Category: Local News

NATCHEZ, Miss. – U.S. Rep. Michael Guest visited the Adams County Board of Supervisor and stressed Monday how he’s trying to bring more industries and jobs to the area.

He pointed to one anonymous  industrial prospect – code-named the “Apollo” group – as an “exciting opportunity” for possibly creating new jobs at the now-closed International Paper plant site. Guest said he’s met with “Apollo” representatives “zeroing in on Adams County” to bring their industry here.

Guest also said he’s helping to ensure the privately owned Adams County Correctional Center continues to operate employing about 400 people. The 2,232-bed prison holds immigrants who unlawfully enter the country and are detained by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE). The Republican congressman said he’s working to “make sure we can help keep those beds full.”

For the Mississippi River, Guest said federal funds could be allocated for dredging the waterway to make it deeper and allow more commercial traffic for the Natchez region, making it especially attractive for businesses.

Adams County board President Ricky Gray said Monday he didn’t recall a U.S. congressman ever attending a board meeting during his 20 years in office — first as a Natchez alderman and then a county supervisor. “You’re making us feel special,” he told Guest.

While he was visiting Natchez-Adams County on Monday, Guest noted he was flying back to Washington early this morning to be at the U.S. Capitol for President Trump’s State of the Union address tonight.

NATCHEZ, Miss. – Adams County officials are under pressure in a short period to get property tax rolls updated to ensure taxpayers are paying the right amount next year.

County supervisors were told Monday that the tax assessor’s office is behind in reviewing private properties to update and confirm their worth for taxable purposes.

“You’ve got a lot of work to do to get the values right,” said Wayne Herring, a professional tax appraiser hired by the Board of Supervisors to help.

Adams County Tax Assessor Larry Hughes is new on the job having just taken office in January. He replaced Reynolds Atkins, who did not seek re-election last year. Staff work in recent months was left undone in updating tax records in Atkins’ office between last summer’s election and now, said Peter Dale, who now manages the county’s mapping of land parcels to be taxed. He noted how crucial the next six months are for county appraisers to update land values on time for assessments to be made for 2020 property taxes due for payment next year.

The state does require periodic reassessments of private properties to determine the updated values of their land and structures to be taxed based on their worth. Assessments are due at the end of July for the Board of Supervisors to finalize. If past due, Adams County could be penalized by the state by not being reimbursed for homestead-exemption tax breaks it provides to propertyowners, Herring said.

Adams County has had about 17,000 privately owned parcels of land the tax assessor must value for tax purposes, according to stats provided to county supervisors in the past.

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A hazardous private dam with a county-owned road on it should be torn down and replaced by a bridge, according to recommendations presented Monday to the Adams County Board of Supervisors.

County engineer Jim Marlow said state dam-safety regulators suggest the erosion-prone, deficient Robins Lake dam should be taken out rather than rebuilt and enlarged to handle the lake when it rises after heavy rains. A bridge could replace the road that traverses the earthen dam.

However, this would eradicate the small private Robins Lake surrounded by a handful of residences south of Natchez.

If nothing is done to address the vulnerable lake-impoundment structure, the state Department of Environmental Quality’s dam-safety office could mandate the road-topped dam be closed, Marlow said.

Adams County supervisors discussed the dilemma facing them as they grapple on what’s the most feasible and safest option for lakeside residents and others in the area who rely on the public road traversing the small levee-dam. It’s located west of U.S. 61 and Lower Woodville Road about 10 miles south of Natchez between the Beau Pre and Sibley areas.

Robins Lake Dam Road gets washed out often after heavy rains — the most recent being last month’s downpours that damaged the earth levee along the lake. While the road is maintained by the county, the dam underneath is privately owned.

The county can’t pay for rebuilding the levee-dam to handle the lake’s high levels, and it would be nearby residents’ responsibility if they want to maintain the lake as currently impounded.

