Clinton518web

volume 5 number 2
MAY 2018
5
CELEBRATING FIVE YEARS
HOMETOWN MAGAZINES
5
CELEBRATING FIVE YEARS
HOMETOWN MAGAZINES
Proclaimers of Peace
________________________
Posh Design Shoppe
________________________
Keeping it in the Family

PUBLISHER & EDITOR
Tahya A. Dobbs
CFO
Kevin W. Dobbs
CONSULTING EDITOR
Mary Ann Kirby
ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE
Karla Johnson
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
Camille Anding
Elizabeth Bennett
Mary Ann Kirby
Sherry Lucas
Abigail Walker
STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Othel Anding
CONTRIBUTING
PHOTOGRAPHERS
Lee Anne Culp
ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT
Alisha Floyd
SPECIAL PROJECTS MANAGER
Brenda McCall
SPECIAL PROJECT ASSISTANT
Elise Sears
LAYOUT DESIGN
Daniel Thomas - 3dt
• • •
www.facebook.com/
Hometown-Clinton-Magazine
It’s always a special publication for me when we celebrate our mothers and fathers.
Those two calendar dates make May and June standout months.
Of course, I always think of my own parents, but I have a second set of parents (at least
it felt that way). It was Grandmother and Granddaddy.
We lived on a steep hill, and my grandparents lived adjacent to us on another hill.
My brother and I made lots and lots of tracks between our home and theirs. If my mother’s
menu didn’t fully satisfy, I just visited my grandparents where there were always some
favorites on their stovetop.
Granddaddy’s 6’2” frame was a picture of strength to me, but he was full of gentleness.
His sun-tanned arms carried me through miles of my early childhood.
As photographers, my parents spent most Saturday afternoons and nights at weddings and
receptions. My grandparents were the next-door babysitters for us. That meant my brother
and I had the opportunity to enjoy Grandmother’s Saturday night meals and Granddaddy’s
stories while sitting in his lap.
I can only celebrate that special couple in memories now. I’m
sure that’s why I love meeting people and sharing stories of families
and relationships that God is so gracious to place in our lives.
Hometown Magazines continues to be grateful to our advertisers
and readers, giving us opportunity to celebrate and remember
the people that make our lives special.
For subscription information
visit www.htmags.com
Contact us at info@HTMags.com
601.706.4059
26 Eastgate Drive, Suite F
Brandon MS 39042
• • •
Hometown Clinton is published by Hometown
Magazines. All rights reserved. No portion of
Hometown Clinton may be reproduced without
written permission from the publisher.
The management of Hometown Clinton is not
responsible for opinions expressed by its writers
or editors. All communications sent to our editorial
staff are subject to publication and the unrestricted
right to be refused, or to be edited and/or editorially
commented on. All advertisements are subject to
approval by the publisher. The production of
Hometown Clinton is funded by advertising.
In this issue The Way We Were 6
Creative Energy & Drive 12
Proclaimers of Peace 16
Posh Design Shoppe 20
Keeping it in the Family 26
18 Summers 28
Sharpen Up with Brittany Wagner 32
Coaster Crusaders 40
Sharing a Smile 46
Hometown Clinton • 3

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Hometown Clinton • 5

The way
WE were
Marijane & Melvin Whitfield
Elizabeth Bennett
Melvin and Marijane Whitfield
have been Clintonians since the
1960s. Their college days brought
them to the city of Clinton and
they haven’t desired to leave since.
Melvin Whitfield was born on
February 26, 1947 and grew up in
Pascagoula, Mississippi. He attended
Pascagoula High School and
Mississippi College and received
his Bachelor of Science in Education
majoring in History and played
baseball all throughout college.
He was the catcher, team captain
junior and senior years and his
batting average was .403. He
graduated from Mississippi College
in 1969. He goes by “Whitfield” to
most everyone who knows him.
Marijane was born on April 8,
1946. She grew up in Jackson and
attended Forest Hill High School
and Mississippi College. At
Mississippi College she majored in
art, graduating with her bachelor’s
degree in 1967. She later received
a Master’s in Art Education at
Mississippi College.
The Whitfield’s first met in the
spring of 1966 at Mississippi College
in art class. He was 20 and she was
19. “Dr. Sam Gore asked Whitfield
to model in one of our drawing
classes. I liked what I saw! But we
actually didn’t date until December,
when we were both in the musical
The Music Man at Mississippi College,”
said Marijane.
The Whitfields had different
signs that they were meant for each
other. “When I modeled for the
class, she complimented my hands.
I looked at them in the mirror all
that summer when I got home.
Plus, my mama liked her! I had
described this girl I met when
I talked to Mama on the phone.
I had noticed all that white blonde
hair and her sense of humor. Then,
when Richard Roper coerced me
into moving stage equipment for
The Music Man, the die was cast,”
said Whitfield.
Marijane was the one to make
the first move. “I asked him on the
first date. I had made up my mind
that the next boy that called would
be the one I would invite to go with
me to a play at the school where I was
student teaching. It was Whitfield,
and as they say, the rest is history!
Plus, he just wouldn’t give up!” said
Marijane.
They had a whirlwind romance
in which they married six months
after they began dating. They got
married at Mynelle Gardens in
Jackson on July 1, 1967. Marijane’s
father had a heart attack three weeks
before the wedding. He wasn’t able
to walk her down the aisle so her
brother-in-law gave her away.
The Whitfields were so young
and busy that they didn’t have time
for a honeymoon. Marijane had to
finish school and Whitfield was
playing semi-pro baseball and
working putting on roofs. However,
they did enjoy a trip to New Orleans
the next year, which was a first for
Marijane. The Whitfields’ first
home together was local artist Bob
Dunaway’s two room studio house
on Northside Drive.
Marijane taught art for 34 years,
most of it at Clinton Junior High
School. Whitfield taught and
coached baseball for three years,
then got into the flooring business,
eventually starting his own company,
Carpet Designs and Flooring, on
Northside Drive. Marijane retired in
2011 and Whitfield is still working.
The Whitfields like to reminisce
and joke about life as newlyweds
and early marriage versus now.
“Well, we were in our 20s, so we
both were little skinny rails and our
rent was a whopping $45 a month!
I had my first job teaching school
and my take home pay was $356
and we were still able to go out to
eat or a movie nearly every week
and still save enough to pay Whit’s
school tuition several semesters.
6 • May 2018

“Find someone with
similar beliefs, values
and goals and then
compromise on all
the rest! And, keep
your sense of humor!”
The biggest difference now would
be three children and six grandchildren.
Much bigger gatherings and
lots more to love,” said Marijane.
“We were baby boomers so our
marriage has been a marriage of
equality–or as Whitfield says,
‘what’s hers is hers and what’s mine
is hers and mine!’” We both worked
and we both raised kids. I actually
stayed home for a ten-year period
because all of our children were
born within three years,” said
Marijane.
Robin was born in 1974, Piper
was born in 1975, and Brian was
born in 1976. “The postman once
asked if I kept kids and I said,
‘Only because they are mine!’ We
are very proud of the people they
have become. Robin lives in
Grenada and is an artist and is
presently in the process of saving a
wetland area there known as
Chakchiuma Swamp. Piper lives in
Houston. She is married, has two
sons and owns a company that does
mobile swallow studies. Brian lives
in Jackson. He is married with four
children and has his own company
laying floors,” she continued.
The Whitfields both enjoy
many facets of life in Clinton. “I
love the small-town atmosphere
and the good neighbors we have.
The schools were one of the biggest
reasons I appreciated living here
and rearing our children. I have also
always appreciated the accessibility
of our city leaders from the mayor
to the maintenance employees.
Nowadays, I enjoy trying to keep
litter under control by walking my
little dog Maggie, as I pick up trash
and find coins on the street,” said
Whitfield.
Marijane decorated a bicycle for
the Downtown Clinton project and
she says the name of it sums it up
well: My Sweet Life in Clinton,
MS! “I have been very blessed with
my family, many wonderful friends,
and a job I loved. Our church,
Northside Baptist, had been another
extremely important part of our
lives here. We never saw a reason
we would want to leave,” she said.
The Whitfields enjoy volunteering
once a month at the Clinton
Visitor’s Center. They also love
antique stores, second- hand shops,
garage sales and collecting
memorabilia. They also have a
family band–The (mostly)
Drifting Minds, with some of their
grandchildren and their son, Brian.
Occasionally their daughter Robin
will play the guitar. Marijane plays
the keyboard with another band–
Slightly Tarnished. They have
played at the Friday night music
nights at the Clinton Visitor Center,
Milepost 89, and the first Barbeque
on the Boulevard event.
Marijane also enjoys still picking
up her paintbrush. “I’m still
influenced by Dr. Sam Gore and
Professor Bob Dunaway, the
wonderful teachers I had at
Mississippi College,” she said.
She teaches a painting class once a
month at the Clinton Community
Nature Center.
They have enjoyed traveling to
Washington and Canada, which
was a trip gifted to them from their
daughter, Piper. For their 50th
anniversary in the summer of 2017,
their whole family went to Cabo
San Lucas. They have also enjoyed
some fun trips to New Orleans
with friends.
If they were to give some advice
to newlyweds they would say, “Find
someone with similar beliefs, values
and goals and then COMPROMISE,
COMPROMISE, COMPROMISE
on all the rest! And, keep your sense
of humor!”
The Whitfield’s attribute the
success of their marriage to their
shared belief that God is Love, and
their parents who modelled that.
Also, their church and the mentors
and friends who helped them grow
spiritually and to understand and
experience more of God’s love.
They are charter members of
Northside Baptist Church.
The Whitfields’ love for each
other has stayed strong through the
decades, and it shows no sign of
slowing down yet. They have a
twinkle in their eyes as they share
stories about their past and present.
They can’t think of anywhere else
they’d rather be than together,
here in Clinton. l
Hometown Clinton • 7

CLINTON CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
AND MAIN STREET CLINTON
APRIL 27 / OLDE TOWNE
8 • May 2018

Hometown Clinton • 9

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Clinton, MS 39056
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10 • May 2018

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Hometown Clinton • 11

Creative
Energy & Drive
Mary & David Fehr
Sherry Lucas
12 • May 2018
Photography by Robby Followell

