yes. I was eight when she came to us and our brother, Steve, 

was six. Faith was adopted from birth. My parents named her 

Faith, but I gave her the name Audrey. The name came from 

a beautiful woman on a TV show. I think it was Big Valley– 

and maybe it was Audra. But I named her Audrey after that 

pretty lady on TV. So her name is Audrey Faith Perry. 

Steve works for Faith now and lives in Franklin, Tennessee. 

Is there a favorite tradition that you and your family 

had growing up that has been carried over to your 

family? 

We don’t have specific traditions or anything like that, but 

what we do have is LOVE of family. We love people. My parents 

love people, I love people, and my kids love people. We also are 

helpers…we love to help others. We love to serve. 

What is it like being the brother to one of the most 

successful country music singers of all time? 

Sometimes it’s great and other times it’s just another day. Faith 

has always helped us. She helped with my kid’s college and she 

helped with the funding to build our home. She gives me stuff 

for the kids I teach and much, much more. 

What is your favorite song that Faith sings? 

My favorite is off of the “Breathe” CD–“There Will Come 

a Day.” 


Parents 

Edna & Ted Perry 

Otherwise known as G-Maw and G-Paw. 

Answers were relayed to us by Wesley. 

How long have you lived in Rankin County? 

Since 1978 

What is your favorite thing about living in a small town? 

G-Paw said his favorite thing is getting to know all of the 

people and then looking to see if he sees anyone that he knows 

where ever he goes. 

G-Maw said making close friends that are always there when 

you need them. 

Do all of your children have a musical side? 

Yes. My youngest son, Steve Perry, took piano lessons and 

Wesley plays a little guitar and sings from time to time. 

(Funny fact interjected by Wesley - In my family we have many 

folks with famous singer names…. Faith Hill, my brother Steve 

Perry and my daughter Katie Perry, I’m the odd man out!) 

When did you realize that Faith had the talent to sing? 

When she was two, standing in a pew at church singing with the 

hymnal upside down. 

When she told you she wanted to move to Nashville 

to pursue a country music career, what was your first 

thought? 

(Answered by Wesley) My mom said no. Said she got lost in 

Jackson and she knew she wouldn’t be able to find her way 

around a place such as Nashville. My dad has always given her 

his support since the very beginning. 

Do you remember where you were the first time you 

heard Faith on the radio? What was your reaction? 

Driving down Highway 49 headed home from work. 

My mom’s reaction was, “Well, there she is on the radio.” 

As a parent, how did it make you feel to see Faith 

honored in such a special way with the marker on 

the Mississippi Country Music Trail? 

My dad said he was so proud. He never thought she would get 

this big! My mom said she would have told your reporter that 

she is proud of all of her children. 






couple of years ago, I was walking 

back to my then-downtown office 

from lunch and noticed a man up 

ahead that clearly looked as if he had fallen 

on hard times. He was leaning against the 

wall watching as I approached and just as 

I did, asked if I had a dollar to spare. Now 

I knew he was going to ask me that but 

what proceeded to come out of my mouth 

was astonishing, even to me. I said, “I don’t 

have a dollar. I even had to charge my lunch.” 

And while I’m quite certain the guy doesn’t 

take American Express or care, for that 

matter, that I’d been faced with the grueling 

decision between cash or credit, he still 

managed a gracious nod as I passed him by. 

I felt guilty–and ridiculous. 

It got me to thinking, though, as I 

continued on, what should I have said? 

Better yet, what could I have done? It was 

the second incident in as many weeks that 

left me with the same question. 

The week before, my son and I had made 

a trip to Yazoo City to see my grandmother. 

On the way there, I noticed an older man 

standing alongside the highway trying to 

fix his bicycle. His front wheel was lying on 

the ground and there was a sign on the back 

of his bike that said, “Broke and hungry.” 

I instantly wished I’d known how to fix a 

bicycle–but kept driving, nonetheless. I 

mean, you never know about people, right? 

Well three hours later on our way back, 

we passed that same man now riding his 

repaired bike down the shoulder of that 

same highway having made it a good 

distance from the original sighting. It was 

as if God was giving me a second chance 

to redeem myself. I told my son, “I wish 

there was some way we could help him,” 

and he said, “OK, but how?” And in the 

time it took us to wrestle with what to do, 

at 70 miles per hour, we had traveled 

another half-mile down the road–still 

not stopping. It weighed on me. 

So that day, downtown, as I carried my 

purse in the crook of my arm channeling 

my inner Reese Witherspoon in Legally 

Blonde, I once again failed the exercise 

with which I was presented. The man on 

the street was seemingly broke and in need 

and I did nothing to help him. You know, 

Lazarus was overlooked repeatedly and 

look how that story ended. 

How else could I have helped? A 

sandwich and a bottle of water may have 

done just the trick–just like the sandwich 

and bottle of water I’d bought myself a 

half-hour earlier. I mean, the fact that he’s 

willing to suffer an existence of poverty 

and begging rather than turn to a life of 

crime suggests to me that he might actually 

be of high moral character. I say that sort 

of jokingly, of course. The point is, who are 

we to judge? And what does that sandwich 

cost in the grand scheme of things? Well, 

based on the story of Lazarus, it could cost 

me everything. 

Regardless of how we act or think in 

those situations, we could each do a little 

more to help those who have a lot less. 

And in reality, the “beggars” in our lives 

are not limited to those penniless and on 

street corners. We’re surrounded by people 

starving emotionally, spiritually, and 

socially–and how we feed them matters. 

So as we embark upon a new year, 

I’d like to offer a prayer for peace and 

new beginnings. I pray that joy will fill 

our days, peace will fill our hearts, and love 

will fill our lives. I pray that we’ll be blessed 

with all the good things God has to give 

and that we will all live in love and truth 

in 2016. n 


RichlandFire 

Department 

Grand Re-Opening 

January 14, 2016 

Alan Miller, Jay Glenn, Tim Everett, Marshall Robinson 

Micah & Jessica Sanford Ricky Chapman, Lawrence Taylor Mike Harrell, Leroy Wilson 

Lisa Dutton, Lori McClendon Daniel Johnson, Jordan McAlpin Mayor Mark Scarborough, Mayor Butch Lee 


Forrest Rhemann, Stanley Roberts 

Bob Wedgeworth, Rob Martin, Richard Redfern, Pat Sullivan, Clay Burns 

Terrance McEwen, Thomas Dudley, Collin Jones, Sandra Ray, Buddy Ham 

John Gray, Chris Snow, Brandon Weems 

Terri Wood, Todd Sanford, Barbara Adams 

Melinda Quick, Laura Mayo, Cathey Winne 

Scotty Gainey 

Lee Ashley 


4-25-15 

2.5 x 1.75 

Attitude Ability Awareness 

BOONDOCKS FIREARMS TRAINING ACADEMY 

The Boondocks is an all-inclusive training facility designed 

for both men and women to learn safe gun handling and 

defensive firearms training for multiple skill levels. 

Monthly TWAW Chapter Meetings 

State of the Art Facility 

Skilled and Certified Instructors 

Safety is our Priority 

Education is Key 

Enjoyment is Goal 

Class Descriptions on Website 

www.BoondocksFTA.com 

Sign up online for your class 

Click on Class Title to receive class description/prices/etc. 

11771 Highway 18 769-972-2382 Raymond, MS 39154 

TWAW Shooting Chapter Clinton/Raymond MS 

www.TWAWshootingchapters.org 


©2014 Ergon, Inc. All rights reserved. 

ergon.com 


–engagement– 

MadisonLeighAnnBurrell 

& BoMikel Bilello 

Mr. and Mrs. Jeffrey David Burrell of Brandon, 

Mississippi announce the engagement of their 

daughter, Madison LeighAnn Burrell, to Bo Mikel 

Bilello, son of Mr. and Mrs. Donnie Paul Bilello of 

Enterprise, Mississippi. 

The bride-elect is the granddaughter of Mr. 

Charles Harry Smith, Jr. and the late Mrs. Peggy 

Joyce Smith of Pearl and Mrs. Doris Ellen Burrell 

and the late Lonnie Buford Burrell, Sr. of Pearl. 

Miss Burrell is a 2011 graduate of East Rankin 

Academy and a 2015 graduate of Mississippi State 

University, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in 

business administration. At State, she was a 

member of Delta Gamma sorority, MSU Fashion 

Board, Sigma Alpha Lambda honors society, and 

Campus Activities Board. She is employed as a 

sales consultant at Miskelly Furniture in Madison. 

The prospective groom is the grandson of 

Mr. and Mrs. Charles Wayne McLemore of 

Enterprise and Ms. Mary Jane Talbot of Baton 

Rouge, Louisiana and the late Mr. Donald 

Salvatore Bilello of Thibodaux, Louisiana. 

Mr. Bilello is a 2010 honor graduate of 

Enterprise High School, where he was salutatorian. 

He is a 2014 summa cum laude graduate of 

Mississippi College, where he earned a bachelor’s 

degree in biological sciences and was a member 

of Phi Theta Kappa. He is now furthering his 

education in the physical therapy program at 

University of Mississippi Medical Center. 

The couple will exchange vows on Saturday, 

March 5, 2016 at six o’clock in the evening at 

The Ice House Venue in Jackson, Mississippi 

with a reception immediately following. 

Upon returning from a honeymoon in St. Lucia, 

the couple will reside in Brandon. 


–wedding– 

StephanieBrookeSlaughter 

& JustinDavidTullos 

Stephanie Brooke Slaughter and Justin David Tullos were united in 

marriage October 3, 2015 at The Ivy Venue in Flowood, Mississippi. 

The ceremony was officiated by Reverend Gary Knight and Reverend 

David Slaughter. 

The bride is the daughter of Rev. and Mrs. David Slaughter of Pelahatchie, 

Mississippi. She is the granddaughter of Dr. Kenneth Slaughter and the late 

Nancy Slaughter of Jackson, Mississippi and the late Mr. and Mrs. George 

Welford of Waynesboro, Mississippi. The groom is the son of Mr. and Mrs. 

Michael Tullos of Brandon, Mississippi. He is the grandson of Mr. and Mrs. 

George Tullos of Brandon, Mississippi and Mr. and Mrs. Wade Morrison of 

Byram, Mississippi. 

Given in marriage by her father, the bride wore a gown of ivory taffeta 

by Allure bridal. The strapless ball gown featured a sweetheart neckline 

with ruching detail. The fitted bodice was accented at the waist by a belt 

of Swarovski crystals, and a chapel length train completed the ensemble. 

A cathedral-length illusion veil, adorned with matching crystal detailing, 

accented the dress. Stephanie’s bouquet was a beautiful cascade of white 

roses, freesia, ranunculus, and willow eucalyptus. 

Attending Stephanie as her matron of honor was Mary Kate Partrige. 

Additional attendants were dear friends Ashley Cocilova, Marion Patti, 

Shanna Funcke, Rebecca Parker, and Nikki Raney. Each attendant carried 

a hand-tied bouquet of red, white, and peach roses with eucalyptus leaves, 

which complemented their eggplant, long chiffon dresses. Serving as flower 

girls were Adalyn Roberts, Miriam Raney, and Lydia Raney. Attending Justin 

as best man was Wil Mann. Groomsmen were John Murphy, Brett Boling, 

Will Roberts, Daniel Barnett, and Zach Farrar. 