The Adams County board could decide to abandon the road, freeing it of the responsibility of maintaining it. However, residents nearby losing a key transportation link could sue the county, said board attorney Scott Slover.

The Girl Scouts of Greater Mississippi will hold a benefit at Elms Court in Natchez on Thursday, February 13 from 6:00-8:00pm.  Elms Court is the childhood home of lifelong Girl Scout Grace MacNeil.  The address is 542 John R Junkin Drive, Natchez.

Area chefs will prepare desserts using Girl Scout Cookies such as Thin Mints, Samoas, and our newest cookie, Lemon Ups.  Local notables will judge the desserts and an award will go to the best one.

Local Natchez businesses that have sponsored the event include Concordia Bank, Magnolia Bluffs Casino, Mississippi Baptist Medical Center, and The Natchez Democrat.

Tickets are $40 per person or $75 per couple and can be purchased at the door or by registering at www.gsgms.org.  Beer and wine will be served, in addition to the desserts.

Our celebrity chefs include:

Susanna Johnson-Sharp and the students of the Culinary Arts Technology program at CoLin Natchez,

Jarita Frazier-King, Natchez Heritage School of Cooking

Chef KP Pearson, Magnolia Bluffs Casino

Yolanda Morgan, Morgan’s Catering,

Hannah-Grace Hinkle, Rolling ‘N’ the Dough.

We are honored to have local notables judge the desserts: Mrs. Frances Bailey, longtime Girl Scouts Troop Leader; Felicia Bridgewater-Irving, City of Natchez; Jennifer Ogden Combs, Visit Natchez ; Mayor Darryl Grennell; Jan Griffey, The Natchez Democrat; and Sheriff Travis Patten.  Our Master of Ceremony is Curtis Moroney.

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We’re Girl Scouts of the USA.  We’re 2.5 million strong—more than 1.7 million girls and 750,000 adults who believe in the power of every G.I.R.L. (Go-getter, Innovator, Risk-taker, Leader) ™ to change the world. Our extraordinary journey began more than 100 years ago with the original G.I.R.L., Juliette Gordon “Daisy” Low. On March 12, 1912, in Savannah, Georgia, she organized the very first Girl Scout troop, and every year since, we’ve honored her vision and legacy, building girls of courage, confidence, and character who make the world a better place. We’re the preeminent leadership development organization for girls. And with programs from coast to coast and across the globe, Girl Scouts offers every girl a chance to practice a lifetime of leadership, adventure, and success.

NATCHEZ, Miss. (AP) — Ever wondered how the Natchez Indians lived in the 18th century?

Soon, visitors of the Grand Village of the Natchez Indians will be able to see with their own eyes exactly that, with the help of 21st century technology.

Mississippi Department of Archives and History officials will offer a new virtual reality exhibit in March, The Natchez Democrat reported. Using cellphones, visitors will get a three-dimensional interactive view of the site’s Indian mounds and other landmarks.

The virtual reality tour is part of an effort to broaden the visitor experience at the state historical site, Grand Village Director Lance Harris this week told the Natchez-Adams Economic Development Council. Harris and MDAH Executive Director Katie Blount detailed plans for the Grand Village and other state sites at the weekly meeting of area economic leaders.

Harris said the Grand Village would also be changing in the next couple of months all of its exterior signage. The signage will offer a more complete telling of the Natchez Indian story than what is currently on the site, Harris said.

Blount said telling a broader story about the Native American experience and other inhabitants of Southwest Mississippi is one of the current priorities of the department.

“Since we opened the two Mississippi Museums in December 2017, Natchez and this region are our focus,” Blount said. “We have welcomed 300,000 people to those sites since we opened, and I believe those visitors need to come to Natchez.”

Development of the Grand Village is one of the department’s highest priorities, Blount said.

In addition to the new exhibits coming this spring, Harris detailed other changes MDAH hopes to accomplish.

