Established 1879 | Columbus, Mississippi

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Sunday | November 15, 2020

Private schools inconsistent with COVID reporting methods

Garrison Reedy and Hayden
Torreson, both fifth-graders Some officials argue private schools equal
at Annunciation Catholic
School, work face to face on
an activity named “All about
to private businesses, not ‘agents of the state’
Me” on Aug. 24. All schools BY YUE STELLA YU directly to MSDH on a
in Mississippi are required syu@cdispatch.com weekly basis. Schools
to turn over the number of must report both weekly
COVID-19 cases among stu- Some private schools in the four-coun-
dents and staff to Mississippi and total counts of posi-
ty area are not reporting COVID-19 re- tive cases among students
State Department of Health. lated information directly to Mississippi
While Annunciation and some and staff; the number
State Department of Health, in violation
other private schools have of students and staff un-
of an Aug. 14 state order put in place to
reported their cases, others der quarantine; and out-
say they are private business- track virus cases in schools. Dobbs
breaks, where three or
es and therefore should not The order, signed into effect by State
more people within the same group test
have to turn their numbers Health Officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs, re-
quires all Mississippi schools — public positive within two weeks.
over to the state.
Courtesy photo/Katie Fenstermacher or private — to report COVID-19 data See PRIVATE SCHOOLS, 5A

Columbus
‘WE’LL SERVE AS MANY AS WE CAN’
Columbus volunteers ask for donations to cook, receives $554K
deliver Thanksgiving meals to those in need in CARES Act
funds
Mickens: ‘Don’t touch
it’; says funds should
remain in reserves
BY YUE STELLA YU
syu@cdispatch.com

Johnny Hampton and Sherry Ellis have been stock-piling food in the garage of Hampton’s East Columbus home as
they prepare to deliver meals to as many as 500 people on Thanksgiving Day. Their decision to feed people came
after city officials said they could not provide facilities that other Columbus volunteers have used to prepare and
deliver Thanksgiving meals since 1994.
BY SLIM SMITH
ssmith@cdispatch.com
When Sherry Ellis left Georgia
to return to her hometown of Co-
lumbus two years ago, she threw
herself into community service.
“I grew up in Columbus and al-
ways was involved in community
service,” Elllis said. “I always had
a heart for it. So when I came back
home, I wanted to do anything I
could for the community.”
Last year, one of the things Ellis
volunteered for was the Thanksgiv-
ing meal distribution that Annie
Barry has been providing for 25
years with the aid of the city of Co-
Columbus has
received almost
$554,000 in re-
imbursement for
COVID-19 related
expenses on public
safety, city Public In-
formation Officer Joe
Smith
Dillon told The Dis-
patch on Friday.
The $553,695.84 in funds, admin-
istered by Mississippi Emergency
Management Agency (MEMA),
have been deposited into the city’s
general fund, Dillon said. Mayor
Robert Smith and city council mem-
bers will decide how to spend the
money.
Slim Smith/Dispatch Staff
Through the federal Coronavi-
rus Aid, Relief, and Economic Secu-
rity (CARES) Act, MEMA received
a total of $70 million to help local
governments cover pandemic-re-
lumbus. Columbus schools provid- lated expenses, according to the
ed the cooking and staging facilities agency’s website. Governments had
that allowed Barry and her volun- to apply before Oct. 15 and account
teers to deliver 1,700 Thanksgiving for the expenses they sought to be
meals to the elderly, the poor, the reimbursed in order to receive the
disabled and those who had no fam- funds.
ily with whom to share the holiday Dillon told The Dispatch the city
meal. submitted its application on Oct.
See THANKSGIVING, 3A 14 and asked to be reimbursed for
expenses incurred in the city’s po-
lice and fire departments. The city
See CARES ACT, 5A