To the bride and groom’s surprised delight, they exited the ceremony to 

the song “Oh Happy Day” performed by a gospel quartet from Anderson 

United Methodist Church. 

Following the ceremony, the bride’s parents hosted a reception on the 

grounds of The Ivy. Guests enjoyed hors d’oeuvres of traditional southern 

fare provided by Wendy Putt of Fresh Cut Floral and Catering. Guests were 

entertained by music and a photo-booth provided by Crowd Pleasers DJ 

services. Her mother lovingly prepared the bride’s five tier almond cake. 

Cakes by Iris prepared the groom’s two-tiered chocolate cake depicting his 

love of hunting and Mississippi State. On the eve of the wedding, a dinner 

was hosted by the parents of the groom at The Ivy. 

After a honeymoon to St. Lucia, the couple is at home in Brandon, 

Mississippi. 


Urology Associates 

of Mississippi 

Our physicians are highly skilled and experienced 

in treating a wide array of urology conditions 

Utilizing state of the art equipment and advanced treatment techniques, 

each of our board certified urologists have specific areas of urological 

expertise in addition to providing general urologic care to patients 

all over the state of Mississippi. 

Avinash C. Gulanikar, M.D. • Mark A. Condon, M.D. • Sujith K. Reddy, M.D. 

Please visit us at our new location: 

294 East Layfair Drive • Flowood, MS 

601.936.4645 



40 • February/March 2016 

Life is Short. 

Eat Dessert First 

Whether you have a passion for pastry or an utter devotion to chocolate, 

every once in a while, it becomes necessary to satisfy your needs 

with a sweet and indulgent treat. And when cravings call, 

these go-to desserts are sure to satisfy.

Cerami’s 

Homemade New York Cheesecake 

with candied red raspberry sauce will make you 

re-think cheesecake. Creamy, light, and not-too-sweet, 

creating a balance between sweetness and tanginess. 

It’s a chef favorite! 

Nothing Bundt Cakes 

Chocolate Chocolate Chip 

Chocolate bliss. This incredibly moist, decadent chocolate 

cake is packed with chocolate chips and rich, home-baked 

flavor that’s certain to earn sighs of delight. 


The Alumni House Sports Bar & Grill 

Peanut Butter & Chocolate Bread Pudding 

drizzled with a caramel and chocolate sauce, topped 

with house whipped cream and trail mix confetti. 

Rich, dense and indulgent! 

Table 100 

bananas foster 

Made with bananas, butter, brown sugar and 

cinnamon, the bananas are flambéed tableside 

and served over vanilla ice cream. 


Cardiologists: 

John Bellan, MD 

J. Michael Bensler, MD 

Alfredo Figueroa, MD 

F. Earl Fyke, III, MD 

William K. Harper, MD 

W. Hampton Jones, III, MD 

S. Todd Lawson, MD 

Keith D. Thorne, MD 

James L. Warnock, Jr. MD 

H. Chris Waterer, III, MD 

Surgeons: 

William J. Harris, III, MD 

W. Stewart Horsley, MD 

Daniel Ramirez, MD 

Nurse Practitioners: 

Misha Craven, ACNP-BC 

Lynne C. Currie, FNP-BC 

Lyndsey Dill, ACNP-AG 

Mary Gordy, CFNP 

Rachel Hearst, FNP-C 

Adrianne Kelley, ANP-C 

Susan Patterson, NP-C 

Tonya Sweeney, MSN, ACNP-BC, CCDS 

No hospital in Mississippi has been caring for 

heart patients longer than Baptist. 

Baptist brings together experienced cardiologists, cardiovascular 

surgeons, nurse practitioners and clinicians to offer the most 

comprehensive care in the region for patients with heart disease. 

Find out more at mbhs.org/baptistheart. Trust your heart to 

Baptist Heart. 

501 Marshall Street 

Jackson, MS 39202 

844-MD-HEART 


etirement, 

assisted living 

& memory care 

community 

call now to schedule a tour 

(601) 345-2202 

Every day of life is a blessing. 

350 Town Center Way Flowood, MS 39232 blakeliving.com 

please join us in welcoming 

Anita Davis 

as the new executive director 

for the blake at flowood. 


On Tuesday December 22, 2015, GEICO, The Wounded Warrior Project, 

and Barnett’s Body shop of Flowood presented a car to wounded veteran 

John Patterson and his wife Holley of Florence, Mississippi. 

John was a member of the U.S Army and Mississippi National Guard. 

He was wounded in combat and has had several surgeries to repair his hip. 

John has a service dog named Tucker to help with PTSD. 

GEICO partnered with Barnett’s Body Shop and several other local businesses 

to provide the Patterson’s a much needed reliable mode of transportation. 

Hometown Magazines thanks you for your service! 



I Love Us... 


Ah, Valentine’s Day. My earliest thoughts of the beloved 

celebration date back to the third grade and are of tiny die-cut cards 

stating such simple messages like, “Some-bunny loves you” and, 

“Will you be mine?” I can remember the importance of finding just 

the right cards to give out, too. No way did I want anything too 

mushy or anything. Picking out the card was serious business. They 

would eventually be placed in individually decorated brown paper 

sacks that were taped to the back of everyone’s little-person sized 

desk. Love was so easy. 

Years later, flowers and gigantic helium balloons were the 

must-have order of the day, often delivered to the workplace. I was 

never the recipient of such over-the-top deliveries and was even 

admittedly a bit jealous of those who were. I mean, had they 

somehow figured out a secret code to love that I hadn’t? And how 

were you supposed to get those big ol’ things home anyway? 

I eventually married in my early thirties. Prior to that time, 

while I managed a couple of fairly decent relationships, I was mostly 

single–a lot. I mean, there were easier things in life than trying to 

find a nice guy, you know. Like nailing jelly to a tree. But it was 

worth the wait. I would eventually find my perfect match and we 

will celebrate 17 years of marriage this year. Yay! 

So as I look through the thousands of cards at the store and 

contemplate the message I want to convey, I’m struck by a simple 

yet powerful thought. I love us. 

In reality, the card I’m looking for should say, “Happy Valentine’s 

Day. Who, in a million years, would have ever thought that I’d be 

standing here for the umteenth time looking through this sea of red 

and pink hearts? But, despite the fact that I get grumpy and have 

unpredictable mood swings, you keep coming home–and I thank 

you for that. And even though you’ve yet to develop the ability to 

read my mind, I continue to love you anyway. We’ve made a pretty 

darn fabulous kid that, with any luck, will think marriage is a good 

thing after watching us. So, there’s that. Happy Valentine’s Day! I 

love us.” 

There need to be cards with those types of “real” messages. 

Someone could make a fortune. 

Relationships are hard. All relationships. And they take work. 

Anything worth having, does. And while my husband and I have 

certainly made a good run so far, we’ve definitely had our moments– 

but we always manage to work through them. Eventually, we even 

laugh it off. Laughter is about connection, and laughter and love go 

hand-in-hand. 

So while I might not be one of those that gets $100 worth of 

helium delivered to the front door, I will get a funny card from my 

fella. It will likely still be in the store bag from which it was bought 

along with one of my favorite Hollywood gossip-type magazines 

and a box of little white powdered donuts. He knows they’re my 

favorite and that means the world to me. 

The truth is that love isn’t always perfect. It isn’t a fairytale or 

a storybook and it doesn’t always come easy. Love is overcoming 

obstacles, facing challenges, fighting to be together, holding on, 

and never letting go. 

It’s a short word that’s easy to spell, difficult to define, and 

impossible to live without. Love is work, but most of all, love is 

realizing that every hour, and every minute, and every second of 

it was worth it–because you did it together. 

Maybe more marriages would survive if people knew that 

sometimes the “better” comes after the “worse.” And that’s ok. 

A successful marriage requires falling in love many times, over and 

over, with the same person. I’m thankful for my person. I really do 

love us. ♥ 


2016 

YOU ARE CORDIALLY INVITED TO THE 

JUNIOR AUXILIARY OF RANKIN COUNTY 

30 th Anniversary Charity Ball 

Saturday, February 27 

6:00 PM 

McClain Lodge 

HONORING MICHAEL & HALEY GUEST 

Entertainment provided by MEET THE PRESS 

Silent Auction, themed packages and door prizes 

$100 per couple (tickets may be purchased at the door) 

Cocktail Attire 

All printing donated by Dallas Printing 

PROCEEDS TO BENEFIT 

THE CHILDREN OF RANKIN COUNTY 

Don't miss our next 

issue, April 2016! 

Like us on Facebook 

www.facebook.com/hometownrankinmagazine 

Say it sweeter. 

Give them something to smile about this Valentine’s Day. 

Jackson-Flowood • 163 Ridge Way, Suite E • (769) 243-7108 

NOTHINGBUNDTCAKES.COM 


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Mother / Son 

Night of Fun 

January 16 

Richland 

Community 

Center 



Matters 

of 

Heart 

the 

Susan Marquez 

William J. Harris, MD

William J. Harris’s fascination with the heart began 

in early elementary school when he checked out a book 

about heart surgery from the library. Always a tinkerer, 

he was a detail person from an early age. “I always 

liked doing things with my hands,” he said. “I built 

models, and I loved books on how and why things work. 

I would break things down to see how they worked, 

then put them back together again.” 

The Jackson native was born in Dallas and moved 

to Jackson when he was four years old and attended 

St. Richard’s School through the eighth grade. His 

family moved into the Mill Creek subdivision near the 

Reservoir in 1975, and Harris graduated high school at 

Northwest Rankin. He went to college at Mississippi 

State University, where he majored in bio-medical 

engineering. 

“I chose my major because I thought it would be fun. 

Only about four or five people from my class went on 

to medical school.” Harris went to medical school at the 

University of Mississippi, then completed an internship 

and residency in general surgery at the University of 

Alabama at Birmingham. He then completed a 

fellowship and residency in cardiothoracic surgery at 

the UAB before returning to Jackson. 

“I didn’t have physicians in my family,” said Harris. 

“But after wanting to be a priest, I decided around 

the ninth grade that I wanted to go to medical school. 

I suppose I’ve always felt a calling to help people.” 

Harris credits his bio-medical engineering education 

with giving him the skills to take a big problem and 

break it down into small, fixable, problems. “That’s what 

medicine is all about. Medicine is complicated–I like to 

make sense of it.” The credit to his real interest in heart 

surgery goes to Anthony Petro. “When I was a first 

year med student, I got in contact with him, and he 

invited me to come up and watch him do surgery. He 

taught me detail things; like scrubbing hands before 

surgery—there’s a sort of ritual to it. It got to where he 

or his nurse would call me when they were doing 

different procedures, and if I had time, I’d go scrub in 

and observe.” 

Today, Harris is chief of cardiovascular surgery at 

Baptist Medical Center. While he does all types of heart 

surgery, he has a special interest in mitral valve repair, 

robotic cardiac surgery, minimally invasive heart valve 

surgery, minimally invasive atrial fibrillation ablation, 

treatment of varicose veins, venous reflux and spider 

veins. “The best thing is to repair mitral valves, not 

replace them. That requires both technical skill and 

scientific knowledge. It has an artistic sort of bent to 

it, which really appeals to me.” 

