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contents

JACKSONIAN courtesy Greg Goldman

September 2 - 15, 2020 Vol. 19 No. 1

ON THE COVER Kamesha Mumford Photo courtesy Kamesha Mumford

6 Editor’s Note 9 Talks

11 Rethinking Lake Hico With Entergy’s lease ending, the Jackson Public School District considers new ways to use the lake.

14 Progress

16 The Kundi Collection Local entrepreneurs create a line of graphic T-shirts with bold slogans.

G

reg Goldman has been signing since he was 2 years old. His father is deaf, and his mother is an interpreter, so Goldman is in a rare position within the deaf community—he is fluent in both spoken English and American Sign Language, and can translate between them.

Aside from spelling out proper nouns such as names, American Sign Language has no roots in English, or any other written or spoken language. ASL is completely conceptual, and grammar, adjectives and adverbs, and even syntax, are unnecessary.

“Where a hearing person might say, ‘I need to go to the auto mechanic next week and get my transmission fixed,’ a deaf person would probably just sign ‘need broken car fix,’” Goldman says.

“They’re two completely different languages.”

A professional sign-language interpreter since the age of 19, Goldman also worked as a dorm parent at Mississippi School for the Deaf and enjoyed a 20-year career at the Mississippi Department of Rehabilitation Services. After retiring in 2017, he opened Goldman Interpreting Services. He now teaches classes and interprets full-time. “This is a challenging job,” Goldman says. “Not everyone can get up there in front of a crowd and do it.”

Interpreters work everywhere throughout Mississippi including hospitals, doctors’ offices and courtrooms. Being a child of a

deaf adult, otherwise known as “CODA,” and his long history with the deaf community confer credibility and afford Goldman access to the nearly 3,000 signing deaf Mississippians.

“This is a serious relationship for us,” he explains. “An (ASL) interpreter has to be trusted, skillful and knowledgeable enough to give the correct information.”

Starting with Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Goldman has interpreted televised press conferences for many statewide disasters.

“It’s easier for the deaf community if I’m right there because 90% of sign-language communication is facial expressions and body language,” he says. “That’s why interpreters must be expressive on TV—so that the deaf community can understand the severity. The expressions are like the inflections of your voice.”

The pandemic has pushed interpreters to adapt to the changing terminology of the pandemic—and Goldman is an ever-present fixture during Gov. Tate Reeves’ COVID-19 press briefings.

“(ASL) is a living, constantly evolving language,” Goldman says, noting that the virus has affected how easily he is able to communicate with those who are deaf. “COVID has really interrupted the deaf world,” Goldman concludes. “Wearing a mask makes it impossible for some deaf people to read my lips, and it cuts down on seeing my expressions.”

– Michele D. Baker

17 ‘Constant’ Exhibit Jackson artists collaborate to create an installation that protests against racial injustice.

18 Biz 19 Do-Gooder 20 BOJ- Legal 26 Bites 26 Melodies 27 Fall Events 30 Puzzle 30 Sorensen 31 astro 31 Classifieds

September 2 - 15, 2020 • boomjackson.com

Greg Goldman

5

editor’s note

Editor-in-Chief and CEO Donna Ladd Publisher & President Todd Stauffer Associate Publisher Kimberly Griffin Creative Director Kristin Brenemen REPORTERS AND WRITERS City Reporter Kayode Crown State Reporter Nick Judin State Intern Julian Mills Contributing Writers Dustin Cardon, Bryan Flynn, Alex Forbes, Jenna Gibson, Tunga Otis Torsheta Jackson, Mike McDonald, Anne B. Mckee, EDITORS AND OPERATIONS Deputy Editor Nate Schumann JFPDaily.com Editor Dustin Cardon Executive Assistant Azia Wiggins Editorial Assistant Shaye Smith Consulting Editor JoAnne Prichard Morris

ONLINE & DIGITAL SERVICES Digital Web Developer Ryan Jones Web Editor Dustin Cardon Social Media Assistant Robin Johnson Web Designer Montroe Headd Let’s Talk Jackson Editor Kourtney Moncure SALES AND MARKETING (601-362-6121 x11) Marketing Writer Andrea Dilworth Marketing Consultant Mary Kozielski Advertising Designer Zilpha Young Events Assistant Leslyn Smith DISTRIBUTION Distribution Coordinator Ken Steere Distribution Team Yvonne Champion, Ruby Parks, Eddie Williams TALK TO US: Letters letters@jacksonfreepress.com Editorial editor@jacksonfreepress.com Queries submissions@jacksonfreepress.com Listings events@jacksonfreepress.com Advertising ads@jacksonfreepress.com Publisher todd@jacksonfreepress.com News tips news@jacksonfreepress.com

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// by Donna Ladd

T

he Jackson Daily News hit the streets in Mississippi on June 26, 1919, with a staggering headline: “John Hartfield will be lynched by Ellisville mob at 5 o’clock this afternoon.”

The New Orleans States newspaper was more specific: “3,000 Will Burn Negro.”

The bombastically racist Gov. Theodore Bilbo knew of plans underway for Hartfield’s lynching in Jones County, but he told the press there was nothing he could do. The next day, the Daily News and other outlets described droves of white men, women and children showing up to watch the upstanding mob, led and protected by law enforcement, hang the Black Mississippian to a tree, lighting a fire beneath. The posse had shot Hartfield when bloodhounds sent from Crystal Springs found him, but the mob fired more bullets into him as he hanged and burned. Then, watchers took body parts for souvenirs.

Hartfield’s supposed crime was raping a white woman—a likely lie not considered any more credible now than most reasons for lynchings in our state, which had the most. It was also during the Red Summer of 1919, when white mobs lynched and massacred Black people across the United States, burning their property and businesses. If you want to understand U.S. mob violence, start with that time period.

I learned about Hartfield’s lynching on a road trip to Ellisville the day before Kenosha, Wis., police fired seven rounds at Jacob Blake’s back. The most common

It’s a curse our nation has allowed to fester and kill excuse we hear is Blake was wanted for a sexual-assault warrant. So, all of us should be outraged enough to think it was just fine for an officer to shoot the father repeatedly in the back? He did something bad, as far as we know, so anything goes?

My phrase for such twisted excusemaking for brutality, by police or not, is “lynching logic.” It’s a curse our nation has allowed to fester and kill under for centuries now. Put simply: It’s OK to do anything one wants to a Black person because he or she did something bad. No stinkin’ due process is needed to prove it.

It’s what happened to Trayvon Mar-

tin, to a child called Tamir Rice, to a woman named Breonna Taylor, and to Eric Garner because he was selling loose cigarettes to feed his family, for God’s sake.

But the lynching logic used to convince women that heinous barbarism is fine due to alleged sexual transgressions especially turns my stomach as a sexualassault survivor. How many times has the excuse for a brutal lynching been a woman’s “honor” or alleged violation?

Hell, the excuse for abducting and trip burns/fiLe photo

ART AND PHOTOGRAPHY Senior Designer Zilpha Young Contributing Photographers Seyma Bayram, Acacia Clark, Nick Judin, Imani Khayyam, Ashton Pittman, Brandon Smith

No More ‘Lynching Logic’ to Excuse Brutality Against Black People

Donna Ladd

beating 14-year-old Emmett Till to a pulp, then tying a heavy cotton-gin fan around the boy and dumping him into the Tallahatchie River was because, supposedly, the child whistled at a white man’s wife.

I just saw a man use lynching logic under a Facebook post about protesters at the Sumner, Miss., courthouse where a white jury acquitted Till’s killers 65 years ago last week. The protesters want the Confederate statue moved from a lawn where it is especially sickening, and they’re raising awareness about the ongoing systemic racism those statues represent— including police and citizen brutality. But this white dude wasn’t having it.

“Don’t use Emmett Till as your prop, where were you Defending people like him during the Metoo movement,” the man posted in a remarkable conflation of what I’m guessing is his anger at both Black Lives Matter and the #MeToo movement. But it got me thinking about the lynching-logic problem—that women (especially white ones) are used as an excuse for horrific violence against Black men. This dates back to times of slavery,

of course, where race-mixing was strictly taboo—unless it was between white men and the Black women they raped repeatedly for their own pleasure and to build their future free labor force.

Put bluntly, accusing a Black man of a sexual crime has always been an excuse to kick fully into dehumanization with anything-goes, often in the most dramatic and brutal way possible. This dehumanization is baked into the nation’s white DNA after generations of brainwashing and being told that Black people, especially men, were born more prone to violence.

In this bullshit cycle of historic and systemic racism we’ve never fully confronted, that belief leads to all kinds of inequities—from segregation academies (still), to community disinvestment and fleeing to whiter suburbs, to many cops bringing their racism to the job and treating Black communities in ways that research proves can lead to more, not less, violence.

The lynching logic takes over as an excuse for any behavior: “See, Black people commit more crimes.” I just want to bang my head against the wall at the stupidity of this circular and violent logic that keeps the same-old “got-what-he-deserved” racist cycle of white violence going.

Seeing the vulgarity and savagery of believing that Black people are exempt from the need for due process, trials and actual evidence before they’re punished— just like white people get—in no way negates my pain as a sexual-assault survivor who is confident that my (white) rapist will never pay for the hell he caused me for years afterward. But I still don’t want some cruel, trigger-happy vigilante, or a police officer, to drag him out of his home and punish him without a trial. I don’t want him burned, or hung, or cut up, or shot several times in the back as his kids watch.

I want what the best of the #MeToo movement has brought—awareness of the severity of the problem and evidence against men like Harvey Weinsten, Bill Cosby, Jeffrey Epstein, R. Kelly, Matt Lauer and Kevin Spacey who used their power and fame in unconscionable ways, and repeatedly, credible sources tell us.

I decidedly don’t want my so-called honor or pain as a woman used as an excuse to continue the horrific practice of lynching, in one form or another, in a country that has never fully reckoned with that heinous practice, past or present.

contributors

Taylor McKay Hathorn

Kyle Hamrick is a senior at Mississippi College pursuing a degree in history and minoring in journalism. He enjoys good conversations over good cups of coffee, and he will never turn down a new seersucker suit. He wrote BOJ blurbs for the issue.

Taylor McKay Hathorn is an alumna of Mississippi College’s English program and a student at Asbury Theological Seminary. She enjoys binging TV shows, watching the sun set over the Mississippi River and tweeting her opinions @_youaremore_. She wrote BOJ blurbs for the issue.

Kayode Crown

Nick Judin

City Reporter Kayode Crown came to Mississippi from Nigeria where he was a journalist for 10 years. He likes rock music and has fallen in love with the beautiful landscapes in Jackson. He wrote about Lake Hico and Hinds County’s new SWAT team.

State reporter Nick Judin grew up in Jackson and graduated from the University of Mississippi. He is covering this year’s legislative session. Try not to run him over when you see him crossing State Street. He wrote the Talk on school reopening during COVID-19.

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She wrote features on The Compound Collection and the “Constant” exhibit.

Web Editor Dustin Cardon is a graduate of the University of Southern Mississippi. He enjoys reading fantasy novels and wants to write them himself one day. He wrote the quarterly biz and progress roundups.

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TALK JXN

“Realistically, we’re in a crisis: the pandemic of a generation, and it’s going to change how we live, how we educate and how we work.”

@jxnfreepress

@jacksonfreepress

— Dr. Jennifer Bryan, MSMA Board chairwoman, Aug. 31

@jxnfreepress

ce eren rev

Experts Fear The Worst As School Districts Return to Classrooms

by Nick Judin

Mississippi’s school districts are returning to traditional, full-sized, in-person classes, against the warnings of Mississippi’s leading health experts.

the plan bearing their names. “Dear Task Force,” it read, “I had every intention of sending you the plan before it went live, but I got in a hurry and forgot.”

Bryan requested another conversation with Townsend after the release of the plan to reiterate her warnings and those of Dobbs, and health experts across the nation. “Traditional is not best practices,” Bryan told her. She worried that the inclusion of the task force’s names and titles in the document implied to parents that they had signed off on the document—in fact, they’d never seen it before.

As September arrived, with thousands of students already quarantined across Mississippi in just a matter of weeks, Rankin’s public-school students and teachers are returning to traditional in-person classes.

Educators from across Rankin County School District reached out to the Jack-

son Free Press in July and August, baffled by the Smart Restart Plan and fearing for their safety in the upcoming school year.

One Rankin County teacher shared a photo of a bottle of hand sanitizer, cleaning spray and two cloth masks.

“This is our PPE,” she said. “We can check out another bottle of hand sanitizer if we run out. I think.”

Central to the concerns of every RCSD teacher who talked to the Jackson Free Press was the impossibility of the 6-foot separation needed for even a basic degree of social distancing.

“My biggest class has (over 20) students,” a different educator told the Jackson Free Press in July. Six feet of separation, the recommended distance—especially for unmasked activities like eating—was absolutely out of the question. “I’ve had to put my desks into groups to fit all my students in the classroom,” she said.

The unprecedented growth of Mississippi’s coronavirus cases in late July forced alterations to the plan. With the state deep in the nation’s red zone for coronavirus growth, RCSD put the “enhanced traditional” model on hold, temporarily, opting for a hybrid model that alternated days for half of the student body to attend in person. Now, in September, a modified version of the original plan arrives for the entire district, with state-mandated masks.

Rankin County is far from the only school district to reject the urgings of the Mississippi State Department of Health and other prominent medical stakeholders.

Indeed, the traditional plan is the norm across the state. Though many RCSD teachers reached out to share their stories, many more from other districts and counties expressed a powerful sense of dread before the return to in-person classes. more SCHOOL DISTRICTS, p 10

September 2 - 15, 2020 • boomjackson.com

courtesy Rankin County School District

I

t was mid-July when Dr. Jennifer Bryan received the Rankin County School District’s “Smart Restart Plan,” a comprehensive document establishing the structure and guidelines of the upcoming fall semester. Her name and title were displayed at the document’s closing, a message to Rankin County families that the district had sought the approval and expertise of a wide range of professionals.