David Fehr’s black Beatles cap is a clue, and
music from the rehearsal hall confirms it. Under
his direction, dozens of Attaché Show Choir
performers build on the fundamentals of the
Fab Four show that’ll take them through
competition season.
For Clinton High School’s consistently
top-ranked show choir, nationally as well as at
home in Mississippi, that means banker’s hours
of rehearsal over the holiday break, sweating
dance moves inside while it’s in the mid-20s
outside, and flashing a winning smile through
all the hard work.
“Life doesn’t end when school’s out...
Actually, you like to find time when there isn’t
school, so you can really practice,” he says.
David Fehr and his wife, Mary, who designs
sets and costumes for Attaché, have committed
creative energies and drive to Attaché for more
than 25 years, ushering a growing network of
students forward with key life lessons that stretch
far beyond song and dance, graduates say.
Attaché alums populate the show business
environs of Nashville (Shelly Fairchild), Broadway
(Heath Calvert), Branson, Missouri (Eric Dalton),
and beyond. Many also parlay the leadership,
teamwork and time management skills into a
host of professional careers.
Both from little towns in Illinois, David and
Mary met while students at Illinois State and
went into teaching. He also handled musical
direction for summer stock theater. She was
doing costumes for his show choir even back
then – a helpmate effort that started with a
Toto costume David needed for a “Wizard of Oz”
production.
“Her mom sewed for nuns. I guess that’s
theater,” he says with a chuckle.
Mary’s mother never actually taught her, she
says, but she must have learned by watching.
She has a minor in art, too. But about the costume
and set designing that comes with a show choir
like Attaché she says, “I’ve just had to learn
along the way, what works and what doesn’t.”
The Fehrs took over Attaché from founding
director Winona Costello in the 1992-93 school
year, moving to Mississippi from Illinois. “We
felt very welcome here due to the appreciation
the South has for the arts. And, we love the
weather,” Mary says, just back from the snow
and -4 degree chill of an Illinois visit. Being
creative, seeing it come to fruition and working
with the kids – those are her loves.
Clinton dentist Dr. John Goolsby Jr., who
was in the choir’s stage crew back in 1992,
keeps in touch, and handles emceeing for some
events, marvels that his alma mater Attaché,
almost every single year, is No. 1 in the nation.
Bigger choirs – what David calls “the
Hollywood schools” – may have big celebs and
yearly allotments, “but the thing they don’t
have is the creativity and direction Attaché has
with David and Mary,” Goolsby says. “They’re
incredibly gifted, with Mary coming up with
designs, themes, and songs to tell the story. And,
David is a musical genius. Twenty years before
‘Glee’ came out – as far as putting songs together,
mixing and mashing – he was doing that.”
And yet the foundation, rather than the
spotlight, is the priority. “It’s a much bigger
story than just about performances and
winning,” Goolsby says. “It’s more about
potential and what they bring out in people.”
“I can’t think of a better program that has
taught me more about life and how to be
successful, than that program,” says 2013
Clinton High grad Graham Bobo, who later
graduated from Mississippi College and is now
a med student at the University of Mississippi
Medical Center eyeing a career as a surgeon. “I
learned how to sing and dance. Yeah, I did learn
how to do that,” he says. “But the life lessons
of hard work, dedication and diligently working
toward a goal are invaluable.”
Karen Godfrey, a realtor in Clinton whose
three children came through Attaché says, “My
kids are different people on the other end of it.
They are able to do things other kids aren’t.
Anything they go to do now, they can do
without blinking.”
Clinton High, with about 1,100 students,
seemed like a huge school when the Fehrs
moved here, David says. In the 25 years since
“the Hollywoods, the Chicago suburbs … we’re
going against schools of 2,000, 3,000, 4,000,
even 5,000 students.”
What makes Attaché stand out? “Precision,
class, musicianship, obviously dance, and
storytelling,” he says.
There are smaller divisions for competition,
“but we’ve always been in the big, and you can
choose to be in the big,” David says. “We’re in
the big. That’s what we do.”
He can’t settle on a single high point over
the past quarter century. Attaché was great at
his start, David says, and he wanted to take it
in a more theatrical direction. By 1996, “it all
gelled and we started to become a name that
everybody knew.”
Among many highlights, Attaché is ranked
No. 1 in the nation in the National Show Choir
Rank System, and has amassed one of the most
impressive competition records of any other
show choir in America. In 2016-17, Attaché
took first place in: the South Central Classic in
Homewood, Alabama; the Petal Show Choir
Invitational in Petal, Mississippi; Xtravaganza
in Los Alamitos, California. Under the Fehrs’
leadership, the show choir has won 74 out of
83 Grand Champion titles since 1993.
“People say, ‘Well, how are you going to
top what you did before?’ Well, you don’t. You
do something different. You have to keep
progressing.”
Attaché, once mostly high school juniors
and seniors, has in the last decade gotten
increasingly younger to keep the quality high.
“With the more level of difficulty that we expect
out of our kids, an extra year or two under our
tutelage helps develop them,” David says.
“We try to maximize our strengths and
minimize our weaknesses and teach fundamentals.
Fundamentals is the name of the game.
“It’s not talent that walks in the door. It’s
talent that walks out the door.”
The reigning show choir style now is
anything goes. A model set made of Legos
and a magnet board with risers, box TVs,
trampoline drums and a portion of a VW bug
gives a miniature big-picture view of the
Beatles set. It’s populated with 46 performers,
supported by a 14-member crew and musically
fueled by 17 musicians in the pit.
“They have to become leaders for this to
work the way it does. They have to become
part of the team. They have to learn how to
teach. They have to learn how to see the big
picture and how to care about others ahead of
themselves,” David says.
They have good examples.
“Two people that couldn’t possibly work
any harder for people other than themselves,”
Attaché performer Morgan Washam, a senior,
describes the Fehrs.
Senior Mattie Pierce recalls the sensitive,
naive freshman who started in Attaché and
marvels at how she’s grown, in responsibility,
accountability, and more.
“He’s not just teaching us show choir stuff...
he’s teaching us how to succeed in the real
world.” l
Hometown Clinton • 13

Clinton High School
What’s
your
favorite
thing
about
your
mom
Briggs Comley
She always gives up her personal
time for me. It means a lot.
Tyree Carr
Her supportive spirit. She always
comes to every game I compete in.
and
why?
Gracie Phillips
She keeps me organized and calm.
It’s just good because I get
overwhelmed sometimes.
Adam Moncure
Her personality. It’s uplifting.
Caroline Prather
She is overprotective. I didn’t used
to appreciate that about her. But
now that I am older, I am starting to
realize how fortunate I am for that.
Taylor Byrd
She’s supportive–always giving
great advice for anything.
Rob Diaz
She always wants me to be
the best I can be. That is very
encouraging to me.
14 • May 2018

What’s
your
favorite
thing
about
your
dad
and
why?
Annelise Ouellette
He’s my best friend. He’s always
there for me and my go-to.
Shelby Nash
Quality time. It’s because we talk about
everything and he’s very supportive.
Dylan Davis
He’s hard working. I feel like if everyone
had his character the world would be a
much better place.
Nataly Camacho
His determination. I like that it makes
me want to be the same way.
Morgan Goins
He’s always there for me. Whatever I
need, he’s there. He’s my everything.
Terrance Brown
My biological father is always supportive
no matter what. My stepfather does
a lot for me, too. Both of them encourage
me equally and I’m very thankful
for that.
Hometown Clinton • 15

Proclaimers of Peace
CAMILLE ANDING
The bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941
reverberated around the globe and into a
group of young college students rehearsing
for a choral concert. Jack Glaze, a Pelahatchie
native, was one of those students enrolled in
Millsaps College and still, at age ninety-four,
recalls the somber mood that quickly fell on
the rehearsal after the disturbing news.
The choir director told the group that
this would be their last concert with the
same group because many would soon be
fighting in the war. His last words to the
group were, “Let’s go out and sing for peace.”
However it was another song earlier in
Glaze’s college days that set his lifetime path
in motion. As a member of this same choral
group, Glaze was at FBC in Jackson joining
his group in providing the special music for
an army chaplain who was to speak and sing.
During the chaplain’s message, he began
singing, “beautifully,” as Glaze recalls. Suddenly
in the middle of the song, the chaplain forgot
the words and abruptly stopped singing. An
awkward silence fell over the audience as the
message in song halted. That’s when a voice
that only spoke to Glaze asked, “How can
they hear unless they are told?” From that
point, Glaze dedicated his life to God and
the proclamation of the Gospel.
In 1943, Glaze joined the army and after
infantry training was sent to Italy to join
forces in the war. A chaplain in his unit had
lost his driver in a land mine and asked for a
volunteer replacement. Glaze volunteered
and began driving for the chaplain.
Death is a close companion in war, and
Glaze learned that firsthand. A lieutenant
colonel asked Glaze to be his driver to the
advanced observation several miles away but
in close range of the German army. Glaze
had studied the surrounding terrain and was
familiar with the accuracy of the Germans’
artillery. The distance to their destination had
alternating plots of forestry and farm land.
The trek would be dangerous since they
would be within range of the enemy’s artillery.
When Glaze accelerated the jeep, he shouted,
“Hold on!” After a short distance, Glaze
stopped and after a brief pause accelerated
the jeep again.
While Glaze was pacing his own stop and
go trek to their destination, the colonel kept
yelling, “Stop! Stop! Stop!” Glaze ignored the
colonel, following his own pattern while the
enemy’s mortar shells fell either in front or
behind the jeep.
When they arrived safely at the observation
point, the lieutenant colonel asked Glaze if
he knew what it meant to disobey and the
consequences involved. Glaze said that he did,
and the colonel would just have to do what
he had to do. Instead of considering a court
martial, the officer chose Glaze for his driver.
After almost four years in North Africa
and Europe, Glaze returned home and
finished his degree at Mississippi College.
From there it was on to the Southern Baptist
Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky,
where he met Jean Johnson, a freshman at
the Woman’s Missionary Training School
during his sophomore year. Glaze said, “I
thought she needed someone to show her
around.” They were married a little over a
year later in 1949. Glaze describes his bride
of sixty-nine years as the “one I wanted to
spend the rest of my life with.”
That commitment to one another
continues today as they share life in Clinton
at Brookdale Senior Living while still
celebrating their four children, twelve
grandchildren and seventeen great grands.
Their accomplishments for God, family,
friends, and students are beyond exemplary.
They served as foreign missionaries in
Buenos Aires, Argentina, for twenty-seven
years. From 1967-75 Jack was a professor
of Old Testament and president of the
International Baptist Theological Seminary
in Argentina. He’s written several books, and
when the couple returned stateside, they
continued their teaching at Mississippi
College and New Orleans Baptist Theological
Seminary until 1994.
Even though Jack Glaze knew God’s call
on his life before WWII, the experience of
being in war affirmed his calling. He said, “I
realized true peace only comes through Jesus
Christ,” and the Glaze couple have invested
their lives to the proclamation of that peace.
“By the way,” Missionary Glaze said as we
were leaving the interview, “I was the sole
survivor of my army unit because I was
reassigned as the chaplain’s driver.” l
16 • May 2018