Harris clearly remembers the first time he looked 

down on someone’s chest. “A clamp was placed on 

the aorta, and the heart and lungs were not moving. 

It profoundly impacted me. From then on I was certain 

of what I wanted to do.” 

He has been at Baptist for 14 years now. “From a 

professional side, my analytic personality finds 

satisfaction in doing surgery. I get immediate feedback 

on what I’ve done. It’s nice to know that what I’m doing 

provides someone with immediate help. It’s also 

gratifying to take someone who is extremely ill and do 

something technically challenging. Organizing a team 

to help you do something very difficult to provide a 

good quality of life is rewarding. Doing surgery on 

people creates a very personal relationship. It takes a 

lot of trust for people to give up control to someone 

they may not know very well. I spend a lot of time 

away from work thinking about my patients.” 

In his spare time, Harris enjoys spending time with 

his family. He is married to wife, Cindy, and together 

they have three children. “I also enjoy riding my bike 

when I can, and playing guitar.” Harris has been playing 

guitar since he was 13, and now plays for the show choir 

at Jackson Prep, a gig he’s had for about ten years. n 


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(601) 825-3368 

Sarah Langston, DMD 

14 Woodgate Drive 

Brandon, Mississippi 39042 

Facebook.com/plainviewliving 


A cord 

of three 

strands 

is not 

quickly 

broken. 

Ecclesiastes 

4:12 


A Cord 

of 

3 Strands 

Nestled into a corner of Florence, 

Mississippi, is the home of Sam and 

Peggy Simmons, two of the most 

genuine and loving people I have 

ever had the pleasure of meeting. 

I was greeted at the door with a hug, smiles, 

and excitement. It was an honor to be 

welcomed into their home to hear how 

their love story unfolded. 

In August of 1950, Sam Simmons was 

asked to escort three young ladies who were 

bridesmaids at his friend’s wedding. One of 

those bridesmaids was Peggy. 

“That was our first meeting,” said Sam. 

“We knew we liked each other, so the next 

day after the wedding, I brought her back to 

Florence–with the permission of her mother. 

We got engaged in October.” 

Sam was a senior at Mississippi State 

University at the time. “After we got engaged, 

I couldn’t stay away from her. I went to see 

her on the weekends or she came to see me 

in Starkville. It was a whirlwind. That’s when 

I realized I couldn’t live without her,” 

said Sam. 

Sam and Peggy married on December 

17, 1950, and recently celebrated their 65th 

anniversary. They have six children, fourteen 

grandchildren, and nine great grandchildren. 

Sam and Peggy made their home in Florence 

in the house that formerly belonged to 

Peggy’s parents. 

“It has been a good 65 years,” said Sam. 

“Our marriage has been built, first of foremost, 

on faith. We both have a strong faith in the 

Lord Jesus Christ. Church and Sunday school 

are very important to us. Our family and 

children grew up in that environment.” 

Sam offered advice to new married couples: 

“The man needs to learn to say I’m sorry, 

forgive me, and I love you. You’re always 

going to have some friction, and it’s not bad 

to have some pretty big fights because it’s so 

much fun to make up.” 

Peggy added her words of wisdom. “No 

marriage is perfect. You are completely different 

in personality from your spouse. We’re just all 

different. When you realize that, you’re better 

off because you learn to get along.” 

“We never considered divorce, but we did 

consider homicide a few times!” joked Sam. 

“You have to realize that when you marry, 

you’re not just marrying the one you love. 

You’re marrying their family,” added Peggy. 

“I realized that Sam was from a very nice family. 

I was impressed with that because they were 

all sweet, thoughtful, and kind. Sam has always 

been sweet and thoughtful and kind to me.” 

“Sam is just a good man. I think he’s a 

keeper. He certainly did everything in the 

world to try to make us happy and see to it 

that I didn’t have to go to work. He made the 

living for us. I don’t think I realized, until 

later years, that I could have had no choice 

but to go to work. I always appreciated that 

and tried to count my blessings even though it 

was very hard to stay at home and raise the 

children. He always helped me in any way 

that he could,” said Peggy. 

Sam recalled, “I’ve heard Peggy make the 

statement, ‘I didn’t do anything. I just stayed 

at home.’ But she was working when I got up 

in the morning—ironing and fixing lunches. 

When I went to bed at night, she was still 

working. So I don’t buy that she didn’t do 

anything. She did a lot to raise six children, and 

that was a lot harder than what I had to do. 

We worked it out when we worked together.” 

“We’ve enjoyed our children and 

grandchildren as they’ve been born. They live 

in different states. We always look forward to 

seeing them,” said Peggy as Sam showed me a 

family photo album. 

“I think we are kindred spirits in agreement 

about what’s important and what’s not 

important,” said Sam. “Faith first, family 

second, friends third, and then community. 

I think those are some pretty good building 

blocks.” 

As Sam and Peggy said goodbye to me 

with hugs and well wishes, I felt as if I was 

already one of the family–after spending just 

one hour with them. These two are a true 

example of a marriage woven into the Lord. n 



Hometown Rankin 

Reader 

SPOTLIGHT 

Amy 

Gibbons 

Why did you decide to make Rankin 

County your home? 

We decided to make Brandon our home to be 

closer to family. It’s centrally located for work, it’s 

very safe, and is growing with lots of opportunities. 

The school system was important, too. At the time 

we moved to Brandon, our son was entering the 

6th grade at Brandon Middle School. He is now a 

senior at Brandon High School. 

How long have you lived in Rankin County? 

We moved to Brandon in August of 2009. 

Tell us about your family. 

I am married to David Gibbons and we have one 

son, Hayden, who is 18-years old and is a senior at 

Brandon High School. In December of 2014, one 

of Hayden’s best friends asked to come live with us 

and came to our home the week before Christmas. 

We became licensed foster parents to a 19-year old 

who is also a senior at Brandon High School. It’s 

been very different adding another person to our 

home, especially with Hayden having always been 

an only child. Hayden and this young man have 

been best friends since the 8th grade and we were 

honored he wanted to come live with us. He loved 

Brandon so much that he too wanted to come back 

here and graduate from Brandon High School. 

David and I will celebrate our 25th anniversary 

in February. We were both reared in Jackson and 

have lived in Memphis, Tupelo, and most recently, 

Magee for 14 years prior to moving to Brandon. 

We both are graduates of the University of 

Southern Mississippi–David with an electrical 

engineering degree and I with a Master of Social 

Work. I’m a licensed clinical social worker. 

Hayden plans to attend Ole Miss starting the 

in fall of 2016. We have been members of First 

Baptist Church of Brandon since 2009. We are 

all very active in our church and community and 

feel it is important to give back and support the 

community in which we live. 

What is your favorite memory of living in 

Rankin County? 

My favorite memory of living in Rankin County 

was our very first Brandon Christmas parade in 

December, 2009. It was very cold and about 

halfway through the parade it began snowing! 

We were at the parade with some friends and I 

remember standing in the cold and the snow and 

thinking, “I am home”. I just fell more in love 

with the town. After the parade, we went to our 

then-pastors Dr. Scott & Dacia Thomas’s home 

and had cookies and hot cocoa and all the kids 

played outside in the snow. It was just such a 

special memory and we were made to feel so 

welcomed like we were such a part of the 

community. I will never forget it! 

Where are your 3 favorite places to eat in 


Heart & Soul in Brandon, Table 100 in Flowood, 

and Jerry’s Fish House in Florence. 

What are some fun things to do in Rankin 

County on the weekends? 

Shopping! Rankin County has some great places 

to shop…O! How Cute Gift Market, Heart of the 

South, Apple Annie’s, the Outlet Mall, and 

Dogwood Market Place. We also love to go to the 

Brave’s games, especially on Friday nights for the 

fireworks. Hayden loves High Heaven Trampoline 

Park and he and friends love to go to Shiloh Park 

and play ultimate Frisbee. We go to movies at 

Tinseltown, Brandon High School football on 

Friday nights, and anything water related at the 

Reservoir. 

Share some things you enjoy doing in your 

spare time. 

I have a great girls group that tries to go to the 

movies every Tuesday night. I love to go out to eat, 

spending time with family and friends, and having 

friends and family over to cook out. I also 

volunteer a lot with the PTO at Brandon High 

School and with the Rankin County Republican 

Women. 

What are three things on your bucket list? 

I want to go to Australia, take an Alaskan cruise 

and take a year and tour England, Italy, France and 

Greece. I love to travel! 

Who is someone you admire and why? 

I admire our First Lady Deborah Bryant. Deborah 

is so genuine, friendly, outgoing and personable. 

She always has a smile on her face, makes everyone 

feel welcomed and important, and she is a great 

ambassador for our state and Rankin County. 

She’s a great role model for young girls. 

Where do you see yourself ten years from 

now? 

I see myself still living in Rankin County, working, 

and still enjoying being with family and friends. 

I’m looking forward to seeing what the future 

holds for my son. I feel Rankin County has given 

him such a strong sense of community that should 

serve him well in the future. 

What is your favorite childhood memory? 

I have a lot of favorite childhood memories. What 

I mostly think about is how safe I felt growing up 

and how much I loved being with my family. We 

were always with family and cousins. We would all 

pile into the family car and drive to the beach for 

weekends. It was wild, loud and hectic! We 

continue this tradition, even now, with Hayden 

and still bring along cousins! 

If you could give us one encouraging 

quote, what would it be? 

My favorite quote that I use all the time is, 

“Live what you love, love what you do!” 

What is your favorite thing about 

Hometown Magazines? 

My favorite thing about Hometown is that all the 

community-based stories are even more interesting 

because you get to learn about people you share the 

community with. n 



Worthy of Merit 

Dr. Barry Moss 

Chief Executive Officer, Merit Health Rankin 

With an expansive career in health care administration, Barry Moss has a great 

vision for Merit Health Rankin. We recently had a chance to ask Barry a few questions 

about his life after coming to Rankin County and here's what he told us . . . 

Q. What lead you to want to serve 

as a hospital administrator? 

A. I grew up in a health care family and saw the 

significant role they were able to play to positively 

impact the lives of others. I deeply value the opportunity 

to work for an organization, which is an instrumental 

part of the wellness of our community. In addition, 

health care takes on such a team approach and I 

really enjoy working in a team-based environment. 

You never know when you may be able to help 

someone in need. 

Q. Since moving to Rankin County, 

what are some things that you 

particularly like? 

A. It is a great county that pushes to reinvest for 

long-term success and development. Rankin County 

is an exceptional place of balance, with access to 

progressive growth and innovation while maintaining 

the relationships of the past. Also, we are fortunate to 

have a wonderful partnership with Merit Health River 

Oaks and Merit Health Woman’s Hospital that allows us 

to serve our neighbors in a variety of settings and roles. 

My family moved here with me from Hattiesburg and 

we have been proud to call Mississippi our home for 

the past several years. In Rankin County, we’ve been 

especially pleased with the warm welcome we have 

received from local residents. It feels as though our 

family has just become part of an even bigger family. 

Q. What are your hobbies, or 

what do you enjoy doing when 

you’re not at Merit Health? 

A. One of the great things about Rankin County is 

the endless high school sporting events to attend. 

It is fun to see those student athletes playing out their 

dreams by representing their schools and hometowns. 