Bryan is chairwoman of the board of trustees of the Mississippi State Medical Association, the state’s largest physician organization and public-health advocacy group. Her Flowood medical practice and representation of a broad field of physicians made her a natural choice for RCSD’s Smart Restart Task Force, a team of experts and community stakeholders meant to ensure the district’s back-toschool plans properly served the county.

The plan itself painted a picture of a school year as close to normal as was possible, with a heavy focus on sanitation practices.

There was only one problem: She had firmly rejected the plan.

“We had the meeting, and very vocally I said, ‘we don’t need to do traditional, we need to go hybrid at least, and virtual needs to be a big part of that.’ And then they sent out the letter, publicly, to all the parents, with my title in it, and the whole Smart Restart Traditional Plan,” Bryan told the Jackson Free Press in an interview.

The first “enhanced” traditional plan offered limited protection against the spread of COVID-19 at best. It encouraged masks, but made them optional in all settings other than buses.

The document described contingency plans for hybrid and virtual learning options, but they focused on worstcase scenarios. Full classes and in-person teaching formed the baseline for RCSD, against the advice of Bryan and State Health Officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs.

RCSD Superintendent Dr. Sue Townsend sent the entire task force an apology shortly after publicly sending out

9

TALK JXN

school districts, from page 9

courtesy Jennifer Bryan

Be Positive, Or Else tricts has been impossible to find, a con- The opening weeks of in-person (significantly).” Still, his experience is

As school approached, Daniel Jacobs sequence of what Dobbs described to the classes have been anxiety-inducing for a privileged one, unique to the state’s felt trapped. In his 50s, he is a heart-attack Jackson Free Press as the “strange concept most teachers. wealthier private schools, and Jacobs is survivor with a stent and a healthy fear of ultimate district autonomy.” Some For some, it has been catastrophic. the first to admit it. of coronavirus, speaking to the Jackson school systems, like Corinth School Dis- Southeast Elementary School in Elsewhere, limited protections have Free Press under a pseudonym. And yet trict and Tupelo School District, have Lauderdale County experienced an alarm- many teachers and health-care professionthe medicine that keeps him alive ing uptick in infected and visibly als afraid of what is to come. tops $600 a month, an oversymptomatic teachers within a “I don’t understand why they didn’t whelming expense for a workingweek of reopening, and closed listen to the recommendations,” Bryan class educator, and one that his its doors until Sept. 3. At Biloxi said of RCSD. Now she watches the health insurance from a teaching High School, a 15-student clus- school shutdowns and the growing outposition at a Jackson metro priter of confirmed cases resulted in breaks across the state’s schools, with over vate school helps him cover.

324 exposures, shutting the entire 10,000 quarantined students in the first

His siblings are scattered school down for the remainder of month back, worried for what the first across the South. He is the closest August and into September. full weeks of the traditional model will to their mother, living in North

Lafayette Upper Elementary mean for Rankin County’s children.

Mississippi. His first thought is School, suffering an outbreak “We need to be creative, innovative, for her. “Will I have to stop visitamong teachers, and the exposure and in a problem-solving mode as to how ing her if I’m in a classroom all of around 200 children, quaran- we approach education,” she explained. day?” he asked—a question with tined its entire fourth-grade class Without a huge decline in community no satisfying answer. due to lack of educators to prop- transmission, Bryan warns, that decision

Jacobs’ mother depends on erly serve them. will be made for Mississippi. him, as he depends on his heart

“Realistically, we’re in a crisis: the medication and on the gainful Creative Plans Needed pandemic of a generation, and it’s going employment that provides him

Mississippi’s public-health to change how we live, how we educate access to it. His class depends on experts have repeatedly acknowl- and how we work. Some of this is psychoDr. Jennifer Bryan, chairwoman of the Mississippi his presence, too, something he edged that excessive community logical, in how we handle collective grief State Medical Association, says the Rankin County is loath to keep from them. spread makes in-person classes and collective trauma,” Bryan said.

School District failed to inform their own “Smart

He did not ask if he himself Restart” task force of their school reopening plan virtually impossible to accom- Despite her frustration with the disis safe, heart already damaged, before releasing it to the public. plish safely. The cramped spaces trict, and her fears for the future, Bryan is from the pernicious and often of many of Mississippi’s schools looking ahead, focused on mitigating the undetectable community spread only compound the rate of as- risks and responding to disruptions that dutifully reported numbers of cases and ymptomatic transmission and the diffi- she knows face the state’s schools. of a virus known to attack the cardiac quarantines. system as well as the respiratory. There is culty children have with proper infection- “If we’ll listen to our experts ... we

“Well done to Tupelo Schools for control procedures. too much else to fret over—plainly, it is can minimize the damage, where the transparency,” Dobbs tweeted on Aug. 22. his lower priority.

For a lucky few, careful adherence government will step in, be harsher, more “This is absolutely the best approach.”

Jacobs’ story is common across Misto the guidelines has brought some sense abrupt,” she told the Jackson Free Press.

Others have jealously guarded their of comfort. Jacobs said in late August “That’s what I want the media to teach sissippi. Educators young and old weigh consequence against consequence, their districts from public inquiry. Over the that his school was strictly maintaining people, to accept the reality that it’s going jobs against their families, their health course of weeks, Rankin County School distance and masking throughout the to bumpy. The fall is going to be extremeagainst the health of those around them.

District rejected requests for comments school day, and that his class sizes, around ly hard. And we will get through it, but it’s on outbreaks as well as interviews with 12 to 13 on average, allowed for a respon- better that we grab the bull by the horns

From the first days of the state’s Superintendent Townsend, citing sched- sible degree of distancing. return to in-person classes, countless and pay attention to what’s going on.” educators and parents have reached out uling constraints—both before and after “We’re really coping quite well,” he Email state reporter Nick Judin at her own COVID-19 infection. to the Jackson Free Press from all across said. “My apprehension has gone down nick@jacksonfreepress.com.

Mississippi, sharing experiences of inadequate preparation, nigh-worthless protective measures, and above all else a culture of fear and repression over the prospect of openly discussing infections

by JFP Staff and outbreaks.

Almost every educator interviewed hile a number of fall sporting • Set up a video call with your fellow participants. Whether events have been cancelled you decide to use your television as a monitor or a perrequested anonymity; administrators due to concerns surrounding sonal laptop, getting connected so that you can converse have already threatened many with seCOVID-19, those who enjoy the tailgating with your friends before the game is important, as is being vere repercussions for openly discussing experience can still manage to be social able to hear one another’s reactions to the game itself. the struggles of the semester. “Be positive while remaining socially distant. One • Find online party games to pass the time. During traditionon social media!” one staff email warned, way to accomplish such a feat is to set al tailgating parties, games like cornhole help set the mood cheerily. “Do not dampen the enthusiup a virtual tailgating party. By confor a good-spirited time. Even while apart, the internet is asm for the coming semester.” necting with friends and family online, full of friendly games you can play with your cohorts. Be sure to have a few good belly-laughs.

“Educators have felt left out in this everyone can enjoy a game, as well as • Grill your own food. You may not be able to share food with others outside your household as easily as you whole debacle. We have had nowhere to each other’s company. Check out these could at a physical tailgating party, but that does not mean you have to go without your favorites. So break tips of what all you can do to get your turn,” a Pearl River County teacher said. out the hamburgers and potato salad. If you really want to simulate the experience, perhaps you can even virtual tailgating party started.

Uniformity among the school dis-

10

W

Photo by Hari Nandakumar on Unsplas

September 2 - 15, 2020 • jfp.ms

Virtual Tailgating Party Checklist

bring a cooler into the living room or wherever you are watching the game.

TALK JXN

development

JPS Mulls Lake Hico’s Future, Proposes Advisory Committee

by Kayode Crown

Creating the ‘Wow Factor’

The Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality granted Entergy the permit to use the lake as a cooling pond—it is now known to be too hazardous to use for recreation—and it requires a new permit for any other use.

The JPS superintendent said that he is hopeful for the next phase for the lake. courtesy flonzie brown-wright

Edward Goodloe Jr. stands next to the walking trail named for him at the park near Lake Hico to honor his contributions in helping to integrate the park.

Power company Entergy will end its lease of Lake Hico as a cooling pond at the end of the month. The question now is what to do with the lake and park.

“We certainly as a school district want to create the wow factor, the wow experience for those living immediately around the lake, and again for the city and beyond it,” he said. “It does everyone justice, benefits everyone to the extent that we can create something at Lake Hico that is a jewel for the city, and I certainly see an opportunity for it here.”

Possible future uses mentioned at the town hall include for a housing development, retail facilities, entertainment projects, a water park, water sports, solar field or a lake. The project needs the community’s buy-in and expertise, necessitating an advisory committee’s formation.

“We definitely want and need help to make sure that we create something that the community actually wants, that the community will be proud of, in the city and in the neighborhoods just outside of Lake Hico and that property,” Greene said during the virtual town hall.

“We would likely need someone who has done this kind of work to lead us through that exploration, to get some professional support around development and land use and all sorts of things.”

“These are the kinds of things that we are going to need help exploring to get to the thing that really resonates with our community, benefits our community most,” Greene added.

velopers and identify government, quasigovernment, and private developmental partners.

It will include those living around the lake, with at least one person with an environmental background. They will develop a project timeline and map out a financial plan.

“We want to create something that the community actually wants,” the JPS superintendent said. “That the community will be proud to have in the city, in those neighborhoods.”

Greene said people can share other ideas by calling JPS Executive Director of Public Engagement Sherwin Johnson at 601-960-8935.

Mayor Chokwe A Lumumba, who was at the meeting, highlighted the importance of the lake.

“This is a very important discussion,” he said. “It is not only important for the school district, but it is important to our communities, it is important to things like property value; it is important in terms of the future for our city.”

“What we have in the short term are significant decisions to make,” Lumumba added. “I think that if we can develop a plan and the community is in lockstep with the plan, in the long term, not so distant future, there is an immense opportunity.”

‘Significant Decisions to Make’

Suggestions at the meeting include having the committee consist of Jackson residents who will bring in property de-

Email story tips to city/county reporter Kayode Crown at kayode@jacksonfreepress. com. Follow him on Twitter at @kayodecrown.

September 2 - 15, 2020 • boomjackson.com

Previously Segregated

In Lake Hico’s early history, which predated the opening of the Ross Barnett reservoir in Madison County, it was

a popular lake and park for boating and other recreation and was the home of the Jackson Yacht Club—but it was segregated with only white people allowed to use the lake and park. The name “Hico” came from combining “Hinds” and “County.”

Aliyah Veal of the Mississippi Free Press reported that in the 1960s, in the midst of the Civil Rights Movement calling for integration of all public facilities, the yacht club moved to the new reservoir in Madison County. The then-white-led City of Jackson then closed the lake in 1969, as well as the City’s public swimming pools, to avoid integrating them. It then closed the park in 1975 for the same reason, but it is now reopened.

It took a lawsuit by Jackson mother and civil-rights activist Flonzie BrownWright for her then-14-year-old son to be allowed to play softball in the untilthen segregated park. Now, a walking trail is named for her son, Edward Goodloe Jr., who died in 2014. The late Mayor Chokwe Lumumba led the naming of the trail in Goodloe’s honor.

File photo by Stephen Wilson

0

s Entergy’s lease of Lake Hico as a cooling pond for its electricity plant located between Northside Drive and Watkins Drive ends Sept. 30, it presents an excellent opportunity for its beneficial re-purposing, Jackson Public School District Superintendent Errick L. Greene said last weekend.

JPS organized a virtual town hall meeting on Zoom, which brought together Jackson citizens as a first step in figuring out the lake’s future, with the need for an advisory committee stressed.

The end of Entergy’s lease means the district loses more than $300,000 a year which is the most 16th-section income JPS draws from any lease. The Mississippi secretary of state manages 16thsection lands leased to generate funds for the state’s school districts.

“Entergy has held a lease with them for the past 30 years,” Greene said. “They indicated to us that they do not intend to extend that lease. As much as we hate to lose them as a tenant, this does provide for us a wonderful opportunity to rethink the use of Lake Hico.”

“There is a lot of history and a lot of context around Lake Hico,” the JPS superintendent added. “It is very important to us as a school district.”

11

TALK JXN

CRIME KAYODE CROWN

The Jackson-Hinds County special weapons and tactics team members after their swearing-in today. Sheriff Lee Vance pushed for the 33 new SWAT team members, but say they will only respond to special threat situations. But anti-violence efforts warn that SWAT teams must not be “militarized” or over-used.

Hinds County Sheriff Swears in SWAT Team; Violence Expert Urges Caution

by Kayode Crown

September 2 - 15, 2020 • jfp.ms

S

12

heriff Lee Vance swore in 33 special weapons and tactics team members today at the grounds of Jackson Police Training Academy. Vance pushed for the expanded SWAT unit to respond to special threat situations.

Deputies and officers from the Hinds County Sheriff’s Office and Jackson, Clinton, and Byram’s police departments are part of the SWAT unit.

“The combined personnel train together and utilize necessary resources and logistics to respond to special threat situations throughout the Hinds County area,” Captain Tyree Jones, the public information officer for the Hinds County Sheriff’s Office, wrote in a statement.

“The officers from the other agencies will be deputized in an effort to assume individual jurisdiction throughout Hinds County when operating in the capacity of the Jackson-Hinds SWAT Team.”

The team will not deploy daily, Vance told the Jackson Free Press. The arrangement continues what the late Hinds County Sheriff Malcolm McMillin, who served from 1991 until 2011, started during his tenure, Vance added.

McMillin combined the Hinds County SWAT team with that of the Jackson Police Department during his tenure. “And since then, obviously we have added the Byram and the Clinton police departments,” Vance said. He said he needed to swear the members in after

he took office to “maintain the status of the SWAT team.”