“
I realized true peace
only comes through
Jesus Christ.
”
Hometown Clinton • 17

18 • May 2018
Clinton Chamber of Commerce
Education Appreciation Luncheon
April 26 - Mississippi College

Hometown Clinton • 19

Photo - Charlotte Stringer
Abigail Walker
Since 2015, Posh Design Shoppe in
Clinton has been providing brides
with custom paper products and
wedding coordinating to make
their special day even more
memorable. But owner Rachel
Curtis is not new to the wedding
scene. With over 300 weddings
under her belt, Curtis is celebrating
25 years as a professional wedding
coordinator.
“My aunt was the one who introduced me to the art of hosting
social events,” says Curtis. “I would attend the parties she threw,
and she would make me read Emily Post’s guide to etiquette.”
After she married her husband Chad, Curtis helped plan her
sister-in-law’s wedding in 1993. It was then that she fell in love
with the whole process.
“I loved it,” she says. “I realized that this is a business and that
this was something I could do.”
Curtis helped coordinate about 20 weddings free of charge to
gain experience. Then she decided to earn her certificate from
the Association of Bridal Consultants to become a professional
bridal consultant.
“I wanted to do things correctly,” she says.
While she was growing her wedding coordinating business
under the name “Events, LLC,” Curtis was also working as publications
secretary and church hostess at First Baptist Raymond. The
job allowed her to explore graphic design, as well as coordinate
church weddings.
20 • May 2018

Photo - Rebecca Long
Photo - Charlotte Stringer
After her oldest daughter, Elizabeth, got married and her
youngest daughter, Anna, graduated from high school, Curtis
says she needed a change. Since she enjoyed working with
brides, as well as graphic design, she thought, “Why not
combine the two?”
Posh Design Shoppe, LLC, opened its doors in November
2015. Posh stands for Pursuing Our Savior’s Heart. “I wanted
a name that was fun and sassy but also communicated what
I stood for,” says Curtis.
From invitations and stationery, to journals and gifts, Posh
carries an array of paper products to celebrate any occasion.
In addition, they offer gift wrap, as well as digital and hand
calligraphy. About once a month, they hold calligraphy classes
at the shop.
But one of the biggest services Posh offers is wedding
coordinating. Curtis’ first Posh wedding was in March 2016. In
2017, Posh coordinated 26 weddings, and this year, they have
booked 23 and counting, with brides already scheduling into 2019.
“My job isn’t to plan everything,” says Curtis. “I believe the
wedding belongs to the bride. I’m the person that pulls all of
the bride’s plans together and makes them happen.”
“I see this as a mission field,” she adds. “It’s my way of
serving.” Curtis says that while the party and celebration aspect
of weddings is great, she believes that the spiritual commitment
is what should be front and center. She says, “The most
important guest at your wedding is Jesus.”
Curtis says her goal is to be a calming presence for her
clients. “I want all my brides to have fun and to take a moment
to stop and savor it,” she says. The morning of each wedding,
Curtis takes time to pray for the couple. “I want them to start
their day knowing they’ve been covered in prayer,” she says.
But with over two decades of wedding experience, Curtis
has also seen her share of craziness that can happen on the
wedding day. “You’ve got to roll with the punches,” she says.
“There’s no such thing as a perfect wedding, but my job is to
make sure that the bride sees it as perfect.”
Hometown Clinton • 21

“The most
important
guest at your
wedding
is Jesus.”
Photo - Charlotte Stringer
She works hard behind the scenes so that the bride only has to
focus on her fiancé and saying “I do.” “I’m their insurance policy,”
she says.
Curtis has a great crew at Posh to help her. Her two daughters,
Elizabeth Hall and Anna Curtis, have been helping her with
weddings since they were young. And coworkers Patrice Queen
and Robin Simpson help run the shop and assist with wedding
details. Because she’s been in such high demand, Curtis also hired
another assistant, Melinda Kennedy, who will begin directing
weddings starting this fall.
While she’s enjoyed coordinating a variety of weddings,
Curtis says she tends to like the smaller, more intimate ceremonies.
And each wedding never fails to make her emotional. “I cry at
every one,” she says. “There’s something about seeing a bride
in her dress and helping her step into her future with the love of
her life that is so beautiful and rewarding.”
22 • May 2018

Photo - Kyle Hancock
Photo - Kyle Hancock
Curtis says her favorite moment is when the bride and her
father are getting ready to walk down the aisle. “It’s just the
three of us waiting at the back, and I have the opportunity to
whisper a few comforting and encouraging words to the bride,”
she says.
But many of Curtis’ relationships with her clients continue
beyond the wedding day. “The brides become part of my
family,” says Curtis. She’s had couples she’s married come tell
her they are expecting and ask her to design their baby
announcements. There is a bride that calls her “Momma
Rachel.” One of Curtis’ favorite memories was coordinating the
weddings of three sisters and then getting to surprise the
mom with a vow renewal and reception.
Whether it’s a wedding, birthday, baby shower, or retirement
party, Posh is about celebrating the best of life. Like the
sign that Curtis keeps above her desk: “Life is an event. Let’s
make it a good one.”
Curtis says she’s had great support from the Clinton
community and has made wonderful connections. “I’ve really
seen the Lord’s hand in all of it,” she says. “I want everyone to
leave our store feeling better.”
“She’s in it for the serving,” says Queen. “She does her
best to give the bride what she needs, while keeping it
uncomplicated for her.”
This summer, Curtis is hosting a reception to say thank you
to the many brides, as well as the network of florists, caterers,
and other vendors, who have made her 25 years in the
business so rewarding.
But Curtis is just getting started with Posh, and she says
she plans to continue as long as she still enjoys it. “The day
I stop crying at weddings is the day I retire,” she says. l
______________________________________________________
Posh Design Shoppe is located at 420 Monroe St., Suite D, in Clinton.
Call 601.708.4815 or visit poshms.com for more information.
Hometown Clinton • 23

24 • May 2018

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Hometown Clinton • 25

Keeping it
in the Family
Abigail Walker
26 • May 2018

It’s often inspiring to hear of parents and their children running successful businesses
together while still respecting each other’s positions in the family. With generational
insights and differences, each bring a perspective to the workplace that can help
ensure the business stays relevant and customers keep coming back.
Just in time for Father’s Day, we’re taking a peek into the life of
one of Clinton’s most recognizable father-son businesses and hear
about how they’ve made it all work by keeping it in the family–
along with their advice for other parent-child owners.
Randy Russell & son Reggie Russell
Russell’s Refrigeration
For almost 35 years, Russell’s Refrigeration
has been serving the people of Clinton. But
for Randy Russell and his son, Reggie, it’s
more than just a family business. It’s about
leaving a legacy.
Randy was born and raised in Clinton.
He went to Hinds Community College
before starting Russell’s Refrigeration in
1983. At first, Randy had several different
jobs, including chopping firewood, to make
ends meet. But now his heating and cooling
business is a trusted staple in the community.
At the age of 14, Reggie began helping
his father with the business during the
summer to save up for a truck.
“It gave us a lot of time to spend together,”
says Reggie. In 2006, he became full-time
at Russell’s Refrigeration.
“We do a little bit of it all,” Randy says in
terms of splitting up the work load between
him, his son, and other crew member, Charles.
The location of Russell’s Refrigeration
has changed over the years before they built
their current office on Cynthia Street. But
the Russells’ dedication to providing the best
for Clinton and its residents hasn’t changed.
“Clinton’s been good to us,” says Randy.
“It’s just home.”
Randy says having a family business
“gives everybody better service” because
they put their hearts into what they do.
“Most Clintonians look for family
businesses,” he adds.
“We all have a stake in the company,”
says Reggie. “We want to give the best
service we can.”
But Randy and Reggie aren’t the only
Russells at Russell’s Refrigeration. Randy’s
wife, Janice, acts as secretary, and Reggie’s
9-year-old daughter, Rivers, also spends a
lot of time at the office. “It’s nice getting to
see each other,” says Reggie.
Janice says their business is all about
customer relationships. “It makes me feel
good when I get a letter or email from
someone telling me that they appreciate
the job we’ve done and what a great son
I have.”
“Family businesses are a dying breed,”
Randy adds. “We appreciate the people
that have supported us over the 35 years
in business.”
Randy says it’s rewarding to go to a
client’s house and realize that he put in
their first AC unit when he first started the
business. There are multiple families in
Clinton that Russell’s Refrigeration has
served for more than one generation.
Randy says he can’t help but laugh when
someone shows him their original bill
from the ‘80s.
“We try to offer the best, honest service
for the best price,” says Randy. “And we try
to do it quick.”
Randy has passed down that same work
ethic to his son. “My dad taught me to
always be a man of your word,” says Reggie.
“Don’t promise something you can’t do
and always treat a house like it’s yours.
He’s instilled in me a lot of similar values.”
Janice says her husband and son have
had a “good relationship over the years.”
The two used to hunt and fish together,
but they mostly spend time on the coast or
grilling out. Otherwise, the father-son duo
is at work at 7:30 a.m. five days of the week.
“I like spending time with him,” says
Reggie. “I really like the work, and he can
lead me in the right direction.”
“My goal is that he takes over,” adds
Randy. “I enjoy what I’m doing, and I
enjoy working with him.” l
Hometown Clinton • 27