Q. What are your plans for Merit 

Health Rankin? 

A. Over the 60 years since the hospital opened, 

Merit Health Rankin has provided quality access to 

healthcare with physicians and support staff who live 

in our neighborhoods. This community-centered 

approach has worked very well for our hospital and 

the other hospitals in the Merit Health network share 

the same philosophy. 

With that said, our goal at Merit Health Rankin is to 

expand our services and medical specialties to serve 

the needs of our local residents. For example, we just 

opened a Merit Health Medical Group clinic onsite at 

Merit Health Rankin with a nurse practitioner who 

specializes in gerontology. This niche of care is crucial 

for our area. Over the past year we also added an 

orthopedic surgeon, gastroenterologist, neurosurgeon 

and general surgeon to our staff. 

Q. Where did you grow up and 

what’s a favorite childhood 

memory? 

A. I was blessed to grow up in a small town called 

Winfield, Alabama. In a small town you remember the 

great friends and families, the summers on the lake, 

and the relationships that last a lifetime. 

Q. What impact would you like to 

make on Rankin County? 

A. I am honored to be part of this community and 

Merit Health Rankin. We are proud to be part of the 

Merit Health network and will do everything we can 

to continue to provide patients with an excellent 

experience during their stay. Merit Health Rankin is 

blessed to be located here in Brandon and I am excited 

about meeting and working with local leaders and 

organizations to ensure Merit Health Rankin continues 

to be a very active member of our Rankin County. n 



Storming 

the Runway 

Susan Marquez 

Too tall…Too skinny...Too beautiful? Avery Eaton never felt like she 

fit in with her classmates when she was a child. “By the time she was in 

the sixth grade, she was the tallest student in her class, even taller than 

the teachers,” said Avery’s mother, Shelley Eaton. “She was a good 

student, and very athletic but from the sixth grade on, it was difficult 

for Avery. She was teased by other students and it hurt her deeply.” 

While she was anything but an ugly duckling, Avery certainly grew 

into a beautiful swan, gracing the runways of New York for Fashion 

Week and more. Her height, physique and beauty caught the attention 

of the right people in the right places at the right time, and now the 

17-year-old is destined for a successful career as a major fashion model. 

“People always told Avery that with her height, she should be a 

model,” Shelley said. “She’s always loved fashion and had a strong 

fashion sense from the time she was a toddler. She loves hair, makeup 

and style.” 

When she was 16, Avery got a job at W by Azwell, a women’s 

clothing store in Dogwood shopping center. While there, she did all 

the modeling for their Facebook and Instagram pages. “I liked it, and 

thought I might want to pursue more modeling,” said Avery. “I couldn’t 

find a modeling agency in Mississippi–there really wasn’t much 

modeling in the state.” Instead, she went the fitness route, training for 

her first fitness competition. She won the competition, and says that, 

until this day, she is still obsessed with it. 

“I was scouted by Jamie Ainsworth with JEA Models in Jackson, 

and I went to a showcase in Oxford with agents from all over the world. 

I signed with Funny Faces, a commercial agency, and was asked to come 

to New York for a couple of months.” At age 17, Avery packed her bags 

and moved into an apartment in New York with a couple of other girls 

from the JEA agency. 

Upon her arrival in New York, Avery went about setting up 

appointments with modeling agencies. “I had to learn my way around, 

learn how to use the subway, how to hail a cab,” she recalled. “I had never 

been to a big city like New York, and it was pretty overwhelming.” But 

the tenacious teen’s desire to succeed as a model superseded any fears 

she may have had. She landed a contract with MSA Models. They flew 

her to some auditions in Los Angeles and back to New York where she 

began trying out for Fall Fashion Week. Almost immediately she 

booked three shows. 

At the Carmen Steffens show at Grand Central Station, Avery 

shared the catwalk with two Victoria’s Secret models. “Those are the 

models I look up to,” said Avery, who knew them all by name. “I walked 

with Adriana Lima from Brazil and Toni Garrn from Germany.” Avery 

walked in the number three spot behind the two super models. 

Avery didn’t really know what to expect as she dipped her toes into 

the world of high fashion modeling. “It’s a lot harder than I imagined! 

I didn’t know it would be so competitive. There are girls who come 

from all over the world to audition. It’s not as glamorous as it looks, 

either. There were days when I had to cram five or more auditions into 

one day. I was bouncing from Brooklyn to Manhattan and all over for 

specific time slots. I had to arrive with my A-game, looking presentable.” 

There have also been unexpected highlights to the business for 

Avery as well. “My favorite thing is working with an amazing group 

of creative people. From makeup to hair to the lighting and 

photography, it is a collaborative effort to create a work of art. 

I love being a part of it!” 

While Avery wants to model as long as she is able, she does want to 

go to college some day. “I’m not sure what I’ll study, but I think it will 

be something to do with the fitness industry.” n

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Espiritu 

Cues: 

A Hometown Man’s 

Worldwide Craftsmanship 

Kerri Walker 

Rankin County is the home of Russ Espiritu, a world class 

pool cue craftsman. Russ and his wife Carolyn reside in 

Puckett, Mississippi, and Russ is serving his third term as 

mayor of Puckett. The two built a shop adjacent to their 

home where they work together to make Espiritu Cues. 

The shop houses dozens of machines 

and aisles of woods and animal skins 

that are used to make the highly 

collectible cues. Espiritu Cues are 

intricately inlayed with many different 

woods, colors, and materials. Russ has a 

computerized system that can carve 

designs into the cues with precision. 



He uses only the finest materials to build 

his pool cues including gold, sterling silver, 

ivory, malachite, turquoise, opal, jade, pearl, 

pau shell, snake skin, lizard skin, elephant 

ear, and exotic woods such as bubinga, 

macassar ebony, and redwood burl. Russ 

has been featured in many publications 

such as the Billiard Encyclopedia, The Blue 

Book of Pool Cues, Billiard Digest, Pool & 

Billiard, and various catalogues and calendars. 

Russ began handcrafting pool cues as a 

hobby in 1984. “I was in Texas playing pool. 

I ran into a guy who was a pool hustler, 

actually. We went to a cue shop in Houston. 

He said, ‘These cues are really expensive. 

Why don’t you make them, and I’ll sell 

them,’” recalled Russ. 

“When I came back to Mississippi, I told 

Carolyn about it, and she thought I was 

crazy. I went around to some wood working 

places, and they didn’t have a clue how to 

make cues. So I got a lathe–in fact it’s that 

one right over there. It really wasn’t the 

machine I needed though, but we still use 

it for sanding. That was in late ’84. In 1991, 

my wife and I decided to go full-time. We 

took some pool cues to New Orleans and 

showed them to a guy. He looked at them 

and said they were pretty nice, but he 

never ordered anything. We came back 

home, and as soon as we walked in the 

door, the phone was ringing. The guy 

from New Orleans said he wanted to by 

all the ones I had. We took the cues to 

him, and when we got there, some other people 

around New Orleans had already heard about 

us. They came down there, too. So I’ve got him 

and three or four other dealers there that carry 

them. That’s where we started.” 

Today, Russ has a two-year-long waiting list 

of people who want his cues. “It doesn’t take 

long to get the cue made, but you have to get 

in line to get it made,” said Russ. “First you 

make the wood round and drill a hole in it. It 

takes a year to make one shaft. That’s not 

working on it every day. We let it sit and then 

turn it down some more. We have to let the 

wood sit for a while before we turn it again or 

it won’t stay straight. The wood’s fibers may try 

to twist slightly. It has to be dry, and we turn it 

down so many thousandths at a time so it stays 

straight. That’s important. It’s a long process 

that takes about five cuts over twelve months. 

We have to stabilize the wood sometimes. 

We’ll inject it with a dye sometimes. It’s for 

hardening and appearance. We definitely 

developed the process.” 

“We have dealers all around the world,” 

said Russ. “We don’t sell much in Mississippi, 

but in Louisiana, it’s huge. The West Coast, 

East Coast, Canada, Mexico, Hawaii, Japan, 

China—everybody knows the name. Dealers 

will order six or eight cues, and we’ll make up 

whatever we want and send it to them. Then 

they’ll re-sell it in Russia or Switzerland or 

wherever they’re calling from.” 

Russ and Carolyn travel the world for 

pool tournaments and shows. “We only go 

to big professional tournaments or national 


tournaments,” said Russ. “We go to Las Vegas 

once, Pennsylvania once, and Louisiana twice. 

We just got back from Hawaii. If I go to Japan, 

there may be a world championship. We have a 

display and sell them at the tournaments. There 

will be 10,000 pool players there. We’re at each 

tournament for two weeks. People fly in to shows 

from all over the world to buy these cues. They’re 

collectors, so when your name gets with these 

people, you can do pretty much anything.” 

When Russ travels, he also buys exotic woods 

and skins. “We get woods from all around the 

world–South America, Australia, Hawaii. The 

ebony comes out of Africa. We get wood from 

a lot of Asian countries,” said Russ. “Most of the 

wood is brought in from an importer. It’s usually a 

musical instrument supplier. They dry it. I see them 

at a show and tell them what I want and they 

send it. We’re pretty picky about the types of 

woods because that’s what makes a pool cue.” 

Russ and Carolyn’s 17-year-old grandson 

works part time in the shop running the inlay 

machines, programming the computers, and 

putting the designs into the cues. “I told him he 

could have the shop when he’s ready,” said Russ. 

Other than his grandson and one other part 

time worker, Russ prefers to do the crafting 

himself. “I have thought about expanding, but 

everybody wants me to work on the cues. But 

I’m getting my grandson into this a little. He 

can do the programming on the computer for 

sure. He’s smart. It’s not as easy as you think.” 

“If you have a lot of people working for 

you, they do more work for sure. But if you 

don’t watch what they’re doing, they might not 

be doing it right. It’s just a job to them. If they 

don’t put it together right or don’t put enough 

glue on something, it falls apart. The quality 

goes down. So we just do it ourselves,” added 

Russ. 

“We work seven days a week out here. 

We never get caught up. We could work 

24-hours a day, and I don’t think we’ll ever get 

caught up. We’ve built this up, and we can’t 

disappoint people. I have clients who would 

buy all these cues right now if I had them 

ready. Our clients count on us,” said Russ. 

As he pulled a cue from a case, Russ said, 

“This is one of the cues that the Rolling 

Stones played with. I made some pool 

cues when the Rolling Stones came to 

Memphis. I sent them up there so they 

could play with them. The deal was they 

would sign my cues and send them back, 

but they came back unsigned. Minnesota 

Fats was a friend of mine, too. We know 

everybody.” 

Russ and Carolyn’s roots are set 

deeply in Rankin County. “If we made 

pool cues in Washington, D.C., for 

example, we’d be selling really high 

dollar stuff all the time. But Puckett is 

our home.” 