The city councils of Jackson and Byram entered into a memorandum of understanding for collaboration on the team. On May 18, the Hinds County Board of Supervisors committed to the arrangement, with Jackson City Council following earlier this month.

SWAT Teams: A Slippery Slope?

Violence-prevention expert Ron Noblett sounded a note of caution about the SWAT team in a phone interview with the Jackson Free Press on Aug. 27 after hearing of the county’s plan.

“My belief is that there are some good reasons for developing a small SWAT team,” he said. “Unfortunately, there is a tendency among police departments to give more and more responsibilities to swat teams and to militarize them.”

Noblett is a senior consultant on conflict and violence for the Urban Peace Institute in Los Angeles, who is intimate with Jackson’s violence challenges. He was a lead on-the-ground researcher in the 2016 BOTEC Analysis studies of Jackson crime, yielding five detailed reports on causes and solutions.

Then-Attorney General Jim Hood ordered the BOTEC study, and the Mississippi Legislature funded it. “(Using the team to deal with) an active shooter makes sense, but then any

situation can (be called) an active shooter (situation),” Noblett cautioned.

“Domestic violence is extremely tricky; police more often than not can make a domestic-violence situation worse because they have not been trained to handle the situation properly.”

Symbol of Cooperation The Hinds sheriff, though, argues that the SWAT team can help lower violence. “People like to see law enforcement agencies working together,” Vance said. “It is a symbol of that. It is a symbol of cooperation among jurisdictions. We also believe that all of us work very hard, but we should learn how to work smart and combine three units. I think it is an example of us working smart.”

“There is no extra cost to it,” Vance said. “The key here is that I have learned down through the years that nobody has enough resources. I think it is a smart thing for us to combine resources, and this is an example of that.”

Vance emphasized that the SWAT team is targeted at dealing with activeshooter situations and will not operate on the street daily.

“They are deployed into situations where a regular group of police officers really don’t have the kind of tactics that are needed to resolve the situation,” he said. “Therefore, we will bring SWAT in.

They are reserved for problems we can’t

solve with regular patrol officers.”

“In law enforcement now, as far as active shooters (are concerned), the first officers that respond are mandated to try to stop the threat,” Vance added.

“But if they are not successful and (involves a) barricaded person (with a gun) in (a place), what we try to do is resolve these situations peacefully, and if we can’t resolve them peacefully, then we will give the SWAT (team) instruction to end the situation, take care of the threat so we can be safe.”

Read more violence-prevention solutions at jfp.ms/preventingviolence. Email story tips to city/county reporter Kayode Crown at kayode@jacksonfreepress.com.

Follow him on Twitter at @kayodecrown.

MOST VIRAL STORIES AT JFP.MS: 1. “OPINION: Southern Evangelical: Trump ‘Fits the Scriptural Definition of a Fool’” by Fred Rand 2. “Dobbs: ‘Triumvirate of Disaster’ as COVID-19 Spreads Through Mississippi Schools” by Julian Mills, Nick Judin 3. “Hinds County Sheriff Swears in SWAT Team; Violence Expert Urges Caution” by Kayode Crown 4. “PUBLISHER’S NOTE: Gov. Reeves, Stop the Insanity” by Todd Stauffer 5. “JPD Officers Indicted for Murder Present for Earlier Civilian Shootings” by Donna Ladd, Kayode Crown

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JXN // progress

Jackson Building and Rebuilding in Equal Force // by Dustin Cardon

E

ven though the pandemic has slowed many things down or brought them to a halt, Jackson continues the work toward growth and change with both new construction and renovation.

September 2 - 15, 2020 • jfp.ms

14

Sunshine for All Program The fruit-supplying company Dole launched its “Sunshine for All” program in Jackson in August. The program aims to provide better nutrition for 1 billion people in underserved communities by 2025.

As part of the program, Dole will partner with Jackson-based food organization Up in Farms to support their farm-to-table training center. Dole will also distribute fresh produce and smoothies to areas in Jackson that are considered food deserts, meaning they lack easy access to grocery stores and healthy foods.

The Sharing the Sunshine Meals & Nutrition Education Program will provide educational courses for children and families on healthy cooking and affordable shopping for healthy food, as well as cooking classes for adults. Dole will also host a Kids Cooking Camp to provide hands-on lessons in basic food preparation for children.

Dole will also host pop-up farmers markets and provide healthy meals on

The Federal Highway Administration and the Mississippi Department of Transportation funded the project. Residents can follow the progress of the project on the museum trail’s Facebook page.

Road Repair and Repaving Thirteen Jackson streets are on a repaving list for 2020, Mayor Chokwe A. Lumumba announced in July, as part of an effort to reverse the degrading of road infrastructure in the City. The streets include

damage forced the planetarium to close in April 2018. With the damage repaired, the City is preparing to renovate the building for the first time in 40 years and plans to reopen the planetarium by April 2022.

The planetarium ran a fundraising campaign and sold limited-edition merchandise to raise money for design work, exhibition design and build-out.

For more information on renovation efforts for the planetarium, visit yourplanetarium.com.

JXN Icons Mural Visit Jackson officially unveiled the “JXN Icons” mural at the Old Capitol Inn (226 N. State St.) in July.

The mural, which Visit Jackson’s Creative Design Manager Reshonda Perryman, created, is on the back wall of the Old Capitol Inn facing the front entrance of the Two Mississippi Museums in downtown Jackson.

It depicts civil-rights leader and NAACP field officer Medgar Evers; writer and photographer Eudora Welty; USA IBC founder and American ballet dancer Thalia Mara; and musician and philanthropist David Banner.

For information, visit discoverjxn.ms/news/jxnicons Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba announced renovations to the Russell C. or visitjackson.com.

CDFL ArChiteCts

Renovations to Mississippi Coliseum Completed Mississippi Agriculture and Commerce Commissioner Andy Gipson announced in August that work had finished five months ahead of schedule on renovations to the Mississippi Coliseum at the Mississippi State Fairgrounds, partially due to event cancellations from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Wier Boerner Allin Architecture designed the $2.2-million renovation project, which began in October 2019 and was originally planned to finish by January 2021. Renovations included repairing and painting floors and walls with abrasive, slipresistant paint, installing new seating, and adding handrails and reflectors.

The Mississippi Coliseum is attached to the new Mississippi Trade Mart building. The state Legislature consolidated the Mississippi Fair Commission into the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce effective July 1, 2020.

Visit mdac.ms.gov/bureaus-departments/state-fairgrounds to learn more.

alternating weekends at Boys and Girls Club locations in Jackson.

Local organizations participating in the Sunshine for All program include the Fertile Ground Project, the Jackson Public Schools Administration, the Mississippi Food Policy Council, the Mississippi Food Justice Collaborative and the University of Mississippi Medical Center.

Planetarium in July. The planetarium is presently set to reopen by April 2022.

Groundbreaking for Museum to Market Trail Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba and other officials hosted a groundbreaking ceremony for the new Museum to Market multi-use path in July.

In 2011, the City of Jackson received a $1.1-million federal grant through the Mississippi Department of Transportation and the Central Mississippi Planning and Development District to construct the planned walking, running and biking trail.

The Museum to Market Trail will include construction of 2.14 miles of new multi-use path or replacement sidewalk from the Mississippi Farmers Market on High Street to the Mississippi Children’s Museum on Highland Drive.

The $1,579,850 project also includes a new pedestrian bridge over a creek and the conversion of an abandoned railway into a compliant 10-foot-wide multi-use path from Spengler Street to Laurel Street.

Canton Mart Road, Old Canton Road, Northside Drive, Pear Orchard Road, Lakeland Drive, N. Gallatin Street, Jefferson Street, Bailey Avenue, Ellis Avenue, Belvedere Drive, McDowell Road and Oak Forest Drive.

The One Percent Sales Tax Commission, which administers a 1% sales tax increase Jackson voters approved in 2014, is funding the repaving, which will cost $5.3 million.

Mayor Lumumba’s administration has, in the last three years, poured $15 million into “south Jackson alone” to repair bridges and repave roads, he said.

Russell C. Davis Planetarium Renovations Ahead Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba announced renovations to the Russell C. Davis Planetarium in July.

A roof leak and the resulting interior

Andrew Jackson Statue at City Hall Being Replaced In August, the Jackson City Council authorized Mayor Chokwe A. Lumumba to legally remove and relocate the statue of former President Andrew Jackson from City Hall.

Mayor Lumumba said he supports the move and wants a newly commissioned statue of Medgar Evers as the replacement. Evers, a civil-rights hero, lived in Jackson before his assassination in 1963.

Jackson, on the other hand, was a white supremacist who led the removal of Native Americans from their lands.

The resolution passed 5-1, with Ward 1 Councilman Ashby Foote as the lone opposition and Ward 4 Councilman De’Keither Stamps absent.

Send story tips on renovations and other changes to the Jackson metro to dustin@jacksonfreepress.com.

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JXN // business with purpose

‘The Kundi Collection,’ Graphic Tees Bearing Bold Statements // by torsheta Jackson

September 2 - 15, 2020 • jfp.ms

16

courtesy the Kundi collective

H

ave you ever made a great comment and thought, “I should put that on a T-shirt”? Brad and Funmi Franklin have had those moments many a time and have since decided to do just that through their Jackson business, The Kundi Collective.

“We both have instances where we say things in our posts that a lot of people like and repeat back to us,” Brad said. “People always say, ‘Hey, if you put that on a T-shirt, we’ll buy it.’ That’s kind of where the idea came from.”

“The Kundi Collection” is branded as a T-shirt line for “Kings, Queens, Freedom Fighters, Artists and Creatives celebrating Royalty, Culture, and Power.” Brad says that the shirts are an opportunity for the couple to write their own story, whereas others have traditionally inserted their ideas and opinions in the past.

“I think as Black people and as Jacksonians, particularly as Black Jacksonians, we have watched and let other people create narratives for us, without us taking the ownership to create the narrative for ourselves,” he said.

The line is created, designed and produced at The Kundi Collective, and features black-and-white T-shirts displaying slogans inspired by hip-hop, popular culture, humor and Black pride. The simplicity of the designs allow the unique, one-of-a-kind messages to be the focal point, while encouraging wearers to be proud of their race, heritage and city.

“It’s (about) taking ownership in a bold, unapologetic way. The shirts are not meek in nature. They are not asking for

Brad and Funmi Franklin, owners of The Kundi Collective, recently started a line of T-shirts with slogans inspired by hip-hop, pop culture and Black pride.

permission to be anything,” Funmi said.

“They are for those of us who are unapologetically bold about our opinion and our narrative about who we are, where we come from and where we are going.”

They created one shirt featuring the slogan “JacksonAF” as Brad’s response to the idea that the city needs saving. He says that it is probably the one in the line that is most near and dear to him.

“It is a proud and bold statement saying that I am a proud Jacksonian,” he said.

“I love my city. It is not what you think it to be. It is what we know it to be, and we are proud of it.”

Another favorite is a tribute to the “Black and Proud” school that Funmi’s father, Howard Spencer, operated in the 1960s and 1970s. The liberation school, opened during the heart of school

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integration, was created to ensure that Black children were taught the details of their heritage. “(The shirt) ‘Blk and Prd’ is just my way of paying homage to that movement— the Civil Rights Movement, the “Black and Proud” movement,” Funmi said. “It’s very important to me and very significant.”

The Franklins also hope to spark an interest in learning more about the countries of Africa through a series of shirts that feature Swahili words such as “harambee” and “uhuru” with the English definitions beneath them. A part of that line is the “Family Series,” which boasts the Swahili phrases for father, mother, son, daughter, sister and brother.

“I think those shirts are important because most of us recognize that we have West African descent in us, and it is important to learn more about our heritage,” Funmi said. “This is our way of offering an incentive to learn more about Nigeria, Ghana and those places where we actually come from if we do some research.”

The line is constantly growing as they have and discuss new ideas daily.

The Franklins hope to expand so that individuals who have ideas for shirts are able to bring their designs to the Kundi Collective for printing.

“The Kundi Collection” has sizes ranging from S-XXL, and youth sizes can be specially ordered. The tees are available at kundicollective.com and at Queen Franklin’s Closet 601 on Facebook and Instagram. They can also be purchased and ordered at 135 Bounds St. inside the Synergy Link building. Both local delivery and shipping are available.

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JXN // awareness

Silent, yet Constant: Love, Togetherness and Unity // by Torsheta Jackson

piece represents the individual artist’s visual depiction of their thoughts and feelings on civil and human rights.

A brass plaque attached to the forehead of one of the silhouettes that Childers created describes the work as “a Mississippi collaborative visual art peaceful protest created by local artists to speak out against all forms of racism, violence, abuse and oppression suffered by people of color in America. An installation of hope and a call for change.”

The messages are clear and powerful.

Chris Mitchell’s figure depicts a person whose camouflage clothing is littered with Skittles, cigarettes, cell phones, licenses to carry weapons, DVDs and more—all items that led to the death of Black people. The message states, “None of these are reasons to be killed.” Another by Shon Perryman features a collection of abstract faces. Across the front in large script are the words “Be the Change.” Azha Sanders’s piece is an all-black silhouette with the message “Love is an antidote to Fear.”

After the Mississippi Museum of Art declined to provide an exhibit space, Childers sought to find a place where the demonstration could have the most impact. After a few phone calls and visits, he

Art (center) by Olivia McDonald.

chose to display the exhibition at locations central to the state’s highest leadership.

The “protest” was installed on Aug. 17 at the Mississippi State Capitol and again on Aug. 18 at the Governor’s Mansion. Artists then dismantled the display and placed the pieces individually on street corners throughout downtown

Jackson. Photographs of the work is available on Facebook at Art by Eli. “We (put) them all over the city so that as many people as possible could see them,” Childers said.