MDAH is working to raise approximately $6 million to add a new museum exhibition space, auditorium and open-air pavilion, among other changes. The new buildings will significantly expand the existing 4,000-square-foot building, which has become cramped and in need of a significant revamp, Harris said.

Harris said MDAH hopes to install a new “Three Sisters Garden” and build replica structures on the mounds to allow visitors to explore the site as it appeared in the 18th century. The structures will be designed and built using historical written accounts, corroborated with archaeological research.

“That type of information simply does not exist anywhere else in North America,” Harris said.

A revitalized Grand Village is part of MDAH’s plan for the area, Blount said. MDAH is currently working to stabilize the columns at Windsor Ruins and provide new interpretive exhibits at the site in Claiborne County.

MDAH is also working at Historic Jefferson College, embarking on an erosion control project and working on roof and gutter repairs, Harris said. Plans are to make Historic Jefferson College a gateway to the region, Blount said.

“All of this is part of a broader initiative to tell a broader story here in Natchez — the story of the Native American experience, of cultural conflict, slavery, Civil War, Reconstruction, the rich cultural architectural history of this area and the Civil Rights movement,” Blount said. “All of these stories are central to American history. People need to come to Mississippi to understand American history, and they need to come to Natchez to experience these stories.”

NATCHEZ, Miss. –January 30, 2020 — Merit Health Natchez has named the following 2019 award
winners: Johnny Guice, Planner, Facilities Management is Employee of the Year; Dianne Parker, Director
of Health Information Management is Non-Clinical Manager of the Year; Shannon Russ, Nurse Director
of Emergency Services is Clinical Manager of the Year; and Joyce Washington Ivery is Volunteer of the
Year. These awards are the highest honors bestowed on a hospital employee and volunteer each year,
and they were chosen from approximately 500 employees and 30 volunteers.

“These award winners truly represent service and operational excellence in their delivery of great patient care. People who work in health care share the common desire to help others and make a difference in people’s lives. It’s a pleasure to recognize Johnny, Dianne, Shannon and Mrs. Washington Ivery for all they do to provide a great environment of care for our patients and all of our providers – teamwork, dedication and compassion,” said Lance Boyd, CEO of Merit Health Natchez. Johnny Guice has worked three years with the hospital, working to ensure the building and physical plant are in top condition. According to his co-workers, he is always willing to help employees with building and maintenance issues and does so with patience and a smile. He helps create a work environment that is fun and productive. Jason Lynch, Director of Facilities Management, concurs. “Johnny is instrumental in our success of keeping the facility operational, safe, and efficient; and he is a tremendous team player and ambassador for Merit Health Natchez.”

As Director of Health Information Management (HIM), Dianne Parker is well respected for her wealth of knowledge, expertise and performance drawn from her 35 years of medical records experience. Her employees and co-workers describe her as one of the smartest people they know, the best boss ever, a great teacher and highly professional and protective of patients privacy and protected health information. Amelia Conner, CFO of Merit Health Natchez, could not agree more. “Dianne is always humble about her knowledge, which makes employees feel comfortable asking questions. She is a compassionate director and a key asset to our team,” said Conner.

As Nurse Director of Emergency Services, Shannon Russ is highly respected among her employees for her leadership skills, support and willingness to roll up her sleeves and work side by side with them. With 32 years in the ER setting, medical professionals value Russ’ critical thinking skills and her ability to
remain calm and provide leadership and teamwork in stressful situations. Lee Hinson, Chief Nursing Officer, credits Russ and her ability to lead by example for the retention of team members in her department. “Shannon’s staff is fiercely loyal to her, helping us create a staff of seasoned emergency
room nurses. She is an integral part of our Emergency Management, Chest Pain, Stroke and Trauma teams, just to name a few; and we are fortunate to have her experience and knowledge leading our emergency services,” concluded Hinson.