28 • May 2018
18 Summers
Mary Ann Kirby

“Let me love you a little more before you’re not little anymore . . .”
Anonymous
We have a new driver in the house. Well, sort of.
My fifteen-year-old got his learner’s permit over spring
break. And while I could write an entire book on the
insanity of actually navigating the agonizing process,
the greatest takeaway, for me, was that he and I did it
together.
We’re approaching number fifteen . . . of our
eighteen summers.
On this particular day, my son and I left the house
at the crack of dawn thinking we’d be getting ahead of
the crowds that were known for gathering quickly at
the area DMV offices. When we pulled up, there were
already forty people ahead of us—thirty minutes prior
to opening—which grew to sixty by the time we’d
decided to bail. Spring break may not have been the
best time to try to get a permit.
On the off chance that we may have better luck
somewhere else, we drove to another DMV office
where we found nearly a hundred in line ahead of us.
Yep, spring break was definitely a bad idea.
At this point, both of us were frustrated—not to
mention disappointed. So much emphasis is put on
this whole “rite of passage” thing. Actually enduring
the process makes it a real pain, too.
On a whim, we decided to go to Vicksburg. I mean,
what’s another 35 minutes, right? We got to the testing
office and there were five people in line—and I’m pretty
sure that three of those people were there for support.
Twenty-two minutes later we were done. And in an
instant, the mood lifted. My son had passed his test,
and I was so thankful to be there to be a part of it.
He’ll be driving on his own by his sixteenth summer.
It’s so ironic how the things in which we want our
children to succeed are the very things that lead them
away from us. I mean, what parent doesn’t dream of
their kid making a 36 on the ACT? And yet the better
they do, the farther they go. Life is bittersweet that way.
No one tells you that the hardest part of motherhood
is when your kids grow up.
* * *
My husband has been absolutely amazing about
planning summer trips for our family for as long as
we’ve been able to easily travel. Facebook memories
take me back to past vacations and serve as a wonderful
reminder of how we’ve invested our time together.
Last summer we spent several nights out of state
playing in a select-team baseball tournament. We found
a local spot for dinner about a half-mile from our condo
—all the while, my son busy texting his buddies from
the team. Apparently they were all gathered up and
headed to the pool.
He announced at the restaurant that he was going
to head back to catch up with his friends—which
meant he was planning to walk since his dad and
I had not yet finished eating.
So he left. “I’ll see ya’ll,” he said.
He just walked out of the restaurant and down
the road a full half-mile, by himself. And as absolutely
ridiculous as it sounds, I teared up. It seemed like mere
moments had passed since he and I had last crossed a
busy street together making a huge production out of
looking both ways—he holding my index finger, me as
his protector.
Being mentally prepared and emotionally prepared
are two entirely different things when it comes to our
kids leaving. And the changes that come, at least at our
particular stage in life, seem to be coming at warp speed.
* * *
So after my son passed his permit exam we started
our journey home. There was a confidence about him
that had not been quite as evident on the trip over.
He was proud of himself. I was proud of him, too.
It was one of those moments that he and I will never
forget. We had won—together.
And then, as if the anxiety of it had drained him
completely dry, he slept all the way home. It felt like he
was four again. My baby.
Learning to let go is hard, but we do it. A driver’s
license here, a later curfew there, more freedom, more
choices—we let go and they grow.
So here we are at the boundary between childhood
and everything that comes after. Now comes the time
for pure faith and endless prayer as the fifteenth summer
is spent getting ready for the sixteenth. Sooner than
later my son will roll out of our driveway on to bigger
and greater things.
And eighteen summers doesn’t seem nearly long
enough for this mama to prepare . . .
Hometown Clinton • 29

ClintonJunior
Civic League
RED GALA
February 9
The Lake House
Ridgeland
30 • May 2018

Hometown Clinton • 31

Sharpen Up
with
Brittany
Wagner
Abigail Walker
32 • May 2018

Fans of the hit Netflix show, Last Chance
U, know Brittany Wagner as the “mother” of
the nationally-ranked EMCC football team.
Now, the Clinton-native is using her gifts to
encourage students beyond Mississippi
through her consulting business, 10 Thousand
Pencils, LLC.
For eight years, Wagner worked as an
advisor on the athletic administrative staff
at East Mississippi Community College. She
describes herself as an “eligibility specialist,”
helping prepare athletes not only academically,
but for the rest of their lives. More than
a dozen NFL players went through the EMCC
football program, gaining the junior college
national attention and eventually resulting
in a Netflix documentary about the team.
Because many of the players on the show
had records that kept them from playing for
Division I schools, EMCC was sometimes their
only option. It was up to Wagner and the
coaches to get them back on track. Wagner
quickly became a star of the show for the
way she fiercely loved and encouraged
players, often the driving force behind their
success.
“I think everyone deserves an opportunity
to get an education,” Wagner says on the first
episode of Last Chance U. “I think everyone
deserves to have a second chance.”
Wagner was the Lions’ cheerleader on
and off the field. She talked students through
their schedules, sat with them as they wrote
essays, and even walked some to class. Her
famous question: “Do you have a pencil?”
But before the Netflix series was even a
possibility, writer Drew Jubera with GQ
Magazine caught wind of what was happening
in Scuba, Mississippi, and spent six months
interviewing and following the team, coaches,
and Wagner. Wagner was excited to be
recognized for all her hard work, especially
in a national publication. But when the article
came out, she was shocked to see there was no
mention of her name. They had completely
cut her from the article.
“I was devastated,” says Wagner. “I don’t
think people realize how stories about
teachers impact them and give them
validation that what they’re doing matters.”
However, when director Greg Whiteley
read a copy of the unedited article, half of
which was dedicated just to Wagner’s role,
he realized the potential for a documentary.
Wagner says she was hesitant to be a part of
the show at first.
“I was really afraid they were going to
exploit Mississippi,” she says.
But when Whiteley sent her samples of
work he’d done, she realized it was in good
hands.
“They were the greatest crew,” Wagner
says. “They really embraced Mississippi and
wanted to make it as true as possible.”
She says most of the filming process was
top secret. The EMCC president, vice-president,
Hometown Clinton • 33

and board members called her in so they could
all watch the first episode together before it
aired. It only took her five minutes to realize it
was going to be big. “In that moment, I knew my
whole life was about to change,” Wagner says.
She binge-watched the first season while on
vacation with family, surprised to see herself
on the screen so much. “I did not expect to
be a star,” she says. “I expected it to be more
about the football and that no one would care
about me.”
After Wagner traveled to Los Angeles for
the Last Chance U release, she gained over
5,000 Twitter followers. “My friend was telling
me to Google myself,” she says. “And then I saw
all the articles saying, ‘Who is Brittany Wagner?’”
Now Wagner has been interviewed by
The Dan Patrick Show, New York Times, ABC’s
Nightline, and more. She says at one point she
was doing five interviews a day, and someone
had to screen her calls.
“I would never have dreamed this,” says
Wagner. “Things don’t always go the way you
want them to. But if you just hold on, it will
work out.”
After filming Season 2 of Last Chance U,
Wagner felt it was time to leave EMCC. “I knew
I had done all I could do there,” she says. “I
had been given this platform and a bigger
responsibility and felt I had to do something else.”
Wagner had enough speaking engagements
lined up to keep her busy, but wasn’t sure what
the next step would be. One day, a man stopped
her at a coffee shop in Birmingham and told
her she should start her own business.
“Doing what?” she asked.
“What you do,” the man said. “Encouraging
students.”
The man happened to be a small business
consultant, and he and Wagner immediately
began brainstorming what would become 10
Thousand Pencils. “It’s taken on a life of its
own,” says Wagner.
Now she’s traveling all over the country,
helping schools at the elementary level and
above better prepare their students for success.
She trains teachers and administration and
works with at-risk athletes, one-on-one.
“I’m getting to see places I never would
have,” she says. “I’m getting to see what our
public education system is like and what I
need to focus on moving forward.”
Wagner has been to Detroit, Philadelphia,
Boston, and beyond, and says she really wants
to try to work with Jackson and Meridian public
schools soon. She says although Mississippi
education gets a bad reputation, she sees
other schools around the country struggling
with the same problems.
“If we can focus on elementary students
and solve issues at that level, we can eliminate
future problems,” says Wagner. She stresses the
impact that placing a child in a more stable
environment can have and recounts success
stories of children who just needed someone
to give them an opportunity and believe in them.
Fans will be able to see Wagner and 10KP
in action in the third season of Last Chance U,
which will catch up with some former EMCC
players and with Wagner. “I’m excited for
people to see these stories,” she says.
Wagner says it’s fun to see the reactions
of students who recognize her from the show.
Some even have her signature taped to their
mirrors as motivation to go to school.
For Wagner, who grew up in Clinton, that
motivation was Attaché. “Attaché was my
validation and a huge confidence booster,”
she says. “It changed my life by giving me
something to be good at. Everyone needs that.”
Wagner, who emceed the Attaché Alumni
Dinner Theater this year, says she still tells
herself the advice that David Fehr gave her
when she was in school: Don’t be sorry; be
good. “I never doubted that Mr. and Mrs. Fehr
cared about me, even when they were tough,”
she says. “They were my number one
influencers at that time.”
She also says that Clinton Public Schools
is the “heartbeat” of Clinton. “I love this little
town,” she adds. “I will forever be grateful for
growing up here.”
Wagner now has a weekly, motivational
podcast available on iTunes called “Sharpen
Up with Brittany Wagner.” She says there are
plenty of people just like her (teachers,
advisors, counselors) who are also encouraging
students but are just not on TV. Her goal is to
be a source of inspiration for them.
“I’ve always had a dream to make a
difference,” Wagner says. “And I’m proud of
the impact I’ve had on people.”
Wagner’s office at EMCC was decorated
with bulletin boards, filled with pictures of
her and former Lions football players who
had gone on to play for D1 schools or the NFL.
The boards became a strong motivator for the
players who visited her office every day.
“They would just stare at it and tell me
that they would be on the board one day,”
says Wagner, who still has those boards at
her house.
Athletes have come out of the woodwork
to ask if they made it on her board and to tell
her thank you for helping them get to where
they are today. “It’s always great to see the
fruits of your labor and to know you had a
hand in their success,” she says.
Wagner graduated from Clinton High
School in 1996. She earned her undergraduate
degree in sport communication and her
master’s in sport administration from Mississippi
State University. She has over 15 years of
experience as an athletic academic counselor
at the NCAA and NJCAA levels.
She and her daughter Kennedy now live
in Birmingham, Alabama.
_____________________________________________________
Visit brittanywagner.com to learn more
about her and 10 Thousands Pencils.
34 • May 2018