Caledonia schools vote to Caledonia High School

Principal Gregory Elliott
holds a T-shirt sporting

become Caledonia Cavaliers the new mascot for

Mascot will replace ‘Confederate,’
which has been mascot since the 1950s
BY ISABELLE ALTMAN
ialtman@cdispatch.com
The Caledonia Confed-
erates have become the
Caledonia Cavaliers.
Caledonia High School
Principal Gregory Elliott
presented the change,
along with a mock-up of
the new logo, to the Lown-
des County School Dis-
trict board at its monthly
meeting Friday. Elliott
said Cavaliers was one of
Caledonia schools, the
Cavaliers, at a Lowndes
County School District
three mascots proposed
by a nine-member com-
school board meeting at
the district’s central of-
mittee formed to choose fice on Friday. Students
a school mascot replacing at Caledonia’s schools
the Confederates. In a vote voted for the Cavaliers
as a replacement to
by all three campuses, just
the former Confederate
more than half of Caledo- mascot. Elliott stressed
nia’s first through 12th the logo on the T-shirt is
graders — 57 percent — just a mock-up and not
chose the Cavaliers over the final version.
See CALEDONIA, 3A Isabelle Altman/Dispatch Staff

WEATHER FIVE QUESTIONS CALENDAR LOCAL FOLKS PUBLIC

1 What do Baguetteaboutit!, Blunch Today MEETINGS
and A-Fish-ona-do have in common? Nov. 16: Lowndes
■ Blood drive: Knights
2 Which country has the longest County Board of Su-
of Columbus Blood Drive
coastline in the world — Canada, pervisors meeting, 9
Indonesia or Norway? is 8 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
at the Activity Center a.m., Lowndes County
3 Set on a spaceship, which 2016
film features actor Chris Pratt waking across from Annunciation Courthouse, facebook.
up from his hibernation pod 90 years Catholic Church at 823 com/LowndesCounty-
Collins Davis
early? College St. Appointments Mississippi/
Second grade, Annunciation
4 Who was the only English King encouraged; Bill Adams, Nov. 17: Columbus

High 69 Low 36
Clouds and sun
called “The Great”?
5 What common (usually yellow) item
has its own museum in Keswick,
662-370-9534, or vita-
lant.org. Face coverings
required. Visit vitalant.
City Council, 5 p.m.,
Municipal Complex,
England? facebook.com/Cityof-
Full forecast on Answers, 5B org/health to start health ColumbusMS/
page 3A. history questionnaire.
Nov. 30: Lowndes
■ Sunday Funday: An
County Board of Su-
INSIDE arts and music mini-
fest from noon-5 p.m., pervisors meeting, 9
Classifieds 4,5B Lifestyles 7A South Lafayette Street, a.m., Lowndes County
Comics 7,8B Obituaries 4A downtown Starkville. Visit Steve Marsh, of Nashville, is visiting his Courthouse, facebook.
Crossword 5B Opinions 6A facebook.com/starkville- daughter Melissa Shoemake, of Columbus, on com/LowndesCounty-
141st Year, No. 211 Dear Abby 3B Sports 1B sundayfunday/. vacation. They like spending time outdoors. Mississippi/

DISPATCH CUSTOMER SERVICE 328-2424 | NEWSROOM 328-2471

2A SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2020 The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com