The Greater Jackson Arts Council provided a grant for the exhibit, which drew a series of donors like Beth Herzig, the owner of Discount Trophy who created and donated the brass plaques on the figures.

Local photographers Samantha Shea Yancey, Blake Wing and Sharon Coker photographed the installations. Childers’ social-media platforms show an outpouring of appreciation and support from the artists involved. “This is our voice as local artists to say we believe and have hope for a better future,’’ Childers notes on his Facebook page. “That we stand and love together. That we stand against everything wrong in our path.”

Childers sees the work as an important message to and from those in the Jackson area and hopes that the work inspires awareness and change in the hearts of those who see them.

For more on Eli Childers, visit elichilders.format.com or find the artist on Facebook or Instagram.

September 2 - 15, 2020 • boomjackson.com

Local artist Eli Childers organized the “Constant” exhibit, a collection of 18 life-sized, wooden “protestors” created in collaboration with other creatives in the area to serve as a protest against racial injustice across the nation.

Blake Wing

Blake Wing

From left, art by Shon Perryman, Will Brooks and Anna Wolfe.

Blake Wing

S

oon after the death of George Floyd, Eli Childers felt moved to make a statement. Viewing the incident on national television and watching the country’s divided reaction to it both awed and disturbed him. He felt a burning need to creatively display his feelings about the grief and emotions that people were experiencing since Floyd was killed.

“For me, I hate to see people hurting,” he said. “I felt like God put it on my heart to do this visual art.”

As protests erupted around the country, the self-taught artist and sculptor envisioned an art exhibit that highlighted truths about love, togetherness and unity. His vision was a demonstration that would continue the movement once the streets had emptied.

He titled it “Constant.”

“We are constant in how we feel.

Even though these figures may be temporary, all things in life are temporary,” Childers said. “Our feelings about these social injustices do not change. These are constant things.”

The exhibit includes 18 life-sized wood “protesters” Childers created in collaboration with other creatives including Shon Perryman, Azha Sanders, Anna Wolfe, Olivia McDonald, Chris Mitchell, Esther Smith Newell, Sabrina Howard, Will Brooks, Nicole Williams, Tawny Johnson Minton, Emily Shirley, Tony Davenport and Casimino Newton. Each

17

BIZ // evolving and enduring

Businesses Soldier on Amid Pandemic // by Dustin Cardon

A

s the COVID-19 pandemic continues on, so does Mississippi. Businesses across the capital city and beyond are adapting, reopening or doing whatever they can to help or become better connected with their communities.

Plus, services are cropping up to help.

September 2 - 15, 2020 • jfp.ms

18

Green Bean Café Kenya MomPremier, a Jackson State University alum and mother of two homeschooled sons, recently became the owner of Green Bean Café, the first Black-owned coffee shop in Jackson. Green Bean offers pour over coffee, cold pressed juices, tea and pastries.

MomPremier plans to assist other local business owners through a program called Incubator, which gives small business owners access to seed funding, management training, mentorships and up to $10,000 in investment capital. Participants will sell Green Bean’s juice cleanser products and get 15% of the amount they sell.

For more information about Green Bean and its Incubator program, visit greenbeanusa.com.

Jackson Hinds Library System Now Curbside Only In July, the Jackson Hinds Library System closed its libraries for public usage

Connection City ePLEX A new tenant at the Outlets of Mississippi, Connection City ePLEX, opened in July. The facility is an esports arena with gaming and virtual-reality machines as well

The ePLEX features two VR Studios ATOM units, three wireless HTC Vive pods and two VR game pods. In addition to the games, the facility has three party rooms, as well as the Clutch Bar, which sells energy drinks, sodas, snacks, domestic and imported beer, wine, cocktails and more. ePLEX staff clean all gaming equipment after every customer usage, a release from the Outlets says. The ePLEX uses CleanBox ultraviolet technology on its VR headgear that is specifically designed for VR venues.

For more information, visit theeplex. com or follow the ePLEX on Facebook.

Dumbo’s on Duling Paul Adair, who formerly worked with Table 100 and The Gathering in the Town of Livingston, partnered with Jessica Quinn, former bar manager for Gold Coast at Cultivation Food Hall in the District at Eastover, and Rashanna Newsome, former executive chef at Aplos in the District, to open Dumbo’s on Duling (3100 N. State St., Unit 102) in downtown Jackson.

Dumbo’s, which is located inside the former site of CAET restaurant, opened Trip Burns

Malco Theaters Reopening The Malco Renaissance Cinema Grill (1000 Highland Colony Parkway., Suite 13000, Ridgeland) at the Renaissance at Colony Park officially reopened on Friday, Aug. 7, after being closed since March due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Malco has put safety procedures into place such as advance, online ticketing and contactless ticket redemption. Malco has also installed hand-sanitizer stations in all buildings and has shut off water fountains.

Theaters with traditional seating arrangements require that groups be at least 6 feet apart, with every other row empty.

Family members may sit together but must maintain social distancing with other guests. Theaters with recliner seating are already distanced between rows.

Face coverings or masks in common areas are mandatory in all locations. Guests may remove coverings when eating, drinking or seated for their movie.

For more information, call 601-5211171 or visit malco.com.

due to rising COVID-19 cases. All JHLS libraries are currently providing curbside service only.

Library patrons can reserve materials using the Holds system through the card catalogue on the JHLS website or call their local library about materials. Library staff will notify patrons by phone when requested materials are ready for pickup at designated pickup spaces at each library.

Book-drops are still available for returning materials.

All digital JHLS services are still available online, including the Summer Reading Program, Imagine Your Story. Summer Reading Grab-and-Go Kits will be available each week through curbside service. JHLS also plans to offer limited faxing and computer services by reservation.

For more information and instructions on curbside service, visit jhlibrary.org or the JHLS Facebook page.

Starting in July, all libraries within the Jackson Hinds Library System have transitioned into exclusively providing curbside services due to COVID-19.

as tournaments and leagues for games such as Fortnite, Call of Duty and others.

Connection City ePLEX sits directly across from the Outlets of Mississippi Food Court. The ePLEX has 50 gaming stations and an elevated arena stage for fans. Gamers can play individually by the hour, join leagues or compete in weekly tournaments with cash prizes.

for business on Thursday, June 25. The menu includes items such as fried-chicken sandwiches, country-fried pork chops, bolognese, Muffulettas, Korean fried chicken, pan-roasted duck breast, quarter and more.

The restaurant also has a bar with red, white and rose wines, cocktails, craft beers and other options.

The restaurant is open from 11 a.m.

to 9 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Sundays for brunch. For more information, call 601336-3600 or visit dumbosjackson.com.

Back to Business Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves in late May announced the launch of the Back to Business Mississippi Grant Program website, backtobusinessms.org, to help small businesses receive financial support quickly to recover from the devastating economic impacts of COVID-19.

After establishing the Back to Business Mississippi Grant Program, Reeves began working with the Mississippi Development Authority to administer the grants to small businesses as quickly as possible.

BusinessesinMississippiwith50orfewer employees can apply to the grant program for help with recovering from the pandemic, including operating expenses and salaries.

Video Series to Help Small Businesses During Pandemic The Mississippi Small Business Development Center is partnering with Mississippi State University to produce a nine-part video series for local small businesses about navigating the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Faculty and staff in MSU’s College of Business developed the series, which the Mississippi SBDC funded with money allocated through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act. The videos cover survival, growth, and sustainability of family businesses during the pandemic and the particular needs of those businesses.

The video series is MSU’s College of Business’ Family Business Education Initiative, which it established in 2018 to help small businesses sustain and grow.

Production took place at MSU’s University Television Center. Jeffrey Ruppwith, director of outreach for the College of Business, served as the host and interviewed business experts from the MSU faculty and local community.

The MSU SBDC also provides counseling, online workshops and a dedicated resource page for Mississippi business owners on the CARES Act’s relief programs on its website, mssbdc.org/covid19.

Send business-related story tips to dustin@ jacksonfreepress.com.

DO-GOODERS // public service

Shower Power, ‘Loving the Homeless Back to Life’ // by richard coupe

courtesy teresa reckenburger

September 2 - 15, 2020 • boomjackson.com

O

n Fridays, the festivities homeless people, Renkenbergbegin at 7 a.m. at 836 S. er recollects a time during her Commerce St. in downearly childhood when her father town Jackson. Around “literally threw my mother out 60 people gather, Flowood resithe front door while I ran out dent Teresa Renkenberger says, the back,” she says. to sing, dance, have lunch, get Had it not been for the some new clothes and most of kindness of others, she and her all, to take showers—as organized mother would have been homethrough Shower Power, a nonless themselves, she adds, and that profit that Renkenberger founded experience has led her to keep the and debuted in November 2019. downtrodden close to her heart.

Most of the attendees are “I’ve always been in rescue homeless, as are some of the volmode. I rescue animals. If I hear unteers who help make sure the of somebody who needs someprogram runs smoothly. thing I try to go and save them.

“We send everyone away If I only have a dollar, I will rewith snacks to last until we see ally give you 50 cents. Even if I ’em again,” Renkenberger says. needed that 50 cents,” she says.

The realtor and mother of “My momma taught me to share. two came up with the idea of conI try to be compassionate and unverting a food truck into showers derstanding and know that I’m for the homeless while she was blessed now.” having a conversation with a Renkenberger overheard homeless friend. Renkenberger one of her volunteers, Mary asked her friend how long it had Anne Kirby, describing the work been since he had a real shower, of Shower Power: “We’re loving and she was stunned when he them back to life.” Renkenberger answered “a year.” adds, “And that’s what we’re do“I tried to look normal, but ing. … When they come to us, a in my mind I was like, ‘Oh my lot of them won’t look at us, but gosh. I have to do something,’” after (they shower), they look at Renkenberger recalls. us and feel important.”

After talking the idea over When one of the homewith her husband, she searched less citizens asked her, “Why do for a used food truck for sale, you do this?” another homeless eventually finding one that Kevin attendee answered on her behalf, Poe was selling, and he offered to saying, “Because God is in her convert the vehicle into showers heart. She doesn’t push anything for the nonprofit to use. He has on us, but she is showing us who since become one of the organishe is and who she believes in.” zation’s volunteers. Bruce Wood “I couldn’t even talk and from JH&H Architects and his Shower Power founder Teresa Renkenberger (left) and board member Mary Ann Kirby (right) was crying,” Renkenberger wife, Jeannie, designed the inte- pose with Shower Power Friends, Regana and Jack (center) at the nonprofit’s location in says about hearing the gracious rior of the truck free of charge. response. downtown Jackson (836 S. Commerce St.), where homeless citizens may shower on Fridays.

“It’s been very humbling, As for the future of Shower and it has certainly turned into way more than I just ever know this sounds selfish, but I felt like nobody was com- Power, Renkenberger plans to buy some washers and thought,” Renkenberger says. “When I started, I thought ing to my birthday party. Howard Ballou was there with dryers for their “Shower Power Friends” to use, a suggesthat I was doing it for one person, and then it turned into his news crew, and they were waiting,” Renkenberger tion she obtained after asking the homeless people who all these other people, which I’m so thankful for.” recalls. “One of the volunteers got into her truck and used their services what else they needed, to which many A lifelong resident of the Jackson area, Renkenberg- left saying she was going to find some (people in need), replied with “clean clothes.” er attended Northwest Rankin High School and later and she came back with three. They were so happy. They Showers are free to use every Friday from 7 a.m. ungraduated from Belhaven University. She has worked as a lived in the woods. They hadn’t had a shower in forever. til the last person leaves. Shower Power is set up at 836 S. realtor for almost 18 years now.

Each of the three stayed in the shower for 45 minutes.”

Commerce St. To learn more, visit showerpower.ms or find “On our first day open, we had to go find people. I When asked about why she feels driven to help the nonprofit on Facebook.

19

BEST OF JACKSON // Legal

D

Best of Jackson: Legal uring times as tough as these, no one needs the hassle that can come with searching for an approprite legal counsel for whatever needs we may have. Fortunately, the Best of Jackson Legal pop-up ballot simplifies the hunt by providing a list of some of the best attorneys and law firms the Jackson metro has to offer. Check out this year’s winners and finalists below.

Best Personal Injury Attorney; Best Local Law Firm: Richard Schwartz, Richard Schwartz & Associates

Best Tax Attorney: Ashley Wicks (Butler Snow, 1020 Highland Colony Parkway, Suite, 1400, Ridgeland; 601948-5711; butlersnow.com)

(162 E. Amite St., 601-869-0696, 1call.ms)

Best Local Law Firm Finalists: Chhabra & Gibbs (120 N. Congress St., Suite 200, 601-948-8005, cglawms.com) / Coxwell & Associates (500 N. State St., 601-948-1600, coxwelllaw.com) / Gilmer & Green Legal Group (748 N. President St., 769-2088122, gglegalgroup.com) / Kyle Wynn & Associates (7720 Old Canton Road, Suite B, Madison; 601-978-1700; kyle-wynn.com) / Sellers & Associates (395 Edgewood Terrace Drive, 601-352-0102)

“When you help a small business owner solve a problem, you’re helping people save jobs … That’s important to me,” Ashley Wicks says. An attorney with Butler Snow, Wicks’ practice focuses on public finance, general corporate transactions and taxes.

Although her practice centers around the development of businesses and the resolution of complex tax problems, for Wicks, helping individuals is “the center of everything.”

“A lot of the things that I do I do because I want to help people,” Wicks says, “I want to help situations improve; I want to help people’s circumstances improve.”

A native Jacksonian, Wicks received undergraduate and graduate degrees from Jackson State University before earning her juris doctorate from Tulane University. She obtained a master of laws in taxation from the University of Alabama, further enabling her to serve her home city.

Using what she calls “creativity in a legal sense,” Wicks evaluates a client’s problems by thinking about them in short and long terms.

While the problems she helps resolve may be similar, each situation and each client are different. Wicks aims to meet every client’s needs with a detailed vision and a passion for service.