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Hometown Clinton • 35

ServingOUR
Community
Why did you decide to be a fireman?
I became a firefighter because I wanted to give
back to the City of Clinton. I was born and
raised here.
How long have you been with the Clinton Fire
Department?
I’ve been a firefighter for 37 years.
Tell us about your family.
There are 10 of us—5 boys and 5 girls and the 5
boys are still in Mississippi. Four of us are still
here in Clinton. My wife, Gwendolyn Bankston,
is also from the City of Clinton. She is an Ole
Miss graduate. Her mother is a retired teacher
here in Clinton. We have 4 children—3 boys and
1 girl. The boys still live around the Clinton area.
What is the toughest thing you have experienced
in your job?
Challenging the 1001. This is the course I had to
take to become a certified firefighter. It was also
a challenge to pass the EMS.
Share some things you enjoy doing in your
spare time.
I like to exercise and keep in shape. I enjoy
being with my family. I do spiritual lessons for
myself by reading the Bible, and this is what
inspires me about giving back to the city.
CAPTAIN
William Bankston
CLINTON
FIRE DEPARTMENT
What are three things on your bucket list?
I want to serve God. That’s what is deeply in my
mind and first of all. I would like to continue
treating people like I want to be treated. I am
a 15-year cancer survivor and that is what keeps
me going.
Who is someone you admire and why?
I have to put my mother at the top of the list for
raising 10 children. I do admire my daddy, too.
The older I got, the closer he and I got. I also
admire my oldest brother, Curtis, because he
was our role model.
Where do you see yourself ten years from now?
Enjoying life and doing what I can to help others
...and trying to do God’s will.
If you could give one piece of advice to a young
person, what would it be?
Decide what you want out of life and strive to
do that. Never give up on that. If there is no
dream, you will perish.
What is a favorite childhood memory?
The greatest memory I have is serving my
country in the U.S. Marine Corps. I learned
a lot and it taught me how to be a man. I went
in right out of high school on July 1, 1974.
What is the biggest mistake you think young
people make today?
They take life for granted and they think that
it’s always going to be there. They also take
education for granted. They don’t think it’s
important, and if they don’t have it, they’re
going to miss out.
What is your favorite thing about the City
of Clinton?
The people. They are the reason I want to give
back to the city. I also enjoy working with the
guys on the fire department as well.
What is your favorite thing about Hinds County?
What I like about Hinds County is that it is
changing. They are trying to make something
for the next generation by creating jobs.
36 • May 2018

Serving
OUR
Why did you decide to become a dispatcher?
I started dispatching in South Carolina in 2007.
Dispatching was never a job I’d really thought
about doing before but a friend suggested that I
might be good at it and knew of an opening at a
local police department. It was and still is the
best job I’ve ever had.
How long have you been with the Clinton
Police Department?
I’ve been with the Clinton Police Department
for 10 years. I moved back home to Mississippi
in 2008 and got a job at CPD pretty much
immediately.
Tell us about your family.
My parents live in Utica and my brother lives in
Clinton. My dad is a retired high school
principal. He coached high school football for
many years and is still referred to as “Coach” by
most people that know him. My mom is minister
of music at Utica Baptist church, was a music
teacher for several years, and still teaches piano.
What is the toughest thing you have
experienced in your job?
Dispatchers listen to and try to help people
through what is sometimes the worst day of
their lives. Whether it’s a car crash or medical
emergency, a house burglary or car theft, talking
to people in an emergency or crisis is stressful.
That said, the most difficult calls I’ve taken over
the years have been emergencies involving
children. Those calls always seem to stick with
you longer. Even if the outcome is generally ok,
those calls create more stress than most others.
DISPATCHER
Mandy Walker
CLINTON POLICE
DEPARTMENT
Share some things you enjoy doing in your
spare time.
I’m addicted to Netflix and any other bingewatching
portal. I also read a lot, generally a
book a week, sometimes more if I’m stuck on
midnight shifts.
What are three things on your bucket list?
Mostly my bucket list items are vacations or
travel destinations. I’d love to road trip
throughout the country. I want to go to Alaska
and Hawaii. I’d also like to do a European
vacation and spend a month or better going
from country to country.
Who is someone you admire and why?
I admire anyone who can make a career of
dispatching—veteran dispatchers here in
Mississippi and everywhere else in the world
who keep showing up year after year to answer
phones and dispatch calls despite the high
stress levels, crazy work schedules and general
drama of a 911 communication center.
Where do you see yourself ten years from now?
Hopefully here at the Clinton Police Department.
I’ve moved from dispatcher to supervisor over
the last 10 years and it has become my home.
If you could give one piece of advice to a
young person, what would it be?
Learn skills or information that could be helpful
in an emergency (changing a tire, know where
you are, know important phone numbers and
addresses etc.) if you find yourself without a
cell phone, the internet, or GPS. People of all
ages, but especially young people, tend to rely
too heavily on technology for everything and
have difficulty functioning without it.
What is a favorite childhood memory?
Disney World! It’s still fun as an adult but it
seemed so much bigger and magical as a kid.
What is the biggest mistake you think young
people make today?
Not going to Disney World enough. Seriously,
I don’t know what the biggest mistake is.
People make such a wide variety of mistakes
when they’re young. Probably the hardest to
overcome are the ones for which you don’t ask
for help.
What is your favorite thing about the
City of Clinton?
Clinton has a strong sense of community and
civic pride.
What is your favorite thing about Hinds County?
Having the comforts of civilization nearby but
still being able to retreat to the small towns and
rural life.
Hometown Clinton • 37

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OUTDOOR POOL
OPENS 5/26
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CLINTON
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601.924.5812
38 • May 2018

Hometown Clinton • 39

Coaster
Elizabeth Bennett
Clinton is home to two roller
coaster enthusiasts. They are so
passionate about roller coasters
that they decided to go on roller
coaster tours and write a book
about it.
Everyone who knows them knows of
their love for being twirled around up in
the air and suspended by metal or wood.
Bryce Yelverton and Zach Osborn, both
lifetime residents of Clinton, agree that
riding roller coasters really spices up their
lives. Yelverton and Osborn were only
acquaintances in high school but became
good friends while attending Mississippi
College. While both have full-time jobs in
different areas—Yelverton a lobbyist at the
State Capitol and Osborn a tenth-grade
History teacher at Clinton High School—
they have a full-time passion for riding
roller coasters, too.
Yelverton and Osborn weren’t always
roller coaster fans. Osborn says, “As a kid,
I was actually terrified of roller coasters.
My dad tried for years to get me to ride them,
but I was too scared. On a seventh-grade
choir trip to Jazzland in New Orleans,
I worked up the courage to ride my first
real roller coaster with my friends.
I never looked back and since then I have
ridden over 100 different coasters all over
the country.” Yelverton added, “My love of
roller coasters began out of a fear of them.
In middle school, I took a trip to Disney
World and was so frightened of coasters
that I spent the months before researching
and reading about theme parks, rides and
the designs behind them. All that research
brought to me a love of theme park design
and roller coasters. My first roller coaster
was at Disney World on the Rock ‘n’ Roller
Coaster and I have never looked back.”
Although the duo loves living in
Mississippi, since there are no major theme
parks or a roller coaster in the entire state,
they decided to embark on a road trip to
ride some. “A lot of people who consider
themselves roller coaster enthusiasts have
what they call their ‘home park,’ the
amusement park closest to their home that
they frequently visit and know very well. As
Mississippians, we don’t have a place to call
our ‘home park’ so Bryce and I got the idea
to do huge cross-country road trips with
the intention of riding as many coasters as
40 • May 2018

Crusaders
possible in about a week. We’ve done this
twice now and we call them ‘coaster
crusades’ each time,” said Osborn.
“While we were out visiting a specific
park, we thought, why not ride as many
coasters as we can while visiting the area?
Hence, the start of the Coaster Crusade,”
added Yelverton. “Zach and I have taken
two Coaster Crusades. Our first trip, we
visited Busch Gardens and Kings Dominion
in Virginia and Carowinds in North Carolina
(30 total roller coasters).” Osborn said,
“We did the ‘Coaster Insider Tour’ at Busch
Gardens, which gave us an excellent behindthe-scenes
look at the upkeep and maintenance
of the coasters there, as well as giving
us the opportunity to ride coasters by
ourselves before the park opened to the
general public. Our second tour, we visited
King’s Island in Cincinnati, Kentucky
Kingdom in Louisville, Holiday World in
Santa Clause, Indiana, and Dollywood in
Pigeon Forge, Tennessee (28 roller
coasters).”
Recently, Yelverton and Osborn did
a presentation to the ACCENT students at
Eastside Elementary School. They showed
pictures from their coaster crusades and
discussed their favorite rides and roller
coaster elements. The students were doing
a study of roller coasters including theming,
construction and the various elements
found on roller coasters and the physics
behind them. “We were honored to visit
with the Eastside Elementary School
students. We discussed the various types of
coasters in existence such as steel, wooden
and hybrid coasters. We also showed
examples of different ride elements such as
helix, vertical loop, corkscrew, etc. We then
allowed students to ask questions from
their individual research they had been
doing in their classrooms,” said Yelverton.
After the Q&A session, the students
continued their study of roller coasters
and had a competition where they designed
their own roller coasters.
Osborn’s favorite thing about riding
roller coasters is “airtime”. “I love airtime
more than anything else about roller
coasters. These are moments of weightlessness
caused by negative G-forces. You literally
float out of your seat. What’s cooler than
that? All of my favorite coasters heavily
feature airtime,” he said.
Hometown Clinton • 41