From craftsman to mayor to high 

school golf coach, Russ strives for high 

quality in each of his roles. “Our pool 

cues are like art; they play well and 

last forever.” n 


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PEARL MS 39208 

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Brandon, Mississippi 


19th Annual 

Garden Extravaganza 

Paula Pettis, 

Prissy Pots Landscaping 

Haley Barrett, MNLA 

Looking for a great event to officially kick 

off spring? We have just the event that will 

make you want to get your hands dirty. Mark 

your calendars for the 19th Annual Garden 

Extravaganza (formerly the Jackson Garden & 

Patio Show) on March 18th, 19th & 20th at the 

Mississippi Trade Mart on the Fairgrounds. The 

Mississippi Nursery and Landscape Association 

(MNLA) is excited to bring so many vendors 

together in one central location for all of your 

garden and patio needs including flowers, trees, 

landscape professionals, equipment, yard art, 

ironwork, pottery, one of a kind bird houses, 

garden accessories and much, much more. 

Admission is only $6 per person. Children 15 

and under get in free and, as always, there is 

plenty of free parking. 

The early bird gets the worm, or in our case 

the tomato plant. The first 100 people through 

the door on Friday and Sunday, and the first 

200 people on Saturday will get a free tomato 

plant, courtesy of Rivers Plant Farm and 

Jackson Farms Nursery. 

All three days will be filled with demonstrations 

and seminars. Our exciting ‘how to’ 

demonstrations will be located on the showroom 

floor and will include topics such as: Hot plants 

for 2016, how to create the perfect mixed 

containers, and much more. Since the Garden 

Extravaganza is a family friendly event, we have 

also added ‘make and take’ demonstrations to 

the children’s activity area to teach kids fun 

gardening skills. Ball Seed Company and BWI 

Companies team up with MNLA to sponsor 

this area. 

March 18-20, 2016 

MS Trade Mart 

Jackson, MS 

For a complete list of seminars and 

demonstrations, please visit www.msnla.org. All 

seminars and demonstrations are free with paid 

admission. And while at the show, be sure to 

register for fabulous door prizes donated from 

our wonderful exhibitors. 

As in year’s past, attendees will get the 

opportunity to view several of central Mississippi’s 

finest landscaper’s work in the outdoor living 

spaces competition area. These outdoor living 

spaces will be in the middle of the exhibit hall, 

will serve as the focal point for this year’s show 

and will give you great ideas on how to make 

your outdoor space the best it can be. They will 

incorporate a wide range of styles, from the 

outdoor kitchen area, the secluded backyard 

retreat, tranquil water features, family entertainment 

areas, and lounge areas to watch your 

favorite show or team. All of the landscape 

professionals will be on hand to discuss how to 

make your landscape dreams a reality. 

Is your grass looking less than green? Is there 

a fungus among us? Do you have mysterious 

weeds? As always, the experts from Mississippi 

State University Extension Service will be there 

to answer any questions, provide information 

and test soil for free. 

Of course the real stars of the show are 

always the flowers. You’ll find this year’s Mississippi 

Medallion Award Winners, tropicals, ferns, trees, 

shrubs, roses, bedding plants, vegetables, herbs 

and so much more. Many of the garden centers 

will have dish gardens, fairy gardens, beautiful 

hanging baskets and gorgeous mixed containers 

that are ready to brighten your porch for the 

spring. 

Not sure which plants that you need? We 

will have plenty of people that can help you 

with that. There will be numerous garden center 

employees, landscapers, and MSU experts 

available to help you out. Bring pictures of the 

area or container that you are buying plants for 

and know the amount of sunlight and shade 

that the area receives. These are very important 

things to know when shopping for plants. 

And don’t worry about what to do with all 

your purchases. There will be a customer 

holding area available where you can in the 

products that you buy and continue shopping 

without having to carry your purchases around. 

Once you are finished shopping, you can drive 

around to the back and have your purchases 

loaded in your vehicle. It’s like valet for your 

plants! 

__________________________________________ 

Visit our web page www.msnla.org, find us 

on Facebook, or call 601-919-8111 for more 

information on the 2016 Garden Extravaganza. 

Like us on Facebook for a chance to win tickets— 

Mississippi Garden & Patio Shows! 


2016 

d i x i e 

n a t i o n a l 

Livestock Show & 


It’s that time of year again! 

Time when cowboys and cowgirls from all over the 

nation descend upon Mississippi’s capital city for the 

annual Dixie National Livestock Show and Rodeo. 

During the month of February, The Dixie National brings 

with it a variety of programs and activities that take 

place to educate, entertain, and engage participants and 

onlookers alike. The 51st annual livestock show kicks off 

January 30 and runs through February 23. 

The Dixie National Rodeo is the largest professional 

rodeo east of the Mississippi River. It is produced by 

Smith, Harper, and Morgan Rodeo Company, hosted by 

the Mississippi Fair Commission in Jackson, Mississippi, 

and has been nominated as one of the Top 5 Large Indoor 

Rodeos of The Year for the past five years. This award is 

voted on by the cowboys in the Professional Rodeo 

Cowboy Association (PRCA). 

The rodeo kicks off February 11 and goes through 

February 17 in the Mississippi Coliseum. Special 

entertainers are featured each day of the rodeo and 

include Easton Corbin, Maddie & Tae, John Anderson, 

Joe Diffie, Frankie Ballard, 38 Special, and Tyler Farr. 

Tickets may be purchased through Ticketmaster at the 

coliseum box office. 

The Dixie National Quarter Horse Show, the Southern 

Classic, is the premier event of the Mississippi Quarter 

Horse Association. Also held in February on the state 

fairgrounds, it is the largest quarter horse show held 

during a stock show in the nation. 

The national exposure the quarter horse show 

receives makes it a gathering place for the top horses 

in the country and a field day for spectators. With 

an average audience of over 4500, the Friday night 

free-style reining is the most crowd pleasing class 

and demonstrates the great physical ability of the 

American Quarter Horse. The Southern Classic dates 

are February 16-21. 

The Dixie National Equine Expo, the largest equine 

related trade show in the south, runs in conjunction with 

the quarter horse show. It features everything imaginable 

for the equine enthusiast. With over 65,000 sq. ft. of 

shopping, the Equine Expo is located inside the 

Mississippi Trade Mart on the fairgrounds. With vendors 

from across the nation, the latest fashions, trends and 

shopping will all be under one roof. It is one of the 

largest equine tradeshows in the Southeast. The Equine 

Expo is February 17-21. 


First Baptist 

Brandon 

Garage Sale 

for International Missions 

February 12-13, 2016 

FBC Brandon’s College Street Gym 

Preview Friday 6am-8am $5 

Sale 8am-2pm Free Admission 

Saturday 6am-2pm 


Affordable Tuition 

Flexible Schedules 

• Day • Evening • Online 

Programs & Options 

• Academic classes guaranteed to 

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• Honors Program 

• Career and technical programs 

• Nursing Programs 

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Earn college credit while in high school 

• Adult Education 

• Workforce Training 

•Small Business Development Center 

Rankin Campus 

3805 Hwy. 80 East, Pearl 

601.936.5552 | www.hindscc.edu 

Hinds Community College offers equal education and employment opportunities and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, age, disability or veteran status in its programs 

and activities. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding the non-discrimination policies: Dr. Debra Mays-Jackson, Vice President for the Utica and Vicksburg-Warren Campuses and 

Administrative Services, 34175 Hwy. 18, Utica, MS 39175; 601.885.7002. 



Remaining 

FaithfulJill Dale 

As a writer, I’ve written many stories and 

articles on various subjects. I wrote procedure 

manuals and procedure documents on web 

applications and other application processes 

for a few years. I then began writing for the 

agent magazine that is distributed to the 

agency force of Southern Farm Bureau Life 

Insurance Company. I remember reading 

trade magazines and hearing the stories 

about the importance of life insurance and 

what it means to a family. I would listen to 

agents talk about delivering the death claim 

check and how hard that was, but also the 

relief and comfort it brought to a husband, 

wife or mother or father. Never did I think 

I would become the story I read about and 

wrote about. 

As I sat Sunday morning, two days after 

my son died, I reflected on this and how life 

has a weird way of playing out. I stared at a 

blank document on my computer. I’ve never 

been at a loss for words when it comes to 

writing, but now I was. The hardest thing I 

have ever written would be the obituary of 

my 5 year old son, Campbell Grady Dale. 

How would I condense his life, his impact 

into a brief obituary? How do I tell the world 

what an amazing, phenomenal boy Campbell 

was? How do I tell people about his love for 

his friends at the hospital, for his family, for 

his twin sister and especially for his Father in 

heaven…the one he trusted to take care of 

him and heal him forever of his cancer? 

What would I most want people to know 

about the most amazing boy who called me 

mom and David dad? I think it could be 

summed up with this–he fought a brave 

battle against a fierce enemy and the ultimate 

Victor won, the One who wins every battle 

against death, every, single time. Campbell 

believed that God would heal him of his 

cancer, and He did. He may not have healed 

him in the way we wanted, but He healed 

him according to His perfect will, His perfect 

plan for Campbell’s life and for ours. 

From the first day Campbell was diagnosed, 

we laid him at our Father’s feet. We knew it 

would take a miracle to heal him. The odds 

were stacked against him, but we were ready 

to fight. Our prayer was always that “Thy will 

be done” whatever that may be. As we went 

through the original treatment protocol 

beginning in February 2014 of 54 weeks of 

intense chemotherapy and 24 days of 

radiation, we trusted God with each step, 

with each decision that we made. When 

Campbell’s cancer returned in April 2015, 

we continued to trust Him and His plan for 

his life. When we received the heartbreaking 

news on August 17, 2015 that our doctors had 

done everything that they could to heal him 

here on earth, we continued to trust Him. 

We always knew Campbell would be 

healed, but now we knew that healing would 

come in heaven and not here on earth. As 

the words began to flow, so did the tears as 

I reflected on what most would consider a 

short life. His life may appear short to the 

normal person, but the impact he had and 

continues to have will be felt for years to 

come. He lived the exact amount of time 

God had ordained as He knit him together 

in my womb…not a day more or a day less. 

Hometown madison • 77

The following narrative tells the arduous 

story of the Dale family’s journey with 

cancer. Jill Dale made regular journal 

entries about the journey on CaringBridge. 

org. This includes excerpts of Jill’s posts as 

compiled by Susan Marquez. 

Snips and snails and puppy dog tails, 

that’s what little boys are made of. Campbell 

Dale was a normal little boy in every way. 

Spirited. Curious. Exuberant. At least, until 

he began having issues with constipation one 

weekend. The series of events that followed 

became a journey of heartbreak tempered 

with faith and love. 

“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, 

for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; 

I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” 

– Isaiah 41:10 

“My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made 

perfect in weakness.” – 2 Corinthians 12:9 

February 12, 2014 was a day the Dale 

family will never forget, for that was the day 

life as they knew it forever changed. “We had 

not noticed anything abnormal over the 

weekend,” his mom, Jill Dale, wrote on the 

overview of the family’s CaringBridge site. 

“Campbell had been constipated a little, but 

nothing unusual. On Monday, February 10, 

he went to school like normal.” Yet the 

four-year-old still complained about being 

constipated. An enema, a trip to the doctor, 

and a couple of rounds of Miralax later, 

Campbell’s temperature was climbing and 

his belly was swollen. His doctor sent them 

to a Radiology group to get an X-ray done. 

When that came back inconclusive, a CT 

scan revealed a mass in the boy’s abdomen. 

“We were immediately sent to Blair E. 