—Kyle Hamrick

courtesy Ashley Wicks

Best Personal Injury Attorney Finalists: Aafram Sellers (Sellers & Associates, 395 Edgewood Terrace Drive, 601-352-0102) / Darryl Gibbs (Chhabra & Gibbs, 120 N. Congress St., Suite 200, 601-948-8005, cglawms.com) / Merrida Coxwell (Coxwell & Associates, 500 N. State St., 601-948-1600, coxwelllaw.com) / Rafael R. Green (Gilmer & Green Legal Group, 748 N. President St., 769-208-8122, gglegalgroup.com) / Rocky Wilkins (Morgan & Morgan, 4450 Old Canton Road, Suite 200, 601-949-3388, forthepeople.com)

courtesy Richard Schwartz & Associates

A lifelong Jackson resident whose firm has been a staple of the metro business scene since 1990, Richard Schwartz is known to many Mississippians by his popular “One Call, That’s All!” slogan. “You always want to be known as someone who’s there to help someone, so that’s why we do the advertising,” Schwartz says of his firm’s commercial campaign.

Schwartz feels that clients have ready access to the help his offices offer, as there are satellite locations in Tupelo and Hattiesburg.

“Every person needs to have a local office so that they can walk into the office and do what’s necessary,” Schwartz says. “It’s very difficult, for instance, to have someone from Tupelo come to Jackson.

They can’t do that easily.”

In addition to managing the largest injury law firm in the state, Schwartz extended his reach outside the walls of his firms, as he served as the assistant city prosecutor for the cities of Jackson and Ridgeland.

“I must have tried thousands of cases during my time in those positions,” Schwartz recalls. During his tenure, Schwartz helped create rehabilitation programs for those convicted of crimes like shoplifting and drunk driving. He says that his time in those courtrooms taught him that “everybody needs somebody,” an approach that he attempts to apply daily in his law practice.

—Taylor McKay Hathorn

Finalists: Alexis Farmer (Farmer Law, 601-706-9346, afarmerlaw.com) / James McGee (McGee Tax Law, 125 S. Congress St., Suite 1240, 601-9656155, mcgeetaxlaw.com) / Philip Anthony (Dallas Anthony & Jeffords, 213 Katherine Drive, Flowood, 601-936-3911, dajtaxlaw.com) / Harris “Trip” H. Barnes III (Barnes Law Firm, 5 River Bend Place, Flowood, 601-9816336, barnes-lawfirm.com)

Best Local Lawyer: Tianna Raby

(Entergy Mississippi, multiple locations)

September 2 - 15, 2020 • jfp.ms

a juris doctorate from Vanderbilt University, and she has spent time living abroad.

Outside of her work at Entergy, Raby volunteers with the Mississippi Volunteer Lawyer Program, the Magnolia Bar Law Camp and the Jackson Junior League.

—Taylor McKay Hathorn Finalists: R. Kelly Kyle (Kyle Wynn & Associates, 7720 Old Canton Road, Suite B, Madison; 601-978-1700; kyle-wynn.com) / Philip Anthony (Dallas Anthony & Jeffords, 213 Katherine Drive, Flowood, 601-936-3911, dajtaxlaw.com) / Richard Schwartz (Richard Schwartz & Associates, 162 E. Amite St., 601-869-0696, 1call.ms) / Rocky Wilkins (Morgan & Morgan, 4450 Old Canton Road, Suite 200, 601-949-3388, forthepeople.com) / Rogen Chhabra (Chhabra & Gibbs, 120 N. Congress St., Suite 200, 601948-8005, cglawms.com)

courtesy Entergy

Tianna Raby has served in various capacities since coming to Entergy in 2014, working her way up to managing counsel in litigation in 2017 before ascending to her current role as managing counsel in legal regulatory.

Raby brought an array of legal experience from her time at a Jackson-based civil-litigation defense firm, where she worked on cases focused on personal injury, professional and product liability, and toxic tort.

During her time at Forman, Perry, Watkins, Krutz and Tardy, Raby served as co-chair of the company’s diversity committee, leading to her 2014 recognition as “Top 40 Under 40” by the Mississippi Business Journal.

Before being admitted to the bar in both Mississippi and Louisiana, Raby earned a bachelor’s degree from Howard University and 20

Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d like to thank everyone that nominated or voted for our team.

Best of Jackson 2020 Ratoya Gilmer - Voted Best Family Lawyer Gilmer & Green - Finalist Best Local Law Firm

748 N President St, Jackson, MS 39202 | www.gglegalgroup.com | (769) 208-8122

September 2 - 15, 2020 â&#x20AC;˘ boomjackson.com

Rafael R.Green - Finalists Best Personal Injury Lawyer

21

BEST OF JACKSON // Legal

Best Family Law Attorney: RaToya Gilmer

Best Defense Attorney: Dennis C. Sweet III

Raised just outside Jackson in Edwards, RaToya Gilmer returned to her hometown after her studies at the University of Mississippi School of Law. “I call myself homegrown because I’m still living in Edwards,” Gilmer quips, but she sees her work in the community as a calling. “The things I wanted to do to restore our community led me to the field of law.”

Gilmer was guided into the profession by Precious Martin, for whom she worked prior to attending law school, and after his death, his wife and her mother continued to steer Gilmer into her present work. “I always feel like I can call on her,” Gilmer remarks. “But it’s taken a village to get me to where I am today.”

Some of her present work includes conducting statewide expungement clinics as part of her involvement with the Magnolia Bar Association. “(At the expungement clinics), volunteer lawyers and law students draft paperwork for free. It’s ready to be filed, although the client is responsible for filing their own,” Gilmer says.

Aiding her community lies at the heart of all she does, as Gilmer says that her eventual goal is to open a community center. “That would be a dream for me,” she says.

—Taylor McKay Hathorn

Dennis C. Sweet III and his siblings grew up in Jackson only a couple houses down from Medgar Evers. “I remember him vividly,” he recalled. “Sometimes, he had to pick us up from school.”

It was Evers’ assassination that galvanized Sweet to pursue law.

Sweet completed his undergraduate study at Tougaloo College and received his juris doctorate from George Washington University. Upon graduation, he worked as a public defender in Washington, D.C. Four years later, Sweet returned to Jackson and opened a defense practice with his sister, who is now a chancery court judge for Hinds County.

He enjoys the freedom that comes from running his own practice, particularly the ability to follow a cause and get involved with “doing something about it,” he said. But, as he expressed, he could not do it without the help of his paralegal team or his son, Dennis Sweet IV, who balances him out.

“One of the callings of a true lawyer,” Sweet said, “is to represent those people who would otherwise go unrepresented.” That calling has motivated Sweet throughout his long career, he said, and his heart is still in representing the people that need it to this day.

—Kyle Hamrick

(Gilmer & Green Legal Group, 748 N. President St., 769-208-8122, gglegalgroup.com)

courtesy Sweet & Associates

courtesy RaToya Gilmer

Finalists: Mark Chinn (Chinn & Associates, 4316 Old Canton Road, Suite 200-A, 601202-5594, chinnlaw.com) / Matthew Thompson (Thompson Addison, 745 Avignon Drive, Suite D, Ridgeland; 601-850-8000; bowtielawyer.ms) / Mel Coxwell (Coxwell & Associates, 500 N. State St., 601-948-1600, coxwelllaw.com) / Melissa Malouf (Malouf & Malouf, 501 E. Capitol St., 601-522-2222, malouflaw.com) / Rafael R. Green (Gilmer & Green Legal Group, 748 N. President St., 769-208-8122, gglegalgroup.com) / Teresa Harvey (Chhabra & Gibbs, 120 N. Congress St., Suite 200, 601-948-8005, cglawms.com)

(Sweet & Associates, 158 E. Pascagoula St., 601-965-8700, sweetandassociates.net)

Finalists: Aafram Sellers (Sellers & Associates, 395 Edgewood Terrace Drive, 601-3520102) / Angela Trehan (Chhabra & Gibbs, 120 N. Congress St., Suite 200, 601-9488005, cglawms.com) / Chuck Mullins (Coxwell & Associates, 500 N. State St., 601948-1600, coxwelllaw.com) / Marshall Goff (Chhabra & Gibbs, 120 N. Congress St., Suite 200, 601-948-8005, cglawms.com)

Best Estate Planning Attorney: Teresa Harvey

22

A 2001 graduate of the University of Mississippi School of Law, Teresa Harvey is no stranger to the JFP’s Best of Jackson yearly accolades, earning the honor in 2017 and 2018 for family law.

This year, while the Yazoo City native earned a BOJ win in estate planning, Harvey notes that estate planning “still falls under family law.”

Another change for Harvey came with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. “My typical day now is mostly answering client calls and emails. I don’t think I’ve had one in-person hearing (since the pandemic began); we’ve been using teleconferences,” she said, observing that the digital platform works similarly as a face-to-face hearing, though she considers teleconferencing is “more efficient.”

Harvey believes that her comfort and familiarity with such methods of e-communication is something that distinguishes her from her peers in the legal field.

“My availability is important. I’ll call clients at 8 or 9 p.m., if needed. They have constant access (to me). If there’s an emergency, I’ll call immediately, no matter what.”

—Taylor McKay Hathorn Finalists: Elizabeth Wynn (Kyle Wynn & Associates, 7720 Old Canton Road, Suite B, Madison; 601-978-1700; kyle-wynn. com) / Josiah Burns (Morton Law Firm, 402 E. Main St., Clinton, 601-925-9797, mortonelderlaw.com) / R. Kelly Kyle (Kyle Wynn & Associates, 7720 Old Canton Road, Suite B, Madison; 601-978-1700; kyle-wynn.com) / Philip Anthony (Dallas Anthony & Jeffords, 213 Katherine Drive, Flowood, 601-936-3911, dajtaxlaw.com) / Richard Courtney (Courtney Elder Law Associates, 4400 Old Canton Road, 601-987-3000, elderlawms.com)

courtesy Chhabra & Gibbs

September 2 - 15, 2020 • jfp.ms

(Chhabra & Gibbs, 120 N. Congress St., Suite 200, 601-948-8005, cglawms.com)

Thank you for voting us Finalists in Best of Jackson mclaughlinpc.com

Bankruptcy • Car Accidents • Civil Rights Employment Discrimination • Government Administration Medical Malpractice • Premises Liability Truck Accidents • Wrongful Death

Lilli Bass Katrina Brown LaToya Jeter

Brown Bass & Jeter, PLLC Attorneys Jackson, Mississippi

601-487-8448 www.bbjlawyers.com

Please help us congratulate Rocky Wilkins for being named a finalist.

Best Local Attorney Best Personal Injury Lawyer Thank you!

601-949-3388 | 4450 Old Canton Rd, Suite 200, Jackson, MS 39211

September 2 - 15, 2020 • boomjackson.com

We’d like to congratulate LaToya Jeter on being named Best Bankruptcy Attorney.

Best of Jackson 2020

23

BEST OF JACKSON // Legal

Best Bankruptcy Attorney: LaToya Jeter

Best Real Estate Attorney: Kamesha Mumford

During her time at the University of Mississippi School of Law, LaToya Jeter earned two coveted American Jurisprudence Awards, which she said helped her decide to pursue litigation as her chosen field.

“I realized how much litigation can impact a client and how important it is to truly advocate on behalf of a client,” she said of the academic mediations.

In addition to her work in litigation, Jeter collaborates with the Magnolia Bar Law Camp, a three-day youth seminar on the campus of Jackson State University. The Magnolia Bar Association, a coalition created primarily for Black attorneys during a time when many of them were discriminated against, hosts the camp. Jeter said that the goal of the camp is to “give back to disadvantaged youth who haven’t had the opportunity to be exposed to the legal profession or to any profession.”

Giving back to the Jackson community is important to Jeter, as she herself was born and raised in the metro area. “I left Jackson to go off to college in North Carolina,” she recalled. “I came back to my hometown to be with my family and to continue the good work in the community.”

—Taylor McKay Hathorn

Kamesha Mumford’s research in the field of real estate has resulted in her status as an expert witness in taxsale cases.

“I wrote a treaty with Arthur Johnson when he was chancery clerk of Madison County, and there’s no other document quite like it,” Mumford says.

When she’s not in the courtroom or working at the law practice she shares with her husband, Gerald, Mumford serves as the president and legal counsel for “Dress for Success,” an organization dedicated to providing business attire and career services for women.

“I first got involved (with the organization) as a law student at Mississippi College,” Mumford recalls. “We support women throughout their employment. We help them get a job and then get a better job.”

The driving force behind her career and community involvement, Mumford says, is her faith, which is also influential in her treatment of clients. “I understand that a real-estate transaction can be intimidating for people,” she says.

To help put nervous clients at ease, Mumford’s firm bakes cookies and provides custom closings. “(A closing) is always a memorable experience, but for my clients, I want it to be a good memory,” she says.

—Taylor McKay Hathorn

Finalists: Blake Tyler (Gadow Tyler, 511 E. Pearl St., 601-355-0654, gadowtyler.com) / Frank Coxwell (Coxwell & Associates, 500 N. State St., 601-948-1600, coxwelllaw. com) / Rachel Coxwell (Coxwell & Associates, 500 N. State St., 601-948-1600, coxwelllaw.com) / Randall R. Saxton (Saxton Law, 986 Madison Ave., Madison, 601-7900529, saxton.law)

Finalists: John Elliott (Elliott Law Firm, 206 Bent Tree Cove, Flowood, 601-362-3479, elliottlawfirmpllc.com) / R. Kelly Kyle (Kyle Wynn & Associates, 7720 Old Canton Road, Suite B, Madison; 601-978-1700; kyle-wynn.com) / Robert Harrison (717 Rice Road, Ridgeland, 601-957-0002) / Robert “Bobby” Moorehead (Robert E. Moorehead Attorneys at Law, 220 W. Jackson St., Suite A, Ridgeland; 601-956-4557; lawrem.com) / Steven Nixon (Milner Nixon Law, E. Leake St., Clinton, 601-925-4700, milnernixonlaw.com)

(Brown Bass & Jeter, 1755 Leila Drive, Suite 400, 601-487-8448, bbjlawyers.com)

(The Mumford Law Firm, 820 North St., 601398-2347, mumfordlawfirm.com)

courtesy Kamesha Mumford

courtesy LaToya Jeter

Best Business and Startup Attorney: Philip Anthony

24

Philip Anthony described himself as “surprised and honored” to have been nominated as a Best Business and Startup finalist, accrediting the honor to his dedication toward giving back to his home city.