Yelverton loves a lot of things about
riding coasters but the thing he loves most is
a good themed experience that really takes
you away from your normal world and into a
different one. “Also, I truly enjoy a long drop
and the feeling of flight out of your seat while
feeling the rush of wind on your face,”
he said.
Although Yelverton and Osborn have
already ridden so many roller coasters, there
are still a few more they’d like to conquer.
“Kingda Ka at Six Flags Great Adventure is
the nation’s tallest and fastest one that I have
always wanted to ride. On the wooden side
of things, I would really like to ride Boulder
Dash at Lake Compounce in Connecticut.
It is constantly rated as one of the world’s
best wooden coasters. Of course, there are
many more,” said Yelverton. At the top of
Osborn’s list is a new roller coaster
called Steel Vengeance which is opening
this year at Cedar Point in Ohio. Yelverton
and Osborn will be embarking on Coaster
Crusade 3 this summer where they will be
going to Cedar Point, Kennywood in
Pittsburgh, and Waldameer on Lake Erie.
“Cedar Point is the mecca for roller coaster
enthusiasts,” said Osborn.
They both are a part of the roller coaster
enthusiast community and enjoy listening to
different podcasts such as “Coaster Radio”
and “Season Pass.” There is even an organization
called “American Coaster Enthusiasts”
that they enjoy learning about and meeting
fellow roller coaster enthusiasts.
Some of their family joins in on their love
of roller coasters. Yelverton’s wife Carly loves
roller coasters and so does his family. “Carly
and I have taken a few smaller trips to theme
parks together to ride coasters, including a
layover in Paris, France, where we spent a
few days at Disneyland Paris. Osborn’s dad
is the one who encouraged him to ride roller
coasters in the first place and once he
started riding them, they had some great
times riding together.
Osborn loves to study roller coasters and
learn their history. “I have a habit of learning
about all the parks and rides before I make a
trip and acting like a bit of a tour guide during
our days in the park. I can tell which company
manufactured a ride just by looking at the
design of the track,” said Osborn.
They both have had some scary incidents
when riding roller coasters. Yelverton shared
this scary story: “There was a time during the
first coaster crusade where I completely
blacked out on a ride. Intimidator 305 at
Kings Dominion has a 305-foot drop and
42 • May 2018

immediately hits an upwards helix. The
G-forces pushed all the blood down to my
feet and my vision went black only to come
to a few seconds later midway through the
ride. I rode it one more time and then called
it a day from Intimidator 305.” For Osborn, he
rode a ride called SheiKra at Busch Gardens
after graduating from Clinton High School.
“It was a brand new ride that had just opened
the previous week. I rode it twice and had
bad luck both times. Once, we got stuck at
the top of the lift hill before the first drop,
about 200 feet up for around 15 minutes.
Eventually the ride started up again and
everything was fine. When I rode again later
in the day, I developed a terrible pain in my
leg during the ride that caused me to cry out
in agony. The pain continued until the ride
ended and park employees ran over to me to
see what was wrong. I didn’t even know what
was causing the pain. I stood up and a wasp
flew out from the bottom of my shorts! After
a visit to the first aid station, I went back to
riding more coasters,” said Osborn.
Yelverton has lived in Clinton his whole
life of 32 years. He has been through the
Clinton schools from every age and stage
of life both as a student and teacher.
“You could say I’m about as Clinton as
anyone can be. I love this community with
our great schools, wonderful university and
beautiful brick streets. The community
offers everything a family would need,
but most importantly, the people in Clinton
are why we are still here. We have made
lifelong friends here and plan to stay as long
as Clinton will have us,” said Yelverton.
Osborn has been a Clinton resident for
his whole life of 31 years. He really enjoyed
growing up in Clinton and is proud to live
and teach here now. “We have a strong sense
of community and our residents have always
supported the school system, which I really
appreciate as an educator and a father who
will proudly send my child to Clinton schools
one day. Clinton also finds a way to make
small town life fun. I love the festivals and
markets on the brick streets, concerts, pep
rallies, football games and especially Olde
Towne After Dark trivia nights,” he exclaimed.
To read more about their adventures,
check out Yelverton’s book “Coaster
Crusade” which was published in January
2015. It can be purchased on Amazon or
through the publisher Theme Park Press at
www.themeparkpress.com. Coaster Crusade
is the story of their first roller coaster trip
riding 30 coasters in four days. Each coaster
is detailed in the book as well as the ride
experience. Yelverton has also been a guest
on the Disney podcast “All About the Mouse”
where he discusses his love for roller coasters
and thrill rides. To hear more about that,
check out Episode 171. Maybe their adventuresome
lifestyle will inspire you to reach
for new heights! l
Hometown Clinton • 43

44 • May 2018

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choices.
We can’t think of a GOOD
reason not to choose
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origin, religion, sex, age, disability or veteran status in its educational programs and activities. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding the non-discrimination policies: Dr. Tyrone Jackson, Vice President for Utica Campus and Administrative Services and District Dean of Student Services & Title IX Coordinator Box 1003, Utica, MS 39175 . Phone: 601.885.7002 or Email: titleIX@hindscc.edu
Hometown Clinton • 45

46 • May 2018
“We can help people with
things that they don’t have.”

Sharing
a
Abigail Walker
Classes from Clinton schools often visit
Second Harvest, a ministry of Morrison
Heights Baptist Church, to learn more about
the organization that provides food, clothes,
and other necessities to families in need.
But when volunteer Wayne Wilkinson told a
group of Clinton Park Elementary first-graders
that the organization was in desperate need
of toothpaste, the field trip soon turned into
a school-wide service project.
Seven first-graders (Liam Davis, Evan
Rone, Walker Jackson, Mamie Rae Boswell,
Sidney Owens Morgan, Emily Fortenberry,
and Janae Sinclair) came up with the plan
to benefit Second Harvest.
“They wanted to do something to help,
so they decided to hold a toothpaste drive,”
says their teacher Myra Kinchen. “They wrote
the things that they wanted to accomplish
on a large sheet of paper.”
The students had recently won a
canned food drive for Second Harvest back
in December, but Kinchen says this was
the class’s biggest project to date. “I gave
them advice on the structure of the project,”
she says.
The toothpaste drive ran for 9 days
between spring break and Good Friday, and
boxes were placed in hallways in each wing
of the school for donations. Because the
students wanted to motivate their peers to
contribute, Kinchen suggested they go to
the other classrooms and share what they
were doing. So the students wrote their own
speeches and split up to talk to a total of 36
Clinton Park classrooms about why they
should donate toothpaste to Second Harvest.
The students also wrote their own morning
announcements to be read over the intercom
that included an updated total of how many
toothpaste tubes had been collected.
“The project was their idea,” says Kinchen.
“I offered a lot of guidance, but they did all of
the work. This group of students was not
only motivated to start the project, but they
also stayed motivated throughout.”
At the end of the drive, a total of 1,492
tubes of toothpaste and 272 toothbrushes
were collected. “It was a tremendous
blessing,” says Wilkinson. “On the day the kids
visited Second Harvest, we couldn’t believe
our eyes when the back door of the school
bus opened and we saw all those boxes.”
Wilkinson says that food donations are
important, but items such as toothpaste
often get overlooked. “Being able to partner
with Clinton Park Elementary has been a
great fit,” he says. “Their donations will go a
long way in helping to meet the needs of
those families that participate in this ministry
of Morrison Heights Baptist Church.”
Kinchen says she’s not sure what
volunteer project the students will take on
next, but it showed the first-graders that they
can make a difference. “I hope this project
gives children the motivation to help others,”
she says.
“I learned that other people need help
and that I can help them,” says Janae
Sinclair, age 7.
“We can help people with things that
they do not have,” adds Sidney Owens
Morgan, also age 7.
“Kids understand putting others before
themselves,” says Wilkinson. “This class, like
the rest of the classes at Clinton Park, are
our future leaders, and to see them step up
and facilitate a service project on their very
own was extremely special.” l
Hometown Clinton • 47

48 • May 2018
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Hometown Clinton
READER
SPOTLIGHT
Chris
Willson
Why did you decide to make Clinton
your home?
My wife and I both graduated from Mississippi
College. After getting married, we lived in Brandon
for a year while my wife worked as a teacher in
Clinton. We were looking to move to the area and
applied to be the host and hostess of the Latimer
House for Mississippi College. We got the position,
moved, and have loved living in Clinton ever since.
How long have you lived in Clinton?
3 years.
Tell us about your family.
My family and I are very close. My parents, Matt
and Yvonne, still live in Brandon where I grew up.
My mom is a kindergarten teacher who always
inspired me to be adventurous and read many
books. My dad is a secret agent, so I can’t say much
more than that. My younger sister, Meagan Anne,
currently lives in North Carolina pursuing her
master’s degree. My wife Olivia and I have been
married for 4 awesome years. She teaches English
in Clinton and loves investing in students. She is
my best friend who is always ready to go on an
adventure with me.
What is your favorite memory of living
in Clinton?
Recently, my favorite Clinton memory is the snow
day last December. My wife was off work that day,
so we were able to just hang out. We had a nice
stroll downtown in the snow, got coffee from Cups,
and then made some gourmet grilled cheese and
tomato soup for lunch. The highlight of that day
was going over to our friends Andrew and Kenya
Rafferty’s house to have an epic snowball fight and
build a snowman… although he did not survive long.
Where are your three favorite places
to eat in Clinton?
Number one has to be Taste of India; their lunch
buffet is amazing. I also love to eat at The Bank. If
you haven’t had the When Pigs Fly on thin crust,
you need to. Finally, Lillie’s is the best place for
Sunday lunch. Just writing this is making me
hungry for their strawberry cake.
What are some fun things to do in Clinton
on the weekends?
Any event on the brick streets is always fun to
attend. If music and food trucks are involved,
I’m there.
Share some things you enjoy doing in your
spare time.
When I’m not studying for school or working at
Cups, I enjoy reading, running, spending time with
friends, watching documentaries, and traveling
with my wife.
What are three things on your bucket list?
Go to every Disney Park in the world with my wife.
Write a children’s book. And become an awesome
dad someday.
Who is someone you admire and why?
The person I admire the most is my dad. Ever since
I was a kid, he has taught me how to serve others
and how to be a man of good character. I am the
man I am today because of him, and I will always
be grateful for the impact he has had on me.
Where do you see yourself ten years
from now?
In ten years I hope to be raising a family in addition
to helping establish and pastor new churches in
different cities around the world.
What is your favorite childhood memory?
My family has a tradition of hiding a Christmas
ornament shaped like a pickle on the tree every
Christmas Eve. Whoever finds the pickle first gets
an extra Christmas gift. Ever since I can remember,
my sister and I would sneak into the living room to
see who could find it first. While every year was
fun, my favorite memories are the years that I won.
If you could give us one encouraging
quote, what would it be?
“Go outside and play.” – My mom, every day of my
childhood.
What is your favorite thing about
Hometown Magazine?
I love Hometown Magazine because it gives me a
great picture of the community around me. I’m
able to gain new insights about people and places
I know and love, while also being introduced to
new ones. n
Hometown Clinton • 49