Batson Hospital for Children where we were 

admitted at 5:30pm. After running more 

tests on Thursday, we sat down with our 

doctors and were told our son had a mass in 

his belly that needed to be removed. It could be 

anything from lymphoma, to neuroblastoma, 

to a taratoma or rhabdomyosarcoma (at this 

time rhabdo was toward the bottom of the 

list).” On Friday, surgeons were able to remove 

a 4 1/2 to 5 inch mass from his abdomen. 

The mass was sent to a pathology lab and on 

February 19, the family learned that Campbell 

had been diagnosed with rhabdomyosarcoma, 

a rare form of cancer of the tissue. “They were 

able to remove all of his tumor, but of course, 

there were what they call studs left. We were 

scheduled immediately for a bone scan and 

PET scan for Monday, Feb. 24th. On Tuesday 

the 25th, a bone marrow aspiration was done 

along with the placement of a chemo port. 

The preliminary results from the bone scan 

and PET scan came back favorable meaning 

it had not spread to the bones or other organs. 

That Tuesday at 5:00, we were told that our 

son has Stage IV rhabdomyosarcoma and 

they had found a spot in his bone marrow.” 

Campbell’s parents, David and Jill, were 

told the road before them would be difficult 

and hard. “We didn’t want to know the success 

rate, that didn’t matter to us,” Jill wrote. “All 

that mattered was ‘Can we beat this?’” The 

chemo regimen would be aggressive, radiation 

would be needed and 54 weeks is what it will 

take. “As I laid my head on the table and cried 

more than I have in two weeks, I didn’t think 

I would be able to walk out of the room. So 

David and I looked at each other, signed the 

papers to begin treatment and told the doctor 

to do whatever needed to be done to save our 

son. The one thing that stood out in my mind 

was David telling the doctor we know the 

Great Physician (Jehovah Rapha) can heal 

Campbell, not doctors or medicine…HE 

provides the means to do it. So we called our 

family in to tell them. The road before us 

might be difficult, but we were determined 

not to lie down and give up. We were in the 

fight of our lives and we were confident that 

Campbell would beat this.” 

The family resolved to bathe themselves 

in scripture and pray continuously without 

ceasing. 

“But those who hope in the LORD will renew 

their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; 

they will run and not grow weary, they will walk 

and not be patient.” – Isaiah 40: 29-31 

Campbell’s first chemotherapy treatment 

began on Wednesday, February 26. All went 

well. He actually slept through the first 

treatment (he had been given some medicine 

to calm him after a rough morning so he slept 

all afternoon). The treatment started with 

two drugs, Irinotecan and Vincristinem. The 

Irinotecan was scheduled for five days straight. 

Campbell’s twin sister, Avery (aka ‘’Shu”) 

visited, and the children watched movies and 

ate Chick-fil-A together. At the time, Jill was 

reading a book, “The Red Sea Rules,” given 

to hear by a woman at church. “I have found 

so much wisdom and guidance in this book,” 

Jill wrote. “Meditating on the truths in it has 

brought so much peace: ‘So take a deep 

breath and recall this deeper secret of the 

Christian life: when you are in a difficult 

place, realize that the Lord either placed you 

there or allowed you to be there for reasons 

perhaps known for now only to Himself. 

The same God who led you in, will lead you 

out.’ So we trust in this and we know that 

HE will make a way. We don’t understand 

why we are enduring this trial and may never 

know while we are here on this earth, but we 

know that the same God who paved the road 

before us will walk beside us down this road 

every step of the way. Mine and David’s 

prayer throughout this entire journey is that 

God will be glorified in everything. Don’t 

worry about anything; instead pray about 

everything and don’t forget to thank God for 

His answers.” 


“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every 

situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, 

present your requests to God.” – Philippians 4:6 

On March 3, after 5 days of treatment, 

Campbell was released to go home. “We 

were all very thankful to be going home to 

our familiar territory, routine, food, etc. “ 

Like most children, Campbell was a creature 

of habit. He thrived in his own environment. 

“We will return to the clinic for our post op 

appointment at 8:40 Thursday morning and 

then our first outpatient treatment will be at 

12:30 on Thursday. We will continue to do 

outpatient for treatment weeks two through 

five, barring Campbell doesn’t get fever or 

sick, which would put us back in the hospital. 

David and I have decided that each day we 

would find at least one thing to give God 

praise for...we are thankful and blessed to get 

the opportunity to do that each day of 

treatment. Each morning, our prayer is that 

Campbell’s side effects from treatment 

would be minimum or NOT AT ALL. 

We boldly pray for not at all. I am constantly 

reminded to experience true joy in each and 

every moment of the day and cherish the 

time God gives me with my family.” 

“I will extol the Lord at all times; HIS praise will 

always be on my lips.” –Psalm 34:1 

“Our bold prayer is that at six weeks, 

when Campbell has his first evaluation, that 

they will find no cancer. We know this is a 

bold request, but our God is bigger than cancer 

and we know HE hears each and every request 

we offer up to HIM. Our other request is 

that the side effects from the chemo will be 

minimum or none at all. Thank you again for 

all of your prayers, love and support. We are 

praying without ceasing that Campbell will be 

completely healed…his story is not finished.” 

Throughout the treatment, Jill and David 

sought moments of normalcy for their children. 

About a month after he was diagnosed, 

Campbell was able to return to Trinity 

Preschool for a brief moment to enjoy Fairy 

Tale Day. He dressed as a pirate, and his 

twin sister, Avery, dressed as Rapunzel. A few 

days later, Jill arranged a photo session with 

photographer Allison Muirhead. “Our 

friendship/relationship with Allison goes 

back 7 years. She took our wedding pictures, 

newborn pictures, first year pictures and many 

other pictures since, of the twins and our family. 

I knew there was no one else I wanted to take 

these very special pictures and capture our 

family as only she can. Because we don’t know 

what the future holds for our family, we wanted 

to have memories of what we were before 

chemo/radiation.” 

Radiation…such a scary word. “It’s one I 

never thought I would speak of, especially 

pertaining to my child.” A meeting with 

doctors revealed that Campbell was 

unfortunately not a candidate for the proton 

therapy the family had hoped for. “Because 

of the rare location of his Rhabdo (in the 

abdomen) and the studs that were left from 

surgery, the proton therapy will not work. 

Without getting too detailed, proton therapy 

hits the tumor (or cancer cells) with radiation. 

Because Campbell’s cells are probably so 

small, there is no way to know what to hit 

and you can’t just hit thin air and hope you 

are hitting the possible cancer cells remaining. 

In his case, you can’t hope, you have to 

know for certain that the radiation is hitting 

what it is supposed to so that it won’t come 

back. So, the only way to do that is to radiate 

his entire abdomen.” The good news is the 

radiation could be done at UMC. The bad 

news would be the toll it would take on 

Campbell. The side effects from radiation 

will be worse since it is targeting his abdomen… 

nausea, vomiting, intestinal issues (because 

the intestines do not like radiation), etc. He 

will be put to sleep every day for five days a 

week for five weeks (because of his age and 

the need to be completely still he has to be 

put to sleep). He will also be receiving chemo 

throughout radiation. We are scared, we are 

nervous and we worry about the many side 

effects to come. Secondary cancer is a big 

one. We know that God provides the wisdom 

and tools to the doctors to do their jobs so 

we signed the papers once again and said do 

whatever you have to in order to save his life 

and give him a chance at living a long, full life.” 

The toll on the entire family was hard. 

“I’m tired, we are tired and my heart aches 

for my four-year-old who doesn’t understand 

why we keep doing all of this to him. I don’t 

know if there has ever really been a time in 

my life where I cried out to God that I was 

so scared and I wasn’t sure I could keep 

going. As much as I feel we are fighting an 

uphill battle, HE reminded me that HE is 

right there, fighting the battle with us. Oh 

gosh how HE loves Campbell more than 

I do…HE loves him so much I can’t even 

fathom the depths of HIS love for him. So 

I release it to HIM, I release Campbell to 

HIM, trusting HIM to continue to carry us 

through on this journey.” 

“Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD 

is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the 

earth. HE will not grow tired or weary, and HIS 

understanding no one can fathom. HE gives strength 

to the weary and increases the power of the weak. 

Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men 

stumble and fall; but those who hope in the LORD 

will renew their strength. They will soar on wings 

like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they 

will walk and not be faint.” –Isaiah 40:28 

“From the fullness of HIS grace we have all received 

one blessing after another.” –John 1:16 

By January, Campbell’s little body was 

struggling from the effects of the radiation. 

“I’m going to be honest (and David and I 

have always said from day one of this journey, 

we would never sugarcoat it to make it more 

pleasant because honestly there aren’t a lot of 

days I count as pleasant). November and 

December were rough months for us.” It was 


week 42, and the radiation had an adverse 

effect on Campbell’s bladder, necessitating 

the insertion of stents. During that procedure, 

it was determined there were muted cancer 

cells in Campbell’s bladder. “My emotions 

have been all over the map lately and this fear 

has taken hold of my heart and my life once 

again. I would love to say that I have it all 

together and all figured out and we are 

managing well, but that’s a lie. I am scared 

of what my son’s future looks like…what our 

future as a family looks like. In the weeks 

since, I have experienced a flood of emotions, 

but through it all, I have felt God’s presence, 

HIS Peace that surpasses all understanding 

and daily gentle reminders that HE is still on 

HIS throne, HE has Campbell, us, all of us, in 

the palm of HIS Hand. And I’m reminded of 

that great hymn, ‘It is Well With My Soul.’ 

I love the words and how comforting that 

those words written so many years ago are 

still so true, so relevant to my life, to all of 

our lives today. I love Kristene DeMarco’s 

(Bethel Music) worshipful rendition of it 

and find myself listening to it daily.” 

With nine weeks left of chemo, David and 

Jill began to look forward to week number 54. 

That’s when a scan would be performed to 

determine if the cancer was in remission. 

All along, family, friends, church members, 

neighbors, co-workers and others pulled 

together to feed the Dale family literally and 

spiritually. The family was provided with meals, 

cards, ‘happies’ and more which let them 

know that they were not alone on their 

journey. 

“Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love, 

that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.” 

–Psalm 90:14 

The final week of chemo came on week 

51, one year into the journey that began with 

Campbell’s diagnosis of cancer. Jill was 

reflective in her CaringBridge post: “I think 

about how this is definitely not how I 

pictured my life, especially after having kids. 

Through this year, I am learning to not take 

life for granted, but to hold on to every 

second and to make sure that I make every 

day count for HIS Kingdom, as that is my 

sole purpose here on earth: to be in so close 

fellowship with HIM that HE reveals 

HIMSELF to me. That I am open to what 

HE is teaching me, showing me and that my 

life will be a reflection of HIM and will draw 

others to HIM, because that is what life is all 

about, living a life that glorifies HIM so that 

others will come to know HIM as their 

Savior. What a huge responsibility, but what 

a glorious, magnificent thing. I never would 

have thought cancer would teach me so 

much and bring me so far down that the only 

way to rise up is reaching and grasping HIS 

hand. That’s what we are doing, we grasp and 

we hold on as tight as we can because I never 

want HIM to let me go. To face a monster 

like cancer without a Savior, well, I cannot 

even imagine. People ask David and me how 

we do it, but I really don’t think we do it. We 

do the only thing we know, which is to pray 

and trust that HE knows better than us what 

is best for us and for Campbell. I don’t think 

God makes people get cancer. It’s easy to 

blame Him when something bad happens. I 

think because of the sinful world we live in, 

death, disease, immorality, etc. is a part of this 

world. It makes us hope for something better, 

a place where there will be no death, disease, 

sin. What a magnificent thing, I mean can 

you imagine living somewhere like that for all 

eternity? That’s why I have hope, because 

this life is not the end for me, for Campbell, 

for all those who believe. A better place is 

waiting and if Campbell gets there before 

me, well what a glorious reunion that will be. 