“You can’t progress in Mississippi without a strong capital city leading the way,” Anthony said. Through his practice with Dallas, Anthony and Jeffords, he is committed to “resisting human-capital flight.” To be specific, Anthony wants to help businesses start locally and stay local.

Anthony’s experience has taught him that starting a business is easier said than done. “There are a lot of things you don’t really consider when you go into business … and it’s kind of a scary world,” he said.

In addition to helping clients work through the myriad legal issues he covers, Anthony also tries to help them think about and frame their goals. A graduate of Mississippi State University and the Mississippi College School of Law, Anthony just completed his last core class at Villanova University for a master of laws in taxation, and he hopes to enhance the all-encompassing level of service he endeavors to provide.

Focused on “bringing value” to his clients, Anthony wants to be in the corner behind his clients. “That fires me up,” he said.

—Kyle Hamrick Finalists: Aafram Sellers (Sellers & Associates, 395 Edgewood Terrace Drive, 601-352-0102) / Darryl Gibbs (Chhabra & Gibbs, 120 N. Congress St., Suite 200, 601-948-8005, cglawms.com) / Merrida Coxwell (Coxwell & Associates, 500 N. State St., 601-948-1600, coxwelllaw.com) / Rafael R. Green (Gilmer & Green Legal Group, 748 N. President St., 769208-8122, gglegalgroup.com) / Rocky Wilkins (Morgan & Morgan, 4450 Old Canton Road, Suite 200, 601-949-3388, forthepeople.com)

courtesy Philip Anthony

September 2 - 15, 2020 • jfp.ms

(Dallas Anthony & Jeffords, 213 Katherine Drive, Flowood, 601-936-3911, dajtaxlaw.com)

congratulates

ASHLEY N. WICKS on being named Best Tax Attorney in the Jackson Free Press’s 2020 Best of Jackson reader poll!

BUTLERSNOW.COM

Finalist

Best Personal Injury Attorney Best Local Law Firm Best Defense Attorney SSOCIATES, PLLC 395 Edgewood Terrace Dr. | (601)352-0102

September 2 - 15, 2020 • boomjackson.com

Congratulations to Aafram Sellers.

25

BITES & DRINKS // frozen treats

CrunchTime Concessions, Shaved Ice on Wheels // by tunga otis

J

eremy Harper and Sedrick Johnson have been working together since their days as teammates on the football field for Provine High School. In 2015, the two Jackson State University graduates took their cooperative skills to a new level by founding a business together, Crunchtime Concessions. courtesy crunchtime concessions

Co-owner Jeremy Harper’s children enjoy shaved ice prepared by CrunchTime Concessions.

Upon request, Harper and Johnson offer a number of tried-and-true concession snacks and goodies to their patrons, such as nachos, hot dogs, pickles, chips, candy, soda, sports drinks and water. Still, CrunchTime Concessions is most widely known for its shaved ice.

As opposed to the granulated ice that is typically attributed to snow cones, shaved ice is finer and fluffier, and its texture is often likened to that of fresh snow.

“Our shaved ice absorbs the flavor to give you a full experience,” Harper says. “It hits your tongue, and you just start smiling.”

Among the many flavors CrunchTime Concessions offers in shaved ice, fan favorites include piña colada, strawberry, sour apple and tiger’s blood, which has a fruity tropical flavor and red color that customers of all ages frequently order.

For those who have difficulty choosing just one flavor—or for those who are feeling adventurous—the CrunchTime Flavor Station allows customers to choose a few from the many options to create their own preferred flavor combination.

Sizes for shaved ice include small, medium and large, with large sizes served in souvenir cups featuring the company’s logo.

In addition to its shaved ice, another popular crowdpleaser comes in the form of the business’ flavored lemonade. Served in 32-ounce cups, the lemonade comes in a number of flavor options, including grape, blue raspberry, strawberry and sour apple.

Beyond refreshments, the mobile business also offers

fun for guests by way of the CrunchTime Event Rentals’ touchless photo booth, as well as a foam machine.

The health and safety of their employees and customers are a top priority, Harper says. As such, the business had required employees to wear masks since before the statewide mandate, and instituted precautions to allow for social distancing among patrons.

COVID-19 has slowed down business for the mobile concessions stand, but Harper and Johnson have continued to trudge on as safely as they can.

“Many events have been mostly canceled due to restrictions on large crowds,” Harper says. “(Since then), we have worked events with 10 or less people.”

While CrunchTime Concessions mostly serves the metro area, the business accepts requests throughout Mississippi and travels to attend events like sporting events, school field days, fundraisers, birthday parties, church events, daycare events and weddings.

The owners believe in giving back to the community and often donate their time to raise funds for various local groups and organizations.

“We are here to serve and help the community in whatever way we can,” Harper says.

To learn more about CrunchTime Concessions, visit crunchtimeconcessions.com.

MELODIES // choral

26

Mississippi Boychoir Adapts, Plans for Fall and Christmas // by Jenna Gibson mississippi Boy choir

September 2 - 15, 2020 • jfp.ms

D

etermined to have a successful season, the Mississippi Boychoir has been working hard to combat the issues that COVID-19 presents, quickly adapting to a virtual platform for auditions and performances.

Katherine Hoitt, artistic director for the Mississippi Boychoir, will hold virtual auditions for the concert choir via Zoom.

Positions are open to children grades 5 through 12. Parents may submit their child’s information through the Boychoir’s website, msboychoir.org, and set up a time for the virtual audition.

Auditions last 10 to 15 minutes and require no preparation, as Hoitt will ask each applicant to sing a well-known song such as “Happy Birthday” and then ask why they want to join the Boychoir. The organization also has a training choir for 2nd-, 3rd- and 4th-graders that does not require an audition to join.

The Mississippi Boychoir will start its season on Sept. 12. The Boychoir will meet in person for 30-minute rehearsals, but members are required to sing while wearing face masks and while maintaining socialdistancing guidelines.

“What we do is heavily based on con-

The Mississippi Boychoir hones the vocal skills of youths grades 5 through 12.

necting with people in real life, so we’re trying to find a way to connect to people but make it happen in a safe way,” Hoitt says.

The Mississippi Boychoir is already planning its annual Christmas performance, which will be completely virtual this year. Because the Boychoir has had to cancel all its local events planned for the fall season, the organization will spend rehearsal time focusing on perfecting the Christmas program.

“Normally, we would have quite a few small performances leading up to (the Christmas performance), but this semester we are really focusing on our own education of the boys and on preparing that Christmas music,” Hoitt says.

“We’ll focus on music literacy, sight singing and making sure that we have that music learned by the pre-recording of the virtual concert.”

The online Christmas show will be

free to view, with the live-stream featuring a combination of live elements and pre-recorded elements. Executive Director Lanise Aultman is working with the Department of Archives and History to record the program at the Old Capitol Museum.

Transitioning from live auditions and performances to virtual ones has been a big learning for the Mississippi Boychoir, Aultman and Hoitt note, but they are hopeful that everything will work out as planned so that they can successfully finish out the season—and with luck return to a state of normalcy in due time.

“Last year, we were invited to be the prelude choir to the Texas International Choral Festival in July of 2020. Of course, that didn’t take place, but the invitation is still open for us to be their prelude choir for their festival in June of 2021,” Aultman says. “We’re trying to plan for something that we hope will actually take place, with the eye on the fact that that information could change.”

For more information on the Mississippi Boychoir’s programming or about auditions for the fall, call 601-665-7374 or visit msboychoir.org.

Jackson Zoo Soft Reopening Sept. 5, 10 a.m.-4 p.m., Sept. 6, 1-4 p.m., Sept. 12, 10 a.m.-4p.m., Sept. 13, 1-4 p.m., at The Jackson Zoo (2918 W. Capitol St.). The Jackson Zoo launches a “soft” re-opening with restricted hours and health-conscious precautions. Visitors, including Jackson Zoo members, are required to reserve admission tickets online in advance. Only open on weekends for now, the zoo presents rotational family-friendly events from Terry Vandeventer’s Living Reptile Museum and Freedom Ranch Outreach Birds of Prey each day at 2 p.m. Face masks required. Only 500 visitors admitted at one time. Social distancing enforced. $8 adult, $5 child, free for children ages 2 and below; call 601-352-2580; email admissions@jacksonzoo. org; jacksonzoo.org.

Tulip Tuesday Sept. 8, Sept. 22, Oct. 20, Nov. 3, Nov. 17, Dec. 1, 10 a.m.-noon, Zoom.

The Flower Growers of Mississippi invite fellow gardeners to a Zoom webinar even other Tuesday with the goal of educating Mississippi growers in how to grow cut flowers for businessto-business or business-to-consumer sales. No experience necessary. Registration required. Free registration; call 601-672-0755; email dyowell@ aol.com; find it on Facebook.

Saturday Shopping at The Mustard Seed Gift Shop Sept. 12, Oct. 10, 10 a.m.-3 p.m., at The Mustard Seed (1085 Luckney Road, Brandon).

The gift shop opens to allow participants to purchase items and artwork made by residents of The Mustard Seed community. Miss Mississippi greets guests from 10 a.m. to noon during the September event. Free admission, product prices vary; call 601-992-3556; email mandy@mustardseedms.org; find it on Facebook.

KIDS Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Secrets of the Sewer! Sept. 2-Oct. 25, 9 a.m., at Mississippi Children’s Museum (2145 Museum Blvd.). The children’s museum presents its latest traveling exhibit based on the Nickelodeon television series. $10 admission; call 601-981-5469; email neely@mcm.ms; mschildrensmuseum.org.

Intergenerational Harry Potter Club Sept. 2, Oct. 7, Nov. 4, 7:30-8:30 p.m., Zoom. Fans of the “Harry Potter” series who are in 6th grade or older gather via Zoom for a discussion on how principles of the Christian faith can be found within the franchise’s stories. Participants encouraged to read the books or watch the movies before the meeting for better understanding. Free registration; call 601-354-1535; email communications@standrews.ms; find it on Facebook.

$5 Trial Beginner Ballet Class Sept. 3, 4-4:30 p.m., at CTM School Of Dance (2761 Old Brandon Road, Pearl). The dance school offers a trial ballet class for children ages 7-16. Registration required. Limited space. $5 trial class; call 601-573-1090; email ctmdance@gmail.com; find it on Facebook.

Learning Tree Book Club Sept. 5, Oct. 3, Nov. 7, 2-3:30 p.m., Zoom. The children’s book club gets together via Zoom to read and talk about books. Books provided. Free admission; call 601372-0229; email communitylibrary.ms@gmail.com; find it on Facebook.

Pumpkin Adventure 2020 Oct. 7-9, 9 a.m.noon, Oct. 10, 10 a.m.-3 p.m., Oct. 15-16, 9 a.m.-noon, Oct. 17, 10 a.m.-3 p.m., Oct. 21-23, 9 a.m.-noon, Oct. 24, 10 a.m.-3 p.m., at Mississippi Agriculture & Forestry Museum (1150 Lakeland Drive). The museum offers an autumn-themed, family-centric event that includes a hayride around the museum grounds and a snack, as well as a stop at the pumpkin patch to pick a pumpkin to take home. Groups of 10 or more must make reservations by phone. $8 general admission (ages 2 and up); call 601432-4500; email msagmuseum@mdac.ms.gov; find it on Facebook.

“Populist Politicians” Sept. 15, 12:30-1:30 p.m., Zoom and Facebook Live. As part of its Virtual History Speaking Series, Community Library Mississippi presents the virtual discussion led by local author William Trest Jr., author of two novellas, “Reverse Guilty Plea” and “The New Populist Party.” Free registration; call 601-3720229; email communitylibrary.ms@gmail.com; find it on Facebook.

Natchez Trace Century Ride Oct. 10, 7 a.m.-3 p.m., at Ridgeland Recreation and Parks (137 Old Trace Park, Ridgeland). Ridgeland Recreation and Parks presents the bike ride offering options for all ages and fitness levels. Routes range from an eight-mile fun ride to a 100-mile route, with lots of levels to choose from in-between. Registration closes at 11:59 p.m. on Sept.

14. Natchez Trace Century Ride jersey available for $55, supplies limited. $45 registration, $55 jersey; call 601-853-2011; runsignup.com.

“THE BLAKK MARKET” Shop Blakk Owned Businesses Sept. 27, Oct. 4, Oct. 18, Oct. 25, Nov. 1, Nov. 15, Nov. 22, Nov. 29, 1-8 p.m., at UIG Complex, The Breake Room & Sankofa Kitchen (911 Palmyra St.). The Blakk Market provides a way for Black-owned businesses to meet and thrive. The community expo and flea market invites attendees to meet and browse Black-owned businesses. Includes music and entertainment. Participants encouraged to bring lawn chairs and socialize. Vendor reservations available. Free admission, donations encouraged, vendor prices vary; call 601-3666100; email tooblakktoostrong@gmail.com; find it on Facebook.

2nd Jackson Adult Prom, “Enchanted Forest” Nov. 7, 8 p.m., at Jackson Square Promenade (2460 Terry Road). A Slay Productions presents Jackson’s second-annual Adult Prom, with this year’s theme being “Enchanted Forest.” The evening consists of music and dancing with a DJ, as well as live music performances, games, vendors with food and drinks and prizes—including the crowning of a prom king and queen. Limited tickets due to social-distancing requirements.