ASK RUFUS

A Machine Gun’s Tale

S
ome- bank robbery informed that the banks on the bank’s mezzanine
times an spread nation- bonds were in Memphis, pointed down aimed at
unusual wide. accepted the statement, the front entrance. The
inanimate but tore into several bank hired World War
object can TUPELO. personal lock boxes and I veteran, John Perry,
tell a most Miss., Nov. 29. obtained an undetermined to stand guard and man
interesting (AP) amount of bonds from the the gun. Later the gun
story. So, it is Tupelo was box of L. T. Wesson. was returned to Kaye,
with a World recovering After the robbery had but Perry remained as a
War I Ger- today from been completed the bank bank guard armed with
man machine the shock of employees were herded a shotgun. I’ve seen no
gun soon to machine guns into the main vault and Courtesy photo/Mississippi Armed Forces Museum record of any attempted
be included pointed at the gang escaped out the Capt. Sam Kaye, of Rickenbacker’s famed “Hat in the robbery.
Rufus Ward Ring” Squadron of World War I, removed this machine
as part of an everyone who Birmingham, Ala., road Thanks to Carolyn
exhibit at the gun from a German plane he shot down over France in
entered the in an automobile bearing 1918. But that’s only the beginning of the gun’s story. Kaye for her assistance
Mississippi Armed Forc- Citizens State Bank here a Tennessee license plate. with this column. She
es Museum honoring yesterday while four un- S. P. Turman, a retreated into the vault. Kaye Sr. had been one of also remembers her late
Columbus native Capt. masked gunners held up customer, happened to the original investors in husband telling this story
Samuel Kaye’s World War the bank and robbed it of enter the bank during ‘the So, what does all that the bank in 1902 and the about his uncle.
I exploits. about $17,000 in money, holdup. He kidded a man have to do with Sam bank officers contacted That World War I
Capt. Kaye served in and an amount of bonds standing at the door with Kaye’s machine gun? his son Capt. Sam Kaye machine gun is at the
the Army Air Service taken from a safety deposit a machine gun, but soon That news sent shock for help. Mississippi Armed
during World War I as a box. discovered the man was waves and created panic Capt. Kaye’s name- Forces Museum where
member of Eddie Rick- The bandits cursed not in a kidding mood. So in banks across North sake and nephew, the it is being included in an
enbacker’s famed 94th and swore as they forced Turman meekly entered Mississippi. No one late Columbus architect exhibit honoring Cap.
“Hat in the Ring” Aero bank employees to lie with the bank vault under knew where the machine Sam Kaye, told me the Kaye. The museum is
Squadron. While a book customers flat on the floor orders. gun-toting bandits might rest of the story as his located at Camp Shelby,
could be written about and then made Homer Miss Della Fair Reese pop up next. In Colum- father had told him. Capt. near Hattiesburg and is
Kaye’s exploits, this Edgeworth, a teller in the reported that one of the bus, the Merchants and Kaye was asked to loan free and open to the pub-
story begins with one bank, go into the vault men stuck a machine gun lic 9 am.-4 p.m. Tuesday
Farmer’s Bank on Market his German machine gun
incident in 1918. When and drop the money into through Saturday.
to her back and threatened Street, now Trustmark to the bank to protect it
Kaye returned home, he a sack. Rufus Ward is a local
to shoot her if she raised on Main, decided to take from machine gun-carry-
brought a souvenir with
One of the robbers, any disturbance. She also protective action. Samuel ing robbers. It was placed historian.
him. A clipping I found
from the June 15, 1919,
Commercial Dispatch
told the story:

“He (Kaye) was in

twelve mortal combats,
brought down and received
credit for four German
Fokkers and sent three
more to earth, for which
he did not receive credit,
the rapidly advancing
American lines preventing
verification of his claims.
Capt. Kaye stated that
work was combat work
on the front lines, and he
was frequently in the air
six hours a day, patrolling,
skirmishing, fighting and
keeping the German ma-
chines from over our lines.
While in twelve combats
in which … his adversary
went down he was never
sent down but once and
this was when an air
shell shot away one of his
propeller blades, forcing a
landing.
Capt. Kaye brought
back as a souvenir of one
fight the machine gun
mounted in the Fokker
machine of his adversary.
It was a new air craft and
a new gun of the Spandau
model, manufactured in
1918, numbered 1457,
firing 650 shots a minute,
air cooled, and up-to-date.
(It was a deadly aircraft
machine gun which was
mounted in front of the
pilot and synchronized to
fire through the blades of
the spinning propeller.)
He wounded this man and
sent him to earth at an
altitude of 2,000 feet, near
Brieulles, France. His
opponents put three bullet
holes through the shell of
his ship in the fight.
Capt. Kaye recovered
the Fokker machine gun
the next day, blood-stained
and the flyer had been bur-
ied or sent to a hospital.
The machine gun is now
on display at Weaver &
Harrington’s.”