He can sit at Jesus’ feet and wait for me to 

join him. No, I don’t want my child to die, 

but no one does so I have to trust and believe 

that God will heal him and he will live a long, 

full, healthy life.” 

In May, the Dale family prepared 

themselves for twelve three-week rounds of 

chemo, 36 weeks with no break in between. 

Campbell’s cancer had returned. “People 

always ask how we do this day in and day out. 

The answer is I just don’t know. There are 

days that I am a blubbering mess and other 

days where I forget this reality and our life 

feels a little “normal” whatever that is. I 

remember vividly having a bad day almost 2 

weeks ago, bad enough that I was hyperventilating 

and I couldn’t control the tears, the 

anger or the emotions. Thinking about all 

these things and being mad at God and 

being mad at the world and not understanding 

why my son was suffering so much. David 

came home that night and reassured me that 

it was going to all be okay. He said no matter 

what, we were going to be okay (it’s funny 

how God puts two people together – we are 

so different, but yet our strengths and 

weaknesses cancel each other out…God knew 

that when he brought us together nine years 

ago). After spending much time in prayer 

that Tuesday night and basically crying and 

praying on my knees at the foot of my child’s 

bed (although this has become a regular scene 

for the past 15 months), the next morning 

I felt this peace wash over me and it has been 

with me ever since. I know that was and is 

God saying trust ME, love ME, look to 

ME…I’ve got this. I have carried you this far 

and will continue to carry you until the end 

when you join ME in Heaven. HE continues 

to give me, give us, a peace that surpasses all 

of our understanding, strength to endure and 

hope for tomorrow. Chemo starts tomorrow 

(Monday). We are ready to fight and win. 

We don’t know what the next 36 weeks 

looks like.” 


“Yet I am always with you, you hold me by my right 

hand. YOU guide me with your counsel, and 

afterward you will take me into glory. Whom have I 

in heaven but YOU? And earth has nothing I desire 

but YOU. My flesh and my heart may fail, but GOD 

is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.” 

–Psalm 73:23-26 

Those weeks were difficult for Campbell 

and for his family. Jill went through all range 

of emotions, including anger and helplessness. 

“I don’t understand why these kids get 

cancer, fight so hard and then lose the fight. 

I think it is something I may always struggle 

with (another question for that day when I 

get to Heaven). I want more than anything 

else in this world for my child to beat this 

cancer. I know the odds are stacked against 

him and there is literally nothing that neither 

I nor David can do to change that. I want to 

control the outcome. I want to control how 

he responds to chemo. I want to control 

every last part of it, and I can’t. I simply have 

to let it go, lay it down at my Savior’s feet and 

remember that Campbell is not mine. He is 

only a gift to love and nurture and point him 

to the One who loves him more than I do. 

What a tall order, but what a gift we’ve been 

given. More than anything else in this world, 

I want him to know God, to know Christ as 

we do, a loving Savior that died so that we 

might live. But really, isn’t that what life is all 

about for all of us?” 

I have told you these things, so that in me you may have 

peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take 

heart! I have overcome the world.” –John 16:33 

By mid September, Campbell was fading. 

“I’ve cried many tears in the past few days, 

knowing that Campbell is one day closer to 

being HOME. He sat up in bed last night 

and I was talking to him as he was drinking 

his apple juice. I asked him if he was tired, he 

nodded yes. I asked him if he was ready to go 

home and he said yes. I then asked him if he 

was ready to see Jesus. He nodded yes. I 

hugged him tight and told him, not much 

longer, and then told him that Jesus would 

take care of him and told him to wait for us. 

No one prepares you for this…there are 

no classes, no book to walk you through 

watching your child fight cancer and then 

watching the cancer take over their body. I 

don’t think there is any possible way to write 

a book about it or tell someone how to do it. 

You do it by experience and it’s an experience 

I wish we never had. David and I look at each 

other some days and feel like we are living in 

this alternate universe or something. It’s just 

a strange life we have these days. I think we 

just go through the motions, just trying to 

get through the day. There have been good 

moments during the day with Campbell and 

I cherish those. They are becoming few and 

far between though. He’s tired and has slept 

most of today. He’s on oxygen around the 

clock and we have tried to keep him as 

comfortable as possible with medication. 

He knows he is loved so very much and we 

kiss him and tell him that as much as we can. 

I think what is scary to me is not having him 

physically here to kiss and to touch. That’s 

what scares me and it’s something I have 

struggled with and have asked God many 

times during the day to give me comfort and 

peace in that.” 

As difficult as the journey was, there were 

blessings scattered all along the way for both 

Campbell and his family. Several people with 

the MSU alumni flew the family back and 

forth to Starkville on Aug 25th so that 

Campbell could be a Bulldog for a day. 

“We are grateful to so many people,” wrote 

Jill, “from the athletic department at MSU 

(the basketball team, the baseball team, the 

football team, Coach Mullen, Dak Prescott 

and Scott Strickland), to Allison Muirhead 

and John David Smith that captured so 

many memories for us that day.” The 

Make-A-Wish Foundation in Mississippi 

helped with that, as well as granting 

Campbell’s wish to go to Disney World. 

“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we 

are wasting away yet inwardly we are being renewed 

day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are 

achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs 

them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on 

what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what 

is unseen is eternal.” –2 Corinthians 4:16-18 

On September 18, 2015, just 11 days shy 

of his sixth birthday, Campbell Grady Dale 

passed away. “We are heartbroken and 

feeling an emptiness in our hearts because 

our precious Campbell is no longer here with 

us. We are rejoicing that he is now with his 

Savior, the one that loves him more than we 

can fathom or imagine. Oh to witness that 

sweet, precious reunion when he ran into his 

Daddy’s arms and to look upon HIS glorious 

face and hear HIM say, “Well done my good 

and faithful servant. Now come and rest.” 

We look forward to the day when we will be 

reunited and we can worship our Father 

together at HIS feet.” 

“I am the Lord who comforts HIS people and will 

have compassion on HIS afflicted ones. You can 

transcend your troubles because I am both powerful 

and compassionate.” –Jesus Today by Sarah Young 

“I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and 

the End,” says the Lord, “who is and who was and who 

is to come, the Almighty.” –Revelations 1:8 n 


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Serving our county 

Sheriff Deputy Wade Spencer 

rankin county sheriff's Department 

How long have you been with the 

Rankin County Sheriff’s Department? 

Two and a half years. 

What do you enjoy most about your 

typical day? 

Getting to work with the guys on my shift. 

What is the toughest thing you have 

experienced as a deputy? 

Anytime someone loses a family member 

unexpectedly. 

What did it mean to you to be named 

Deputy of the Year? 

Rankin County probably has the best 

group of deputies in the state, so to win 

this award is definitely something that I will 

never forget. 

Tell us about your family. 

I am married to Linsey Spencer. We have 

three children, Stella (2 yrs. old) Brendan 

(11 yrs. old) and Easton (2 months). 

Share some things that you enjoy 

in your spare time. 

Watching football and playing with my kids. 

What are three things on your 

bucket list? 

Hunting trip to Kansas, go to a baseball 

game at Fenway Park, and take my 

children to Disney World. 

What do you consider your greatest 

achievement/accomplishment and 

why? 

The day I convinced my wife to marry me. 

Being the wife of a law enforcement 

officer is as hard as actually being one. 

Who is someone you admire 

and why? 

My dad. He has been in law enforcement 

for over 30 years and still loves every day 

of it. He would give the shirt off of his back 

for anyone that needs it. 

What is your favorite holiday and why? 

Thanksgiving. You get to see all of your 

family, but you don’t have to buy anyone 

presents! 

What is your favorite childhood 

memory? 

Playing baseball. 

What is the biggest mistake you 

think young people make today? 

Trying to grow up too early and too quickly. 

If you could give one piece of advice 

to a young person, what would it be? 

Go to college. Life will be much easier if 

you do. 

What is most rewarding about 

your job? 

Whenever I’m able to make a positive 

difference in someone’s life. 

Where do you see yourself ten years 

from now? 

Working right here. 

What’s your favorite thing about 


I’ve lived in other places around the state, 

and I’ve never seen a place that respects 

law enforcement quite like the citizens 

here. I can’t tell you how many times, 

since I’ve been here, that someone has 

gone out of their way to thank law 

enforcement for the job that they do. 


Kick Off The Season 

Alumni House Style 

Located inside the Holiday Inn-Trustmark Park 

110 Bass Pro Drive, Pearl 

With over 27 video stations all tuned to sports, you won’t 

miss a pass, punt or touchdown. Even if you’re not the 

world’s greatest sports fan, you can still have a lot of fun, 

and score some of the finest cuisine around, as well as a 

huge assortment of craft beers. Come on over! 

Join us for Happy Hour! Monday–Friday from 3 p.m. until 7 p.m. 

Lunch & Dinner: Mon–Sat: 11:00 am–10:00 pm • Sun: 11:00 am–9:00 pm 

Breakfast: 6:00-10:00 am, 7 days a week 

Phone ahead: 601-939-5238 • www.alumnihousepearl.com 


CELEBRATING 115 YEARS OF LASTING IMPRESSIONS 

No matter where our location – from above a Chinese Laundry, to East Pearl Street, 

to 500 Steed Road, our door is always open. 

Offering full-color printing to specialty finishes, to addressing postcards and providing 

complete variable one-to-one marketing campaigns, Hederman Brothers is your one door shop. 

If you are looking for a marketing partner and not just a print vendor, call Hederman 

Brothers at 601-853-7300 and let us open the door to creative and innovative solutions. 

PRINT 

CROSS 

DIRECT DIGITAL GREEN DESIGN 

MEDIA 

500 Steed Road • Post Office Box 6100 • Ridgeland, MS 39158 

601. 853. 7300 • f 601.853.7335 • www.hederman.com 


The CHALKBOARD 

rankin county Schools 

Northwest 

Northwest Rankin Middle School, in partnership with parents 

and community, is committed to providing all students with a 

challenging, quality education. Recognizing the uniqueness of 

each student, we will strive to produce lifelong learners who will 

be successful citizens in a rapidly changing society. 

With more than 850 students, each one is provided an 

opportunity to learn and participate in educational classes and 

extracurricular activities. NWRMS is an A-rated school with 

some of the highest state test grades in RCSD. 

“Student involvement is very important,” said Shea Taylor, 

principal. “We want every student to be involved in something.” 

Extracurricular activities include Cougar Choir, Jr. Beta Club, 

Theater, Future Business Leaders of America, Fellowship of 

Christian Athletes, Academic Team, Math Counts, Green Club, 

Science Bowl, Yearbook, Writing Club, cheerleading, and dance 

team and athletics. 