Masks are required, and a prize is awarded for best mask. Must be 21 or older to enter. $40 general admission, $25 early bird, $80 VIP, $100 couple VIP; call 601-339-0391; email aslayproductions@gmail.com; Eventbrite.

Star Wars Legion League Oct. 1, 10 a.m.-10 p.m., at Van’s Comics, Cards & Games (731 S. Pear Orchard Road, Suite 1, Ridgeland). Van’s CCG invites players of “Star Wars Legion”—or those who would like to give it a try—to join their Star Wars Legion League. Play takes place over three months, with each player facing off against five opponents. At the end of the season, top-ranked players are awarded for their victories.

Prizes and payouts determined by number of players. The season begins on Oct. 1 and ends on Jan. 1. $20 registration fee per player; call 601-898-9950; challonge.com.

FOOD & DRINK Keep it Glassy! Sip & Paint Sept. 13, 6:30 p.m., at Kocktails with KB (6811 Old Canton Road, Ridgeland). Participants paint and socialize over drinks. Drinks included. Food and hookahs available. Masks required. $35 fee; email kocktailswithkb@gmail.com; find it on Facebook.

All Things Women, All Things Pink Empowerment Brunch Oct. 3, 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m., at Jackson Medical Mall (350 W. Woodrow Wilson

Ave.). The brunch offers an opportunity for participants to enjoy a meal, hear from a guest speaker and meet like-minded women. Admission TBA; call 601-565-8080; email katrinac@ voempowerment.com; find it on Facebook.

YBL Fall Banquet 2020 Oct. 28, 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m., at Country Club of Jackson (345 Saint Andrews Drive). Jeremiah Castille, former college and professional football player and current University of Alabama Chaplain, speaks about his life, work and faith journey at the organization’s fall banquet. Safety and health precautions in place. Hybrid in-person/virtual plans to be implemented, if deemed necessary. $40 per person, sponsorships options vary; call 601-9576860; find it on Facebook.

STAGE & SCREEN COURTESY RITA BRENT

COMMUNITY

Teneia & Rita LIVE Sept. 12, 7-9 p.m., Virtual. The popular local musician and comedian collaborate to offer their fans live music, live comedy and unfiltered conversation. Participants can join in and interact with the hosts. $10 Early bird ticket, $2.24 service fee, general admission TBA; Eventbrite.

“The Brewery Comedy Tour” Sept. 24, 7 p.m., at Hops and Habanas (2771 Old Canton Road). The craft beer bar and cigar shop, along with Herron Entertainment, welcomes a nationwide tour of more than a dozen stand-up comedians from New York and Los Angeles. Tickets available at the link provided $12 general admission; call 769-572-4631; email fhops2014@gmail. com; universe.com.

CONCERTS & FESTIVALS Take 5: A Tribute to the Dave Brubeck Centennial Sept. 14, 7:30 p.m., Virtual. Opera Mississippi presents this tribute to the American icon for the world of jazz piano and composition. Features the Sam Bruton Quartet. Because tickets cannot be sold for the live-streamed event, Opera Mississippi requests that patrons donate to cover the costs of production. Donations only; call 601-960-2300; email info@operams.org; operams.org.

Music in the City | Impromptu Piano Trio Oct. 6, 5:45-8:45 p.m., at Mississippi Museum of Art (380 S. Lamar St.). The monthly series presents live performances of classical and traditional artists. Sponsored by St. Andrews Episcopal Cathedral. Free admission; find it on Facebook.

Tab Benoit at Martin’s Downtown Oct. 8, 9 p.m., at Martin’s Restaurant & Bar (214 S. State St.). The local bar and music venue presents Grammy nominated singer, songwriter and guitarist Tab Benoit. $25 via Eventbrite; call 601354-9712; find it on Facebook.

Over The Rainbow Cabaret: A Tribute to Judy Garland Oct. 12, 7:30 p.m., Virtual. Opera Mississippi celebrates the life and music of Judy Garland. The tribute, featuring Melanie Gardner and the TK Trio, weaves some of Garland’s most iconic songs together with stories from her life. Because tickets cannot be sold for the livestreamed event, Opera Mississippi requests that patrons donate to cover the costs of production.

Donations only; call 601-960-2300; email info@ operams.org; operams.org.

Jamey Johnson at Pearl Day Concert Oct. 30, 5:30-10 p.m., at Trustmark Park Stadium (1 Braves Way, Pearl). The city of Pearl welcomes country singer Jamey Johnson to headline the Pearl Day 2020 concert. Additional performers include Frank Foster and Pearl native Zach Bridges. $25 general admission plus fees, prices subjects to change; call 601-664-7600; email mississippibraves@braves.com; cityofpearl.com.

ARTS & EXHIBITS Wood Center Art Show Sept. 2-4, Sept. 28-30, 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m., at Wood Activity Center (111 Clinton Blvd., Clinton). The center features an exhibit of original art created by members of its Living Young program throughout the month of September. The free exhibit consists of works in various media ranging from paintings in oils and acrylics to handcrafted quilts and cross-stitched samplers. Free admission; call 601-924-6387; find it on Facebook.

“Figa” by Kara Walker Sept. 4-5, 11 a.m.-6 p.m., Sept. 6, noon-5 p.m., Sept. 11-12, 11 a.m.-6 p.m., Sept. 13, noon-5 p.m., Sept. 18-19, 11 a.m.-6 p.m., Sept. 20, noon-5 p.m., Sept.

25-26, 11 a.m.-6 p.m., Sept. 27, noon-5 p.m., at AND Gallery (133 Millsaps Ave.). The AND Gallery hosts the room-sized sculpture is the work of New York based artist, Kara Walker, whose art explores race, gender, sexuality and violence—which has appeared in exhibitions worldwide. Free admission, schedule ahead; email andgalleryart@gmail.com; andgallery.org.

CAPE Art & Coffee Sept. 5, Oct. 3, 10.-11:30 a.m., Zoom. The MMA’s Center for Art & Public Exchange offers the opportunity for participants to experience great works of art and discuss them with fellow art-lovers. Includes presentations from guest-speakers. Free registration; call 601-960-1515; email ywilliams@msmuseumart. org; find it on Facebook.

September 2 - 15, 2020 • boomjackson.com

Looking for something great to do in Jackson? Visit JFPEVENTS.COM for more.

COURTESY MCM

FALL EVENTS

27

Looking for something great to do in Jackson? Visit JFPEVENTS.COM for more.

Art in Mind Sept. 30, 10:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m., Zoom. Licensed art therapist Susan Anand and Victoria Meek, associate curator of studio and family programs at the Mississippi Museum of Art, lead an experiential art program for older adults experiencing memory loss or mild cognitive impairment. Participants explore and discuss a work of art and engage in an art inspired activity to stimulate observation, recall and recognition at home with basic art supplies. Free admission, registration required; call 601-4962; email mindclinic@umc.edu; find it on Facebook.

writing, from start to finish. Free registration; call 601-372-0229; email communitylibrary.ms@ gmail.com; find it on Facebook.

Paint A 13” Ceramic Christmas Tree Sept. 3, 5:30-7:30 p.m., at Downtown Giftery (151 W. Government St., Brandon). The Downtown Giftery hosts a class teaching participants to paint a 13-inch-tall, ceramic Christmas tree. All supplies and a multi-colored light kit are included. Participants may choose clear lights for an additional fee. Participants also receive a 20% discount on any Downtown Giftery purchase made at

Digital Marketing Strategies For Small Businesses Sept. 18, Oct. 16, Nov. 20, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., at Jackson Downtown Convention Center Hotel (9009 SE Adams St. Suite 1911). The workshop covers current trends in small business web design and marketing, including how small

COURTESY EUDORA WELTY HOUSE

CREATIVE CLASSES

Metal Clay Class with Lana Stamper Oct. 17, 9:30 a.m.-4 p.m., at Craftsmen’s Guild of Mississippi (950 Rice Road, Ridgeland). Jewelry artist Lana Stamper leads a class in the exploration of the use of metal clay to craft jewelry. Participants create a pair of heart-shaped earrings and a heart pendant with a bail. Pieces will be completed and ready to wear at the end of the class. No previous experience necessary. Registration required. $180 class, includes materials to make earrings and pendant; call 601-856-7546; email director@ mscrafts.org; interland3.donorperfect.net.

PROFESSIONAL & BIZ

LITERARY “Big Door Prize” Book Discussion Sept. 9, noon-1 p.m., Facebook Live. Author M.O. Walsh discusses his new book with fellow author Katy Simpson Smith. $27 book, free discussion; call 601-366-7619; email lemuria@ lemuriabooks.com; lemuriabooks.com.

“Why I Don’t Write” Book Discussion Sept. 10, noon, Facebook Live. Susan Minot discusses her new book with Mary Miller, author of “Biloxi.” $25 book, free discussion; call 601-366-7619; email info@lemuriabooks.com; lemuriabooks.com.

“Carville’s Cure” Book Discussion Sept. 16, noon, Facebook Live. Author Pam Fessler discusses her book with author Marcia Gaudet via Facebook Live. $28 book, free discussion; call 601-366-7619; lemuriabooks.com.

Welty at Home | A Virtual Book Club Oct. 26, Nov. 2, Nov. 9, Nov. 30, noon-1 p.m., Zoom.

The Eudora Welty Home and Gardens, along with the Mississippi Department of Archives and History, hosts a free virtual book club. The current book choice is “The Golden Apples,” a short story collection by Eudora Welty. Dr. Suzanne Marrs, Welty’s friend and biographer, leads discussions on each story in the collection. See website for reading schedule. Zoom link provided upon registration. Books may be purchased from the Eudora Welty House & Garden Gift Shop. All books purchased from the gift shop come with a complimentary Welty House stamp and bookmark. Shipping is available. Free discussion, book price varies; call 601-3537762; email info@eudoraweltyhouse.com; welty.mdah.ms.gov.

Down Along with That Devil’s Bones Nov. 3, noon, Facebook Live. Conner Towne O’Neill discusses his book with author Jerry Mitchell on Facebook Live. Free book discussion, $26.95 signed, first-edition book; call 601-366-7619; lemuriabooks.com.

September 2 - 15, 2020 • jfp.ms

the event. Registration required. $57 admission includes supplies & multi lights, $7 to add white lights; call 601-724-1347; email downtown_giftery@yahoo.com; find it on Facebook.

28

Paint Your Own Piece Sept. 11, 6-8 p.m., at Market House (5647 Hwy 80 E. Suite 1, Pearl).

Ashley Henson of Henson Home Furnishings leads the workshop instructing participants in how to use Dixie Belle paint to customize or revitalize an item or piece of furniture that the participants bring from home. Items brought should be small to medium in size and easy to carry. Dixie Belle paints and supplies included in admission fee. Non-refundable. $100 admission includes paints and supplies; call 769-233-8739; email allyavaj@aol.com; find it on Facebook.

Art of Manuscript Writing Oct. 6, 12:30-1:30 p.m., Zoom. Author Richard Hulse leads a presentation on his writing process for manuscript-

businesses may harness free tools to increase leads and drive web traffic to their company websites.

Admission TBA; call 503-451-6675; email deb@ sharptackmedia.com; sharptackmedia.com.

Save The Dates: Your Journey to Greatness Workshops Nov. 14, 9-11 a.m., at Metro Community Resources (4527 Highway 80 W.).

Entrepreneur and motivational speaker Latisha Holmes leads workshops addressing an array of topics on business and personal development.

Free admission; call 769-218-0292; Facebook.

BE THE CHANGE Pink Premier Party Sept. 3, noon-1 p.m., at Virtual (1380 Livingston Lane). Making Strides Against Breast Cancer of Central Mississippi hosts a virtual gathering for survivors, patients,

caregivers, sponsors and advocates in the fight against breast cancer. Speakers share their survivor stories and present information on the effect of COVID-19 on breast cancer, as well as on how participants may become involved in the organization’s efforts. Registration required.

Free admission; call 800-227-2345; email centralmsstrides@cancer.org; docs.google.com.

27th Annual Good Neighbor Day Sept. 9, 8 a.m., at Greenbrook Flowers (705 N. State St.).

The event sponsored by Greenbrook Flowers gives participants one dozen free roses, in the hope that each person will keep one rose for themselves and give eleven away as tokens of friendship and love. Limited supply. Free roses until gone; call 601-957-1951; email greenbrookflowers@ymail.com; find it on Facebook.

Drive Thru Community Baby Shower Sept.

12, 9 a.m.-noon, at 4623 Womack Drive.

The Institute for the Advancement of Minority Health hosts the event to provide new and expectant moms with baby essentials and educational information. Participants should wear masks upon arrival and remain in their cars until a IAMH team member comes to assist them. Participants must register through Eventbrite and have a copy of their Eventbrite ticket or a mobile Eventbrite ticket in hand to receive goods. Donations welcomed; call 601-9330370; email iamh@advancingminorityhealth. org; Eventbrite.

Stuapalooza 2020 Oct. 10, 7:30 a.m.-6 p.m., at Country Club of Canton (183 Country Club Road, Canton). The golf tournament honors the life of the late Stuart Smith by raising funds to provide scholarships for Madison County students and to Mississippi collegiate organizations for suicide prevention. Player/team registration available. $125 per player, various levels of sponsorships offered; call 601-859-6359; email tgbooker1@aol.com; find it on Facebook.

2020 Buddy Walk Oct. 10, 8 a.m.-5 p.m., at Virtual (1 Braves Boulevard, Pearl). The Central Mississippi Down Syndrome Society holds its annual Buddy Walk this year in a “mostly virtual” format. Participants will create teams, raise funds and celebrate at their home or neighborhood, as well as participate in the virtual celebration live from Trustmark Park. $25 registration as individual virtual walker, team prices vary; call 601-385-3696; email info@cmdss.org; classy.org.