However, that was

not the machine gun’s
last service. On Nov. 29,
1932, a bank robbery
occurred in Tupelo. That
was the time of the fa-
mous bank robbers such
as “Baby Face” Nelson,
John Dillinger, “Pretty
Boy” Floyd and “Machine
Gun” Kelly. Though, it
was first believed that
“Pretty Boy” Floyd had
pulled off the Tupelo
robbery, it turned out
to have been “Machine
Gun” Kelly.
Kelly’s real name was
George Barnes. Interest-
ingly, Kelly had attended
Miss. A&M, now Mis-
sissippi State University,
from 1917-1918. In his
first semester, alone,
he had accumulated 31
demerits. He dropped out
during his second semes-
ter and then took up bank
robbery.
Under the headline,
“MACHINE GUN
BANDITS TERRORIZE
CITIZENS AND ROB
TUPELO BANK” an AP
account of the Tupelo
 The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2020 3A

Thanksgiving
Continued from Page 1A
So, when Ellis met
with Barry’s group and
city officials to discuss
this year’s Thanksgiving
meal service, she was
dismayed to learn the
school could not provide
the necessary facilities
because of COVID-19
restrictions. Even as the
meeting was in progress,
she was on the phone
with a childhood friend,
Johnny Hampton, who
was working his shift at
Steel Dynamics, to fill
him in on the proceed-
ings.
“She told me it didn’t
look like they were go-
ing to be able to do the
food plates,” Hampton
said. “As soon as I got off
work, I stopped by Sher-
ry’s house. I told her, ‘We
know a lot of people who
will help. Let’s do this there every day. After he media, to collect food arranged for 30 people are short on turkeys, he’ll
ourselves.’” exhausted his vacation and money needed to to deliver the meals be- purchase leg quarters to
Hampton’s reaction days, he would leave a 12- provide as many meals as tween 9 a.m. and noon on serve as the entree.
was no surprise to Ellis. hour work shift and go possible. Thanksgiving Day. “One way or another,
Hampton has long de- straight to the cookers, “We hope to deliv- “Because of we’re going to do this,”
veloped a reputation as a squeezing in a couple of er 300, 400, maybe 500 COVID-19, we’re not Hampton said. “It might
“Johnny on the spot” in hours of sleep where he meals, even if it means really looking for volun- be turkey. It might be
the community. could before returning going into my own teers,” Hampton said. chicken, but we’re going
In February 2019, for another work shift. pocket,” Hampton said. “We’ll just have a few to make sure as many
when a devastating tor- “We were there be- “Whatever it takes.” people doing the cook- people as possible have a
nado ripped through the fore the Red Cross got As of Friday, the pair ing and preparing every- Thanksgiving meal.”
neighborhood where here and still here after have collected 11 tur- thing so we’re not expos- Anyone wishing to do-
Hampton grew up, he the Red Cross left,” said keys, dozens of cans of ing each other to a large nate should call Ellis at
sprang into action, set- Hampton, an Army veter- corn, green beans, flour, group of people.” 706-617-5351 or Hamp-
ting up shop at a vacant an who moved back to his potatoes, bottled water What Ellis and Hamp- ton at 662-364-0501.
lot on Seventh Avenue hometown in 1993. — everything needed ton do need are dona- “The more donations
and feeding the shell- While Barry has re- to provide a traditional tions. we get, the more people
shocked people of the placed her usual meal Thanksgiving meal. “People can donate we can serve,” Ellis said.
community. delivery efforts with a Hampton will cook money, which we will use “We may not be able to
It wasn’t a one-time frozen turkey drive, Ellis the turkeys using his to buy whatever we need, deliver 1,700 meals like
feed, either. With the and Hampton hope to still own equipment. A small or if they call us, we can Ms. Barry did last year,
help of friends and his deliver a few hundred group of friends will help tell them what things we but we’ll serve as many
fraternity brothers from meals on Thanksgiving out with preparing the are short on,” Ellis said. as we possibly can. And
Rust College, Hampton Day. They are spreading side dishes and trim- “Right now, we need ev- if we have anything left
fed people every day for the word among friends, mings. Good Deeds, a erything.” over, we may try to do
19 days. Hampton was mostly through social local civic group, has Hampton said if they this again at Christmas.”