Joyce Washington Ivery has been has been giving unselfishly of her time and talents as a hospital volunteer for the past 19 years, donating over 1,300 hours of her time to the hospital. As a retired social worker, 30 year breast cancer survivor and CEO and founder of the Edna B. and Joyce Fay
Washington Breast Cancer Foundation, compassion, caring and giving back have always been key attributes in her life. “Ms. Joyce is very special to us and is faithful to helping in our hospital gift shop. She is known for her professional, refined appearance with a beautiful hat to match every outfit.
Customers love her and we are so fortunate to have her,” said Yvonne Eidt, Gift Shop Coordinator.

About Merit Health Natchez, Merit Health Natchez is a Joint Commission-accredited hospital with 179-beds and offers a broad range of services including emergency medicine, surgery, cardiology, labor and delivery, radiology, outpatient diagnostic testing, physical therapy and more. Merit Health Natchez holds additional accreditations from American College of Cardiology for Chest Pain Center, the American College of Radiology for mammography, the American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation, the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities and the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, and Advance Disease-Specific Care Certification for Acute Stroke Ready Hospital from The Joint
Commission and the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association. Learn more at www.merithealthnatchez.com.

NATCHEZ — Gilmer McLaurin Elementary School has been named “The Healthiest School in Mississippi,” the Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi Foundation announced Wednesday.

The award carries a $50,000 prize to enhance the school’s wellness programs.

“It feels great! It feels healthy!” said McLaurin Principal Britaney Cheatham upon learning her school had won.

Cheatham said the prize money would be used to purchase playground equipment, workout equipment and possibly a pavilion with shade to block the sun on the school’s playground area.

Other winners of the sixth annual Healthy School Awards announced Wednesday include DeLisle Elementary School (Pass Christian School District), Moselle Elementary School (Jones County School District) and St. Martin High School (Jackson County School District). Those schools will each receive $25,000 for their respective wellness programs.

Cheatham attributed McLaurin’s win to dedicated staff and students, including Coach Lacie Johnson who has been hands on with the school’s health and wellness program day in and day out.

“We applied last year, and we fell a little short of the $50,000, so the team got together and looked at some of the critiques some of what they did do and some of our shortcomings were the challenges so they started a little bit earlier the year preparing, so they didn’t give up,” Cheatham said. “They stayed in the fight but they just had some feedback in looking at they needed to do to improve the next go round when they submitted in October.”

Johnson said initiatives at the school this year that attributed to the school’s success included nutrition programs and fitness programs that included students and faculty.

“We had to do a lot through our P.E. program, our health classes and with teacher health,” Johnson said. “We started a teacher challenge with health challenges anywhere between two or three challenges a week the teachers would do. We also had teacher-student basketball games.”

Cheatham said McLaurin’s health and wellness program began four years ago.

“We funded a garden initiative four years ago and that started the vision through Master Gardeners, Mississippi State Extension Services just some locals, who were partnering with our school at that level,” Cheatham said. “Our Brother’s Keeper was one of them, so it started really small, a class garden that led into the healthy initiative where they were planting cucumbers and onion and carrots and cabbage and the students started cooking those healthy items at the school level like taste and sample type things. It just went from there.”

The Healthy School Awards are judged by an independent panel of Mississippi leaders in education and youth services. The judges for the 2020 Healthy School Awards were Dr. Ira E. Murray, president and CEO, United Way of the Capital Area and Dr. Aleshia Hall-Campbell, executive director, Institute of Child Nutrition.

The Healthy School Awards Program is also supported by the Mississippi Association of School Superintendents that has provided a platform to promote the Program statewide and to acknowledge winning schools during its annual conferences.

Each winning school will host a Healthy School Awards Celebration Day to publicly recognize their achievements in creating a healthy school environment.

The Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi Foundation’s Healthy School Awards Program recognizes and rewards public schools with health policies and programs that promote healthy eating, physical activity, staff wellness, tobacco-free lifestyles among students and staff, and parental and community involvement. The criteria for this award are based on state and national school health standards. The goal of the awards is to motivate Mississippi schools as they create and maintain healthy school environments. Healthy schools to help students achieve full academic potential and support them in developing lifelong healthy behaviors.