NAMIWalks Mississippi 2020 Oct. 10, 9:3011:30 a.m., at Mayes Lake and Campground (3315 Lakeland Drive). The Mississippi Chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness holds its annual walk for mental-health awareness, fundraising and community building. Check-in begins 8:30 a.m. Free registration, donations encouraged; call 601-899-9058; email walkmanager@namims.org; namiwalks.org.

Purple Dress Run “Lets Run Domestic Violence Out of Town” Oct. 16, 6-8 p.m., at The District at Eastover or Virtual (1250 Eastover Drive). Catholic Charities Diocese of Jackson hosts a 5k run/walk benefitting the Jackson Shelter for Battered Families. Due to concerns of COVID-19, approval of the live event from the city is still pending. If conditions do not allow for a live event the race will be held virtually. Registration available at the link provided.

Check website for most current information. $25 early registration, $35 beginning Oct. 1; call 601-326-3758; raceroster.com.

SPORTS & WELLNESS COURTESY COMBAT WRESTLING LEAGUE

FALL EVENTS

“The Cold War” Wrestling Sept. 12, 6-9 p.m., at The Hideaway (5100 Interstate 55 N. Frontage Road). The Combat Wrestling League presents a night of wrestling entertainment. Tickets may be purchased at the door. Doors open at 5 p.m. $10 general admission, $14 front row, kids 4 & under free; call 601-4108274; email combatwrestlingleague@ gmail.com; find it on Facebook.

Let Me Adjust My Crown II: Women’s Health Edition Oct. 23, 6-9 p.m., Virtual. The EmpowHER Podcast with Krississippi hosts its second virtual event, an evening of networking, education on women’s health, beauty demonstrations and more. Free general admission, $5, $15 and $25 sponsorship options available; email empowerherpodcast@gmail. com; Eventbrite. son). The Little Lighthouse hosts its ninth-annual 5k event, whose theme this year is “The Greatest Show on Earth.” Participants are encouraged to wear (non-scary) circus-themed costumes and join in. Social distancing and CDC guidelines are being enforced, and preparations have been made to make the event virtual, if necessary.

Registration: $20 kids fun run, $30 5k prior to Oct. 1, $35 5k after Oct. 1, $20 LLH alumni, $35 virtual, free for current LLH students and sponsors’ guests, various levels of sponsorship available; call 601-956-6131.

Mississippi’s VIRTUAL Walk for Diabetes Oct. 24, 10-11 a.m., at Virtual (800 Avery Blvd., Suite 100, Ridgeland). The Diabetes Foundation of Mississippi holds its first virtual walk. Participants have the month of October to raise funds, walk the route of their choosing and post pictures to social media tagging the DFM. On Oct. 24, the DFM will live-stream their walk through Facebook. Free to participate, donations appreciated; call 601-957-7878; email msdiabetes@ msdiabetes.org; charity.gofundme.com.

2020 Tunnel to Towers 5K Run & Walk Jackson, MS Nov. 7, 8 a.m.-noon, at The District at Eastover (1250 Eastover Drive). The 5k honors New York City firefighter Stephen Siller, who lost his life on Sept. 11, 200,1 after strapping on his gear and running through the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel to the Twin Towers. $30 adults, $25 first responders and military, $20 kids 13-17, $15 kids 12 and under; call 718-987-1931; email info@tunnel2towers.org; tunnel2towers.org.

Check jfpevents.com for updates and more listings, or to add your own events online. You can also email event details to events@ jacksonfreepress.com to be 9th Annual Laps for Little Ones 5K and Fun added to the calendar. The Run Oct. 24, 8-11 a.m., at Madison Healthplex deadline is noon the Wednesday Performance Center (501 Baptist Drive, Madiprior to the week of publication.

Mumford Mumford

We are so proud of Kamesha Mumford: Winner, Best Real Estate Attorney

Thank you for nominating us.

Best of 2020 Jackson Finalists R. Kelly Kyle, Best Attorney

Kyle-Wynn and Associates, Best Local Law Firm Kamesha B. Mumford, Esq. Mumford & Mumford, PLLC 601-398-2347 100 Webster Circle, Suite 1, Madison, MS 39110 **Licensed to Practice in MS & LA

www.mumfordlawfirm.com

601-978-1700 www.kyle-wynn.com

7720 Old Canton Road, Ste. B Madison MS 39110 Free Background Information Available on Request

September 2 - 15, 2020 â&#x20AC;˘ boomjackson.com

Elizabeth Wynn, Best Estate Planning Attorney

29

Last Weekâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Answers

BY MATT JONES

48 â&#x20AC;&#x153;Starry Nightâ&#x20AC;? setting 49 Gavin of â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Love Boatâ&#x20AC;?

52 Calendar divs.

54 Theta preceder 55 State with the shortest motto (â&#x20AC;&#x153;Hopeâ&#x20AC;?)

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64 Moldable, squishy material in some ASMR videos

32 Oregon, for one 40 TV lawyer Goodman 42 It still holds up 43 Boat propeller 47 Gardasil maker 50 â&#x20AC;&#x153;___ Mark!â&#x20AC;? (line from â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Roomâ&#x20AC;? in memes) 51 â&#x20AC;&#x153;___ the Pigeonâ&#x20AC;? (â&#x20AC;&#x153;Sesame Streetâ&#x20AC;? song) 52 Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s perpendicular to the warp 53 Fuzzy fruit

56 Kaitlinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Always Sunny...â&#x20AC;? role 57 Some smartphones 58 Turkish title 59 â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Sound of Musicâ&#x20AC;? extra 60 Dentistâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s deg.

For answers to this puzzle, call: 1-900-226-2800, 99 cents per minute. Must be 18+.

Or to bill to your credit card, call: 1-800 655-6548. Reference puzzle #940.

Down

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Themeless Plugâ&#x20AC;? --another freestyle for you.

Across

1 Success story focus, maybe 12 Catered to?

15 Stat that may figure into a walking itinerary 16 Bambiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s aunt (in the book) 17 She played Edith Bunker in 2019 18 Music game with a floor pad, for short 19 â&#x20AC;&#x153;48___â&#x20AC;? (Nick Nolte film) 20 Like the works of Sappho 22 Brazilian jiu-___ 26 Gregarious beginning?

27 Most down 33 â&#x20AC;&#x153;Passagesâ&#x20AC;? author Sheehy 34 Charlotte or Gabrielle, in Broadwayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x153;Cinderellaâ&#x20AC;?

35 Radius neighbor 36 Aunt, in Asuncion 37 First option 38 Is down with 39 Measuring cup marks, for short 41 Frilly underskirts 44 She played Romy 45 Conned personâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s revelation 46 Intense loathing

Now taking

September 2 - 15, 2020 â&#x20AC;˘ jfp.ms

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1 Late comedian Kinison 2 TV actor Longoria 3 The Once-___ (â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Loraxâ&#x20AC;? narrator) 4 Part of WTF? 5 Woven compositions?

6 Petri dish substance 7 P.D. investigators 8 Gen. Eisenhowerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s WWII command 9 â&#x20AC;&#x153;Rentâ&#x20AC;? heroine 10 Final answer?

11 Roan answer 12 NYC historical site where the Stamp Act Congress met 13 Finished like the 2019 Scripps National Spelling Bee 14 What the â&#x20AC;&#x153;coolâ&#x20AC;? smiling face emoji wears 21 Marinara brand 22 â&#x20AC;&#x153;Hold on!â&#x20AC;?

23 Cowed 24 Dramatic performances, quaintly 25 Maple syrup, essentially 28 Longstocking of kidsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; books 29 Ait, e.g.

30 Les ___-Unis 31 ___ clear message to

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VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22):

“Like any art, the creation of self is both natural and seemingly impossible,” says singersongwriter Holly Near. “It requires training as well as magic.” How are you doing on that score, Virgo? Now is a favorable time to intensify your long-term art project of creating the healthiest, smartest version of yourself. I think it will feel quite natural and not-at-all impossible. In the coming weeks, you’ll have a finely tuned intuitive sense of how to proceed with flair. Start by imagining the Most Beautiful You.

I propose we resurrect the old English word “museful.”

First used in the 17th century but then forgotten, it meant “deeply thoughtful; pensive.” In our newly coined use, it refers to a condition wherein a person is abundantly inspired by the presence of the muse. I further suggest that we invoke this term to apply to you Libras in the coming weeks. You potentially have a high likelihood of intense communion with your muses. There’s also a good chance you’ll engage with a new muse or two. What will you do with all of this illumination and stimulation?

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21):

Each of us has a “soul’s code”: a metaphorical blueprint of the beautiful person we could become by fulfilling our destiny. If our soul’s code remains largely dormant, it will agitate and disorient us. If, on the other hand, we perfectly actualize our soul’s code, we will feel at home in the world; all our experiences will feel meaningful. The practical fact is that most of us have made some progress in manifesting our soul’s code, but still have a way to go before we fully actualize it. Here’s the good news: You Scorpios are in a phase of your cycle when you could make dramatic advances in this glorious work.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):

“Life is the only game in which the object of the game is to learn the rules,” observes Sagittarian author Ashleigh Brilliant. According to my research, you have made excellent progress in this quest during the last few weeks—and will continue your good work in the next six weeks. Give yourself an award! Buy yourself a trophy! You have discovered at least two rules that were previously unknown to you, and you have also ripened your understanding of another rule that had previously been barely comprehensible. Be alert for more breakthroughs.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):

“If you’re not lost, you’re not much of an explorer,” said rambunctious activist and author John Perry Barlow.

Adding to his formulation, I’ll say that if you want to be a successful explorer, it’s crucial to get lost on some occasions. And according to my analysis, now is just such a time for you Capricorns. The new territory you have been brave enough to reconnoiter should be richly unfamiliar.

The possibilities you have been daring enough to consider should be provocatively unpredictable. Keep going, my dear! That’s the best way to become un-lost.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):

“Dreams really tell you about yourself more than anything else in this world could ever tell you,” said psychic Sylvia Browne. She was referring to the mysterious stories that unfold in our minds as we sleep. I agree with her assessment of dreams’ power to show us who we really are all the way down to the core of our souls. What Browne didn’t mention, however, is that it takes knowledge and training to become proficient in deciphering dreams’ revelations. Their mode of communication is unique—and unlike every other source of teaching. I bring this up, Aquarius, because the coming months will be a favorable time for you to become more skilled in understanding your dreams.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20):

In June 1876, warriors from three Indian tribes defeated U.S. troops led by General George Custer at the Battle of Little Big Horn in Montana. It was an iconic victory in what was ultimately a losing battle to prevent conquest by the everexpanding American empire. One of the tribes that fought that day was the Northern Cheyenne. Out of fear of punishment by the U.S. government, its leaders waited 130 years to tell its side of the story about what happened. New evidence

emerged then, such as the fact that the only woman warrior in the fight, Buffalo Calf Road Woman, killed Custer himself.

I offer this tale as an inspiration for you Pisceans to tell your story about events that you’ve kept silent about for too long.

ARIES (March 21-April 19):

“A new idea is rarely born like Venus attended by graces.

More commonly it’s modeled of baling wire and acne. More commonly it wheezes and tips over.” Those words were written by Aries author Marge Piercy, who has been a fount of good new ideas in the course of her career. I regard her as an expert in generating wheezy, fragile breakthroughs and ultimately turning them into shiny, solid beacons of revelation. Your assignment in the coming weeks, Aries, is to do as Piercy has done so well.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20):

“Every day I discover even more beautiful things,” said painter Claude Monet. “It is intoxicating me, and I want to paint it all. My head is bursting.” That might seem like an extreme state to many of us. But Monet was a specialist in the art of seeing. He trained himself to be alert for exquisite sights. So his receptivity to the constant flow of loveliness came naturally to him. I bring this to your attention, Taurus, because I think that in the coming weeks, you could rise closer to a Monet-like level of sensitivity to beauty. Would that be interesting to you? If so, unleash yourself! Make it a priority to look for charm, elegance, grace, delight, and dazzlement.

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GEMINI (May 21-June 20):

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Author Renata Adler describes a time in her life when she began to notice blue triangles on her feet. She was wracked with fear that they were a symptom of leukemia.

But after a period of intense anxiety, she realized one fine day that they had a different cause. She writes: “Whenever I, walking barefoot, put out the garbage on the landing, I held the apartment door open, bending over from the rear. The door would cross a bit over the tops of my feet”—leaving triangular bruises. Upon realizing this very good news, she says, “I took a celebrational nap.”

From what I can tell, Gemini, you’re due for a series of celebrational naps—both because of worries that turn out to be unfounded and because you need a concentrated period of recharging your energy reserves.

CANCER (June 21-July 22):

“I like people who refuse to speak until they are ready to speak,” proclaimed Cancerian author Lillian Hellman. I feelC the same way. So often people have nothing interesting or M important to say, but say it anyway. I’ve done that myself!

The uninteresting and unimportant words I have uttered Y are too numerous to count. The good news for me and all of my fellow Cancerians is that in the coming weeks we CM are far more likely than usual to not speak until we are MY ready to speak. According to my analysis of the astrological potentials, we are poised to express ourselves with CY clarity, authenticity, and maximum impact.

CMY

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22):

K

Of all the mournful impacts the pandemic has had, one of the most devastating is that it has diminished our opportunities to touch and be touched by other humans. Many of us are starved of the routine, regular contact we had previously taken for granted. I look forward to the time when we can again feel uninhibited about shaking hands, hugging, and patting friends on the arm or shoulder. In the meantime, how can you cope? This issue is extra crucial for you Leos to meditate on right now. Can you massage yourself? Seek extra tactile contact with animals? Hug trees? Figure out how to physically connect with people while wearing hazmat suits, gloves, masks, and face shields? What else?

Homework: Maybe sometimes it’s OK to hide and be secretive and use silence as a superpower. Example from your life? FreeWillAstrology.com

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