The CHALKBOARD
CLINTON PUBLIC SCHOOLS
Vietnam Veteran to Receive
Honorary High School Diploma
Larence and Shirley Johnson hold a photo
of their daughter Sharon Johnson Quinn.
Larence Curtis Johnson was a student at Sumner
Hill High School in the 1960s, and a football player.
“Between helping on the farm and going to school,
I knew I had to make a living for me and my mother,”
he said. “I knew the farm wasn’t it. My charge was to
go into service to make things better for my family.”
In December 1967, at the age of 17, he dropped
out of school to enlist in the Army and serve his
country in Vietnam. He was part of the 1st and 58th
Cavalry Division, earning a Purple Heart after being
wounded in the Tet Offensive in 1968. He returned
home briefly and served another tour of duty in
Korea from 1971-74 before returning home for good.
When he returned home, he went to work, got
married and started a family, and never finished his
high school education. He served another 23½
years in the National Guard and Army Reserve.
When his daughter, Clinton High School
graduate Sharon Johnson Quinn, heard that the
Mississippi Department of Education now offers the
opportunity for Vietnam veterans to receive an
honorary high school diploma, she encouraged her
father to apply.
“I never got to go back to school to graduate or
finish my education,” he said. “My daughter really
inspired me to apply.”
The program is available for veterans of the
Vietnam War who were scheduled to graduate high
school between 1963 and 1973. He submitted his
application, MDE sent the form to CPSD for
approval, and in March the Clinton School Board
unanimously approved the request.
“We’re grateful for Mr. Johnson’s service,” said
Dr. Tim Martin, Superintendent of Schools. “It’s an
honor to present this diploma now and show our
support for his selfless service to our nation.”
Johnson received his honorary diploma during
the April school board meeting, Tuesday, April 10.
“I’m glad I went and volunteered,” he said. “By
me going, I saved someone else’s child from going
through what I went through. I put myself in the
way to do that.”
L-R: Northside Elementary Principal
Mandy Ambrose, Taylor and CPSD
Superintendent Dr. Tim Martin.
Parent of
the Year
Congratulations to CPSD Parent of
the Year Alisa Taylor! Mrs. Taylor
received the award in a surprise
presentation at Northside
Elementary School. She has two
children in CPSD, Joel and Faith.
She will go on to represent Clinton
in the Mississippi Parent of the Year
program hosted by the Mississippi
Department of Education.
VIP
VIP is a program where each nine weeks, every teacher at the high
school and career complex selects one student from their rolls to
be honored for improvement in one or more of the following areas:
citizenship, attendance, grades, or attitude.
50 • May 2018

Clinton Park
Eastside Elementary
Army National Guardsman and CHS grad Casey Thornton returned home, after a
yearlong deployment, and surprised her kindergarten daughter, June, at school.
L-R: Dakota Price, Kaedyn Wilson, River Curtis, Caroline Price, Ms. Landers.
Eastside Elementary students in Allison Landers and Robin Herring’s classes just
finished a fun, hands-on project on how images are represented by pixels, binary
code, compressed images and code. The students were given 6 small squares to
represent a pixel. They had to create drawings within a specific color family on
the pixels that represented themselves, the community, the school, their families,
and their friends. They were instructed to write one word they would want others
to describe them as on the last pixel. Students used these pixels to create the
image of the Clinton Arrow, on display in the hallway outside their classroom.
Hometown Clinton • 51

The CHALKBOARD
CLINTON PUBLIC SCHOOLS
Sumner Hill
Sumner Hill honored our 3rd Nine Weeks VIP students. They were able to
choose a STAR Teacher. Because of the generosity of our school sponsor
Entergy, each student was awarded a $25 Gift Card.
L-R: Allene Vincent, Honors English I Teacher, Grant Custer, Prableen Kaur,
Courtney Harris, Honors Biology Teacher, Rob Logan, sponsor for Entergy.
Sumner Hill recognized students who have demonstrated the character trait
of Obedience. Chick-fil-A provides a lunch for these students.
Row 1: Hunter Crutchfield, Hudson Shotts, Jonathan Hughes, Cailyn Donaldson
Row 2: Natalie Derrick, Ja’Marea Briscoe, Marcus Taylor, Ashleigh Byrd
Row 3: Thomas Graham, Tham Le, Nhi Nguyen, Jesse Dobson
Row 4: Aaron Palmer, Daniel Bernard, Montavious Warren, Mike Penaloza,
Damien Williams; Not Pictured: Cade Hatten, Jasmine Losapio-Morgan,
Khristion Richardson, Garren Temple
Sumner Hill honored two students who improved the most during the
3rd Nine Weeks. Each student was given a $25 Gift Card, courtesy of Energy.
L-R: Brad Pope, Freshman Seminar Teacher, Donald Murphy, Jacob Tatum,
Alisha Sexton, Freshman Seminar Teacher
Sumner Hill honored 20 students whom have demonstrated Truthfulness.
They will receive a lunch courtesy of Chick-Fil-A in Clinton.
Row 1: Toby Taylor, Nigel Mims, Alexis Norwood, Janaa Patton, Ashley Henze,
Emileigh Little, Nichole Lara; Row 2: Hardin Copeland, Carsson DeYoung,
Devin Bass, Kirby Berch, Grant Dean, Daniel Bernard, Jake Parker, Mason Gibbs;
Not Pictured: Isabella Ballenger, William Bennett, Brian Crowder, Blair Ukele
52 • May 2018

Ninth-grader Bethany Young said being on the Peer Guidance Committee
carries a lot of weight at Sumner Hill Junior High. “It helps us understand that
the way we act can impact everyone around us,” said her classmate, 14-year-old
Cailyn Donaldson.
School counselor Heather Norton said the Peer Guidance Committee is a
way to teach students how to be leaders and that good leadership is important.
“It helps the environment at our school,” she said.
Among the Peer Guidance Committee activities that are being hosted are a
breakfast for new students, activities during Teacher Appreciation Week, and the
upcoming leadership course at Camp Down Range.
The most popular project is adopting a class of first-grade students at Clinton
Park Elementary School, communicating monthly together with them, and
visiting Clinton Park during Read Across America Week to read to the younger
students. “It’s a lot of fun, and they look up to us too,” Cailyn said. “They look at
us as the bigger kids who are role models. They’re very impressionable.”
Committee member Carsson DeYoung agreed. “It’s very satisfying to be able
to impact others’ lives and help them, like when we read to the younger group at
Clinton Park,” he said. Grant Dean, 14, said students applied to be on the Peer
Guidance Committee. “We wrote essays and answered questions,” he said.
Devin Bass, 14, said that in addition to committee activities, they take on
leadership roles in other ways, even in the classroom. “We had a class project
where we were making houses with popsicle sticks,” he said. “We were in groups
and we led the group, motivating people and coordinating the project.”
Sumner Hill Principal Christie Claxton said the Peer Guidance Committee is
an important student group. “Students in this group are learning how to be
leaders among their peers,” she said. “This is a life lesson and will help them as
they move to high school, college and into the workforce.”
Sumner Hill’s Peer Guidance Committee made a field trip to Camp Down Range
in Clinton and participated in leadership lessons taught by Brian Ervin. Lessons
consisted of team building, communication, perseverance, and learning each
other’s strengths and weaknesses. We appreciate Brian Ervin and CJ Stewart for
allowing our students to come to their facility.
L-R: Blair Ukele, Emma Grace Stanteen, Bethany Young, Grant Harris,
Hardin Copeland, Peyton Torrence, and Kaitlyn Hamilton
On top: Devin Bass and Carsson DeYoung
L-R: Lily Belle Cole, Brandon Cox, Chris Fowler, Ashley Henze, Cailyn Donaldson,
Caitlyn King, Nhi Nguyen, and Kine Bledsoe
Hometown Clinton • 53

The CHALKBOARD
CLINTON PUBLIC SCHOOLS
Clinton High
Six seniors at Clinton High School scored 35 or 36 on the American College
Test and have been designated STAR Students for 2018. STAR Students are
selected on the basis of academic excellence. “Both ACT scores and scholastic
averages are compared to determine the school’s STAR Students,” said Vickie
Powell of Jackson, senior vice president of foundations for the Mississippi
Economic Council. “The STAR program encourages and promotes academic
achievement among Mississippi’s high school seniors,” she continued.
Each STAR Student is asked to select a STAR Teacher, the teacher who has
made the greatest contribution to the student’s academic achievement. CHS
STAR Students and Teachers include:
• Patrick Vinzant, 35 on the ACT, chose as his STAR Teacher Allene Vinzant.
Patrick plans to attend the University of Alabama at Huntsville to pursue a
bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering, followed by graduate studies in
research and development. He has a full scholarship to UAH.
• Tanner DeYoung, 36 on the ACT, chose as his STAR Teacher Justin Odom.
Tanner plans to attend Mississippi State University and study biochemistry.
He has full scholarships through National Merit and the Provost Scholarship
program at MSU.
• Herleen Kaur, 35 on the ACT, chose as her STAR Teacher Sarah Hankins.
Herleen plans to attend Duke University and major in biology and pre-med.
She has scholarships through National Merit and the US Presidential Scholars
program.
• Mary Madison Pevey, 35 on the ACT, chose as her STAR Teacher Dave Fehr.
Mary Madison plans to attend Mississippi College and major in pre-med and
biology. She received a Presidential Scholar with Distinction scholarship from
MC as well as a Distinguished Young Woman scholarship.
Front L-R: Patrick Vinzant, Tanner DeYoung, Herleen Kaur, Mary Madison Pevey,
Michael Franks, Wesley Thomas; Back L-R: Allene Vinzant, Justin Odom,
Sarah Hankins, Dave Fehr, Zach Osborn, Angel Olinger.
• Michael Franks, 36 on the ACT, chose as his STAR Teacher Zach Osborn.
Michael plans to attend the University of Mississippi and major in biology, with
plans to attend medical school. He has a full scholarship to Ole Miss and will be
a student in the Honors College.
• Wesley Thomas, 35 on the ACT, chose as his STAR Teacher Angel Olinger.
Wesley plans to attend Mississippi College and major in biology and pre-dental
with a minor in business. He received a Presidential Scholar with Distinction
scholarship from MC, and also a scholarship for scoring in the top 2 percent at
the MC Math & Science Tournament.
More than 500 STAR Students and STAR Teachers were honored at MEC’s
M.B. Swayze Foundation Celebration on April 12. The top 20 STAR Students —
the ALL STAR Scholars — received scholarships and their STAR Teachers
received awards provided by the Kelly Gene Cook Sr. Charitable Foundation.
AP Biology students spent the day at Chakchiuma Swamp near Grenada with
artist, Robin Whitfield. These seventeen students hiked the swamp while
learning about biodiversity found there, painted with natural pigments, and
classified organisms found in the swamp waters. Interestingly enough, Robin
Whitfield was a 1990-91 AP Biology student at CHS. Her work can be viewed
and purchased at Robin Whitfield Studio in Grenada, Mississippi. AP students
attending were Kate Camillo, CJ Cornelius, Braxton Davis, Olivia Douell, Kobe
Elizenberry, Jaela Evans, Kaylee Goff, Tammera Goodson, Hunter Martin, Unnati
Jaiswal, Amanpreet Kaur, Jack Loome, Anna Robertson, Malorie Steen, Sara
Touchstone, Kiara Vance, Regina Yen.
Senior Audrey Pilgrim, a 4 year winner
of a Mississippi Scholastic Art and
Writing award, including a gold key
this year, won a silver medal in the
National Scholastic Art and Writing
competition for her poem entitled
“A Woman’s Body.” Audrey’s work will
be published by Scholastic and a video
reading of her work will be placed on
their website. An awards ceremony
will be held at Carnegie Hall on June
7th by the national committee to
honor selected winners of the national
award. Audrey also won a scholarship
for the 4th year in a row to attend the McMullen Young Writers’ workshop at
Millsaps College this summer via the Scholastic Awards Summer Scholarship
Program. Audrey will be attending Washington University in St. Louis this fall
on a full scholarship and majoring in mechanical engineering and applied
science.
​
54 • May 2018