“A special shout out to the health and wellness committee at our school the administrators, the staff, the students and the families that we serve,” Cheatham said. “We couldn’t do it without all hands. We are truly a campus that believes in being connected, and we want to make sure that Master Gardners, My Brother’s Keepers, anybody who had hands on it, get a tank you for your support. We look forward to staying healthy at McLaurin. We are going to use this money to move even further and hopefully you will see us in round two next year.”

story from: The Natchez Democrat

By Scott Hawkins

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NATCHEZ — A new religious-based addiction program officially launched in Natchez Monday in the old community hospital at 131 Jeff Davis Boulevard, Suite D.

The program, called Lifeline Connections, is a non-residential small group facilitated through Adult & Teen Challenge USA and local volunteers and officials and aims to help those struggling with substance abuse, alcohol addiction, gambling, pornography or any number of life challenges.

Missionaries Jimmy and Yvonne Oaks said Teen Challenge has residential facilities nationwide and only six years ago started a non-residential program in Arkansas to reach more people within their home communities.

“For 62 years, Teen Challenge has only done residential programs and they can only reach about 10% of those who need it,” Yvonne Oaks said. “This is an opportunity to reach the other 90% of people with life controlling issues — by going into their communities.”

Monday was the first launch of a non-residential Teen Challenge group in Mississippi with the closest residential facility being in Georgetown (Mississippi), Oaks said.

Dana Wilson, the Natchez group facilitator, said she is thrilled to finally see an organized and structured program implemented that has succeeded with 78% of its members in other locations.

“I would like to thank the city officials, our pastor Bo Swilley and his wife Traci for helping us organize this back in October,” Wilson said. “We’re very excited about the program.”

Wilson said class registration begins today from 6 to 7 p.m. at the location on Jeff Davis Boulevard and will continue from 8 a.m. until noon of Feb. 4. Participants only need to fill out an application and purchase a workbook for $20, Wilson said, adding those who can’t afford a workbook will not be turned away.

Wilson said the program currently offers three weekly classes, including two nine-week classes and one 12-week class.

“We’re offering a concerned persons group, which is people with codependency or enabling,” Wilson said. “Those will be at 6:30 every Tuesday night. We also have an insight group for anyone who has a life-controlling problem and those will be at 6 p.m. every Tuesday night. At noon on Wednesdays we will have a ‘Stepping Into Freedom’ class, which is a 12-step program for those struggling with alcohol and drug addiction.”

All classes will meet at the facility on Jeff Davis Boulevard, Wilson said, adding transportation can be arranged for those who need it.

“This is a program that is very near and dear to me,” Wilson said. “I’ve been in recovery for 30 years. … My life has completely changed. God has been very good to my family and me. It’s very heartbreaking when I see people in my community that struggle with addiction and maybe can’t afford to go off to a treatment program or maybe don’t have the support or have children. That is the exciting thing about this program. You can get into recovery from drugs, alcohol or any other life controlling issue right here at home. That is the beauty of this program.”

Yvonne Oaks said Rev. Scott Green at First Assembly of God, Rev. Marcus Archer of Crosspoint and Swilley of Community Chapel Church of God helped launch the program and train of 16 volunteers to lead the groups.

“They’ve been very supportive of this initiative and we would love for even more churches and other community entities to be a partner to get this more established,” Oaks said. “ … As this grows, there will be more groups offered.”

Adams County Circuit Court Judge Lillie Sanders said she is thrilled to have a new program to refer people to who come through the court system.

“Anytime there is anything new that we can offer to our participants in the drug court that are ready and willing to participate, I’m excited about it,” Sanders said. “… We’ve had participants to graduate from Teen Challenge and Teen Challenge does a wonderful job.”

Wilson said those seeking information can contact her at 601-493-0574.

Story from: The Natchez Democrat

By Sabrina Robertson

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