Over 9,000 Miss. students quarantined as virus spreads

BY LEAH WILLINGHAM
The Associated Press/Report for America
JACKSON — As cases of corona-
virus rise in Mississippi, health of-
ficials are warning that schools and
extracurricular activities could turn
into hot spots.
Several high school sports teams
have had to cancel or postpone
games due to infections in recent
weeks. More than 9,000 students
and almost 800 teachers were quar-
antined for coronavirus exposure
in Mississippi last week, according
to the state Department of Health.
Since the start of the school year,
about 4,500 students have tested
positive for the virus.
“The schools have become one of
the bigger issues this week,” State
Epidemiologist Dr. Paul Byers said
during an online conversation Fri-
day hosted by the Mississippi State
Medical Association. “When we look
at what’s going on in the schools,
now is not the time to change our
course. We need to continue to do The following veteran profiles were
those things that we did early on to accidentally omitted from the special section.
make sure that we prevent transmis-
sion in those settings.” We apologize for the error.
While students and staff are
generally safe during learning Todd Barnette
time in classrooms, infections are
occurring during other hours, like U.S. Army National Guard
when people are participating in af-
ter school activities, gathering for
lunch or socializing in school hall-
ways, Byers said.

Caledonia
Continued from Page 1A
the “Cardinals” or the
“Commodores.”
The nine-member
committee included the
three campus principals,
four high school students
and two members of the
community, all of whom
decided to keep the cardi-
nal and white colors and
for the logo to still con-
tain a “Caledonia C” and
swords pointed up, Elliott
said.
“The students felt very
strongly about keeping
the swords up, keeping
the colors,” Elliott said.
“They really kind of want-
ed a mascot that started
with a ‘C.’”
The board voted in July
to do away with Confeder-
ates as the mascot follow-
ing the state Legislature
voting to remove Confed-
erate imagery from the
state flag. The schools’
athletic teams had been
called the Confederates
since the 1950s.
Superintendent Sam
Allison said he thinks
the change, though diffi-
cult for some people, was
something that would
help the district welcome
and work with all its stu-
dents.
“We stand strong for
what we want to do with
kids, but we never want
to do anything to alienate
ourself from any group
that walks through our
door,” Allison told the
board after Elliott’s pre-
sentation. “That’s one
thing that makes change
hard. I may be very strong
in a belief of anything,
but I want to let my ac-
tions show people that I
respect them. … I know
that Mr. Elliott and Ms.
(Karen) Pittman (princi-
pal of Caledonia Middle
School), all our principals
feel that same way. We
want to serve every kid
in our county so they can
reach our greatest poten-
tial. … We never want to
do anything (that) gets in
the way of relationships
with the people that can
help our kids.”
The board didn’t vote
to approve the mascot
because board attorney
Jeff Smith said it wasn’t
She also moved for Alli-
son to form another com-
mittee to look at the other
school campuses, New
Hope and West Lowndes
— whose mascots are the
Trojans and the Panthers,
respectively — to ensure
their mascots are not also
offensive or inappropriate
to some. The board ap-
proved her motion unani-
mously.
COVID-19 update
Allison also updated
the board on the district’s
COVID-19 numbers. He
said there had been 20
cases among students
and staff that week as
of the beginning of the
meeting at 12:30 p.m. He
added the district had
seen 26 cases in each
of the previous weeks,
which had initially been
incorrectly reported to
Mississippi Department
of Health as 27 cases the
week of Oct. 26-30 and 28
the week of Nov. 2-6.
Throughout the year,
he said, the district has
had seven or eight out-
breaks — defined by
MSDH as three or more
cases in one group — in-
cluding two on sports
teams and one on a bus.
LCSD offers students
the option between at-
tending school in person
and learning online. Al-
lison told the board he
wants to keep in person
learning an option for stu-
dents for as long as possi-
ble.
“The last thing we
want to do is shut our
schools down,” he said.
He said teachers gave
students a benchmark
test at the beginning of
the school year to see
whether they were behind
after spending March to
May doing online learn-
ing only.
“We just gave them
last year’s end-of-the-year
test,” he said. “We were
just curious as to where
they were. They were
behind, much further be-
hind than I thought they
were going to be, across
the district. … There’s so
much in that classroom
that we can’t replace with
virtual.”