This year NWRMS received a $3,000 grant from Mississippi 

Department of Education for a community garden. Students will 

be constructing and planting four raised beds. The project was 

inspired by our summer reading book, “Counting by 7s,” written 

by Holly Goldberg Sloan. “We are hoping the garden will be an 

annual project that will teach students about healthy choices,” said 

Alice Rainwater, vice principal. 

As part of the RCSD initiative of 1:1 technology, NWRMS 

started an eighth-grade tech team to assist students and teachers 

with laptop technology. This 17-member team works ‘quick fixes’ 

that are needed and downloading software. By the 2017-2018 

school year all students, grades 7-12, will have a their own laptop. 

In December, students participated in an Hour of Code, a 

global initiative to introduce students to basic computer coding 

and introduce them to computer science. 

Pisgah 

Pisgah Elementary School is a rural kindergarten through sixth 

grade school located off of Hwy. 43 in north Rankin County. The 

school provides multiple opportunities for students to achieve 

skills to thrive in the twenty-first century, to attend college, be 

ready for the workplace, and be successful in the community. 

Pisgah Elementary School has an open-door policy to 

students, parents, and teachers, which creates a community spirit 

of cooperation. Students and faculty are honored at different 

events, as well as, parents and grandparents. These events are 

highly attended and foster community participation. 

Mrs. Michelle Land, a special education teacher, was recently 

named PES Teacher of the Year. She works diligently to accelerate 

learning for her students. 

Mrs. Susan Williford, PES music teacher, received a grant 

from Mississippi Professional Educators to begin a recorder club 

for her fifth grade students. 

Mrs. Misty Oster, Venture teacher, started the Jr. Beta Club 

last year. We are excited to have 54 members inducted this year, and 

these students participate in several community service projects. 

The goal of PES is to provide a safe and secure climate for all 

students who come to school to learn and succeed. A qualified, 

experienced staff works together to assure that the students are 

prepared to continue on their pathway to success through high 

school graduation. 

We are ready, we are respectful, we are responsible, and we are 

the pride of Pisgah! 

Follow us on Facebook or at www.rcsd.ms/pisgahes. 


Puckett 

Hometown Hero Gives Hope 

Puckett Elementary School fifth and sixth grade students 

recently received words of wisdom from Dr. Tom Burnham when 

he spoke to them about having goals for being college and career 

ready. The idea of getting him to visit the students came from 

reading about his recent recognition by Hinds Community 

College as Alumni of the Year. It was in the interview that Dr. 

Burnham shared about his own initial challenge in college; how 

homesick he was when he first went to Hinds because he was 

from Puckett, a small, close knit community. 

In hearing his story, we knew our students at Puckett needed to 

hear from one of their own about his journey through college and 

the foundation it gave him for a successful career in education; 

one he only had a glint in his eye about when he was their age. 

Being a Puckett graduate, Dr. Burnham had an inspiring heart 

to heart conversation with the fifth and sixth grade students 

about how they can show the rest of the state and nation the 

quality of students that are from Puckett and Rankin County 

by setting goals and committing to them. He spoke about how 

important having goals is and how committing to those goals 

is what truly makes someone successful. During his visit, our 

students heard about his personal journey, like what made him 

stick to it during those years in college when he pumped gas at 

nights and attended classes during the day. Our hometown hero 

also shared with students that the best preparation for his success 

was doing his best each day at everything he did. Dr. Burnham 

challenged the students to re-read the Dr. Seuss book titled 

Oh, the Places You’ll Go! and relate it to the importance of completing 

college and believing in themselves to have the courage to go after 

their life goals. 

Our hometown hero gave much more than a speech. He gave 

hope! 

Richland 

At Richland High School, we make it a priority to reward 

deserving students. Our school has offered two major incentives 

for students who have met the PBIS school standards thus far. 

After the completion of the first nine weeks, RHS held a Perfect 

Attendance Celebration for students who hadn’t missed a day of 

school, nor had any sort of tardy or checkout. 

El Ranchito, a local Mexican Restaurant and school sponsor, 

joined efforts with the school and provided a lunch buffet for 147 

students who qualified for the recognition. In addition to a 

celebratory meal provided, numerous drawings for gift cards were 

awarded to students. The student response was overwhelming, 

and there was an outpouring of appreciation from students who 

partook in the event. It goes without saying, there are several 

students striving to keep their perfect attendance. 

The largest reward for our students is Field Day, which is held 

once a semester. The first one was held in early November on the 

RHS football field and over 600 students were awarded. In 

order for students to be eligible to attend, they must meet the 

following expectations: Five or less absences, three or less tardies, 

no F’s on their report card, and zero major discipline infractions. 

While at Field Day, students were able to use their accumulated 

PBIS tickets to purchase an array of food items or enter multiple 

drawings. At the close of Field Day, the school held numerous 

prize drawings for gifts such as, Dr. Dre’ Beats, two mini iPads, 

t-shirts, and gift cards. 

Submissions provided by local officials from each individual district and not to be considered editorial opinion. 


The CHALKBOARD 

rankin county Schools 

McLaurin 

The McLaurin High School Beta Club joined with McLaurin’s 

JROTC and the Star Woman’s Club on November 11, 2015 to 

host a Veteran’s Day Breakfast for the community. 

The breakfast for local veterans and their families was a 

student-initiated idea. This event was planned and coordinated by 

a student committee that won a service project idea contest at the 

Mississippi Fall Beta Leadership Summit in Biloxi. The students 

were selected from all of the schools at the summit to present their 

idea at the National Beta Club Convention in New Orleans in 

June 2016. They were the only school from RCSD selected. 

Over twenty local veterans attended the event and were honored 

at the Veteran’s Day program hosted by the JROTC. The guest 

speaker was LTC Danny Knight. Knight is a McLaurin graduate 

who is a lead instructor in the McLaurin JROTC program. During 

Knight’s address he stated that, “Most veterans do not expect great 

rewards or accolades for their service. All they really expect is a 

word of thanks or gratitude. Thank You, two words, eight simple 

letters. We take these words for granted. We say it when someone 

opens a door for us or helps us at a store. We say it so often it loses 

its value. However, today, this Veteran’s Day I ask you to say it with 

great meaning to a veteran that you know or come into contact 

with. It means a great deal to know that the American people we 

all chose to defend appreciate our service!” 

Following the program, the veterans greeted every McLaurin 

student as they left. Hugs and tears were accompanied by grateful 

hearts and the students expressed their appreciation for their 

dedicated service. 

JROTC Awards this year: 1st, 2nd, 3rd place finish at the 

Alcorn State University Magnolia Challenge Raider Competition 

in DEC 2015; Superior Cadet Awards for 2015: 

Keeley Wilkinson (12th grade) -Jonah Burroughs (11th grade) 

-Victoria Sprayberry (10th grade) -Justin Coke (9th grade); 

JROTC Program Accreditation Inspection-Honor Unit with 

Distinction (November 2015) 

Beta Awards this year: Junior and senior high Beta traveled to 

Biloxi in the fall for the Fall Leadership Conference. During the 

conference, both Beta clubs got to learn leadership skills and get 

to know Betas from all over the state. Both groups received 

distinguished leadership service awards at the conference. The 

junior Betas presented a Backpack Buddy program in service 

project completion and was selected to present at national 

conference in New Orleans this summer. 

The senior Betas presented a Veteran’s Day project and it, too, 

was chosen to be presented this summer. Both groups qualified 

McLaurin for Beta School of Distinction due to the tremendous 

growth of our club membership. 

JROTC Instructors – LTC Knight, SGM Fitts 

Beta Sponsors – Kris Morris, D.C. Knight 

88 • February/March 2016 

Submissions provided by local officials from each individual district and not to be considered editorial opinion.

FORMAT 

• 4-person Scramble 

• Shotgun start - 1:00 pm 

EACH PLAYER RECEIVES 

• 18 holes of golf with 

cart and range balls 

• Lunch 

• Goodie Bag 

Rankin County Chamber 

Golf Classic 

Thursday, March 17, 2016 

The Refuge, Flowood 

PRIZES 

• Top 3 Teams 

• Hole-In-One Chances 

• Closest-to-the-Pin 

• Longest Drive 

• Door Prizes 

www.rankinchamber.com 

To register your team or for more 

information www.rankinchamber.com 

call Rankin Chamber 

office at 601-825-2268 


Camille Anding 

The Time Coin 

Sally pulled out her sharpest red 

crayon and rolled it between her 

fingers as she contemplated her 

teacher’s instructions to make a valentine. 

The studious third grader couldn’t decide 

where or how to begin. It wasn’t that Sally 

didn’t understand the meaning of valentines, 

but they certainly meant more than pink 

construction paper and red glitter. 

Some valentines were extravagant – like the ruby ring her dad had 

given to her mother. It was the perfect color for Valentine’s Day and 

surely pleased her mother. “We can’t afford this,” her mother kept saying, 

but it was a perfect fit and dazzled in the light, like her mom’s smile. 

Sally knew it must be a treasured and costly valentine. It was a special 

lesson for Sally to learn. Love is extravagant. 

When valentines can’t be extravagant, they can be creative. Sally loved 

the story her mother told her about the time Sally’s parents were dating. 

“We were in college and didn’t have any extra money. Your dad appeared 

at my dorm with a large piece of cardboard – but he had attached all sorts 

of candy to it in the shape of a giant heart. All my friends were envious 

of his thoughtfulness and creativity.” 

The classroom had grown quiet as all the 

students were busy creating the perfect 

valentine – all except Sally. She was still 

pondering the “what kind” and “how” of her 

valentine. She would always remember the 

Valentine’s dinner her mom had served. There 

was candlelight with their fine china, chicken 

strips with valentine-red catsup, pink creamed 

potatoes and homemade pink rolls with pink 

lemonade. She even brought out strawberry cake for dessert. You could 

never put a special valentine like that in an envelope or box. Sally so 

wanted her valentine to be creative like her mom’s. 

The years passed and time translated Sally into a mother with a 

family of her own. Change hadn’t always been good. She was sorting 

through her parents’ belongings with only their memories present. 

She opened a box brimming with cards and letters. There in the midst 

of her mother’s keepsakes was the valentine Sally had made as a third 

grader. The pink heart was still edged in red glitter with Sally’s message: 

I will love you forever and for always. Love, Sally. 

Extravagant? No. Creative? Not really. A treasure? Most definitely. 

Sally had given her most precious and inestimable wealth – her 

forever love. 

“And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest 

of these is love.” n 


February 27th 7pm 11pm 

Supporting the 

UMMC Alliance 

The Lake House 

135 Madison Landing Circle 

Ridgeland, MS 

For more information: ummc-alliance@umc.edu 

To purchase tickets: www.umc.edu/affluentaffair 


Because there’s Merit 

in faster care. 

In a medical emergency, every minute matters. So, at Merit Health, you’ll 

find faster care in the emergency room. We work diligently 

to have you initially seen by a medical professional* in 30 minutes – 

or less. And, with a team of dedicated medical specialists, we can provide a 

lot more care, if you need it. 

The 30-Minutes-Or-Less E.R. Service Pledge – at Merit Health. 

Central 

Madison 

Rankin 

River Oaks 

River Region 

*Medical professionals may include physicians, physician assistants and nurse practitioners. 

92 • June 2015 

MyMeritHealth.com

Hometown Rankin - February & March 2016

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