Clinton High teacher Mary Stotts
makes sure her students have the
support they need to be successful.
“Mrs. Stotts stayed after school until 5pm
and after, and on Sunday from 1 pm until
after dark helping her students,” said
Denise Collins. “She read all 17 pages of
one student’s paper, making corrections
and analyzing every word and instructing
her on the adjustments to make.”
Because of her hard work, Stotts was
the recipient of the Dedication of Our
Valued Employees, or DOVE, customer
service award for the month of March.
“The entire time we were working on our research paper, Mrs. Stotts told
us to stay calm and she offered to help us,” said CHS student L.C. Collins. “Mrs.
Stotts was bombarded on a daily basis with questions about this assignment.”
In nominating Stotts for the award, L.C. said that she stayed late hours after
school to help students. The assignment was the first time most students had
tackled a 1,500-word research paper, and Stotts provided tutoring for students
to complete the work. She continued, “I came on Sunday. She offered to be there
from 1-6pm. I got there at 4:26pm. When I showed up, there were already 10 or 11
students there and more were coming in. When Mrs. Stotts got to me, it was
around 10 p.m. I left after 10:30 p.m., and she was still helping students.”
The DOVE Award is given each month during the school year to an employee
who goes above and beyond in showing customer service to students, parents
and the community. A five-member DOVE award selection committee chooses
each winner from a pool of nominations.
“It’s mind-blowing to me that a teacher cares so much to help her students
do something like that,” L.C. said. “She’s humble and she does things because
she’s a great person and an even greater teacher. She’s just awesome.”
Anyone can nominate a CPSD employee via the online form on www.
clintonpublicschools.com.
Clinton High School junior Joshua
Wright has spent the past two summers
working as an intern at the Mississippi
Youth Media Project. As part of this
internship, he and other project
members created the media package,
“From Woolworth’s Sit Ins to #Black-
LivesMatter: Protesting for Life,
Freedom and Dignity.” The film was
featured at Malco Grandview Cinema
in Madison in April as part of the 2018
Crossroads Film Festival. “The project is
about how sit-ins in downtown Jackson
tie in with the Black Lives Movement
today,” Joshua said.
Clinton High School
algebra teacher Heather
McKinion is one of 10
teachers nationwide to
receive a $3,000 classroom
technology grant from
Turning Technologies.
McKinion said she’s looking
for solutions to close the
mathematics achievement
gap at Clinton High School.
“Algebra I is a class that’s
generally taught in eighth
and ninth grade, and a few
sophomores should be enrolled once they attend CHS,” she said. “This year alone,
37 percent of the sophomore class is taking Algebra I. This is a large number of
students who are almost two curriculum classes behind their peers, which puts
them at a deficit for ACT purposes their junior year.”
Open to K-12 schools across the United States, the Classroom Improvement
Technology Grant program awarded 10 classrooms with grants to purchase
interactive technology to help instruction and increase student achievement.
McKinion said she heard about the grant while doing a graduate-level
research paper on “closing the achievement gap and improving learning by
integrating technology.” She filled out the application and submitted it, and was
notified this week that her grant application was approved.
“My class will be getting a set of interactive calculators along with a teacher
base and several other technology items that will also allow students to engage
and interact using their calculators, laptops, cell phones or iPads as we prepare
for the state test,” she said. The new equipment will also allow students to get
immediate feedback on their work, which will open more in-depth discussion
and improve learning. McKinion said it will also allow her to get a better
understanding of who is on task and mastering objectives immediately, as
opposed to those who are struggling and need more assistance.
“I am very excited about being awarded this grant and bringing this to
Clinton High School,” she said. “I feel that this will be something new and
exciting for our students that will create an excitement for learning.”
L-R: Sabin Bell, Shelby Sims, Hira Muzaffar, Simran Kaur, Mollie Matthews.
Not pictured Haley Tatum.
Six students from the health science classes of the Clinton High School Career
Complex attended the state HOSA Competition at the Marriott Hotel in Jackson.
Sabin Bell - Medical Terminolgy. Hira Muzaffar- Transcultural Healthcare.
HOSA Bowl - Mollie Matthews, Simran Kaur, Shelby Sims and Haley Tatum.
Hira Muzaffar won 1st place in her event.
Hometown Clinton • 55

The CHALKBOARD
Clinton Christian
Academy
The CCA 6th grade class recently took their annual trip to Gulf Shores Alabama
for the Marine Science Adventure where biology comes to life. It’s a two night
trip in which students study up close and personal several different marine
ecosystems. Students are led by a marine biologist into the Bon Secour National
Wildlife Refuge to study the dunes and into the lagoons, marshes and estuaries
seining the waters in order to collect, identify and classify specimen. The trip
also includes a tour of historic Fort Morgan and a visit to Alligator Alley.
CCA athletic teams have had successful seasons this spring. The archery team
finished third in both the MAIS AA South State and Overall State meets. The CCA
JV girls and boys track teams finished first in the district. The varsity girls and
boys track teams also finished first in the district and will continue competition
at the upcoming South State and State track meets. On the baseball field, CCA
set a school record with 13 wins and had 6 kids named All District.
Congratulations to Nate Phillips
who was named Star Student at CCA.
Nate is the son of Pastor Scott and
Becky Phillips of Clinton. Nate has
been a student of CCA since the school
opened in 2008. In addition to good
grades, Nate serves as the student
body president, yearbook editor, and
plays the guitar and leads worship for
chapel each Monday at CCA. He has
chosen Jerri Myers, CCA’s high school
honors and dual enrollment English
teacher as his Star teacher.
CCA experienced a devastating loss this school year when 2017 graduate
Landon Overstreet was tragically killed in a car accident. Landon will forever
be remembered at CCA for his fun, loving and laid back personality. He worked
hard, had fun no matter what he was doing and never met a stranger. On April
16th in a special ceremony after a baseball game, Landon’s number 17 baseball
jersey was retired. It hangs in the hall of CCA commemorating Landon’s life as he
lives on in the hearts and memories of the administration, faculty and students.
56 • May 2018

AT WOODCHASE
601-925-0009
131 Woodchase Park Dr. ~ Clinton, MS ~ woodchase@heritageproperties.com
We are pledged to the letter and spirit of U.S. policy for the achievement of equal housing opportunity throughout the Nation.
We encourage and support an affirmative advertising and marketing program in which there are no barriers to obtaining housing
because of race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin.
Need Not Be Built. For Marketing Purposes Only. All renderings, floor plans, features and photography are artist’s depictions only.
Features, pricing and dimensions shown herein are subject to change without notice. All dimensions are approximate. Developer
reserves the right to modify or adjust prices and/or specifications without notice. Special offers are subject to change without
notification. All move in discounts and specials are not for existing residents.
Hometown Clinton • 57

The
Time
COIN
Camille Anding
Tears glazed over Martha’s
eyes as she stood in the
center of the grocery aisle.
Then the tears puddled and slowly ran
down her face. The pain caught her off guard,
and tears were her only response.
Who would have thought that the
containers of applesauce in the fruit section
was the culprit behind her pain? They
appeared innocent and harmless, but today
they were reminders of Martha’s dad and his
years of being tethered to dialysis machines.
For months, even years, Martha had
shopped by her mother’s list for items on a
dialysis patient’s menu. It was a gloomy list, a
limited list, and his favorite applesauce treat
was a stark reminder of his years of struggle.
But now, his struggles were over. Both
Martha’s parents had stepped from their
earthly tents to their heavenly eternal home.
Life had changed drastically for Martha.
She wiped away the tears and rushed
her cart down the aisle. Sorrow was nudging
closer and closer, and his companionship
was suffocating.
Scripture! That was the answer. Martha
recalled the verse in her morning devotional
and spoke it audibly: “He will cover you with
his feathers; you will take refuge under his
wings. His faithfulness will be a protective
shield.” She repeated it for a third time.
The power of His Word hadn’t failed, but
Sorrow had clamped her ears shut. The pain
wouldn’t subside.
Martha scarcely remembered the
grocery checkout or the ride home. She
pushed items into her pantry, walked out
of her kitchen and into her backyard—
her sanctuary of peace. Wandering through
the budding peonies, she released the
held-back tears and had the kind of cry that
washed away pain. She prayed for strength
and a greater sense of His indwelling so
Sorrow wouldn’t always camp in her emotions.
The prayer was sincere, as sincere as she
could muster.
Did God hear? She believed in prayer
and was confident God always heard, but
today she would have rejoiced over an answer
written across the sky or His thunderous
voice that affirmed His response.
As the garden path led past the grouping
of azaleas, Martha suddenly stopped. There
it was—complete and total affirmation that
God heard and had answered!
Martha stopped down to pick up the
single, tiny feather that rested on her path.
Joy rushed in. Sorrow and Gloom were
nowhere to be found. ●
58 • May 2018

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DIRECT DIGITAL GREEN CROSS MEDIA
DESIGN
HEDERMAN BROTHERS
247 Industrial Drive N Madison, Mississippi 39110
601-853-7300 1-800-844-7301
www.hederman.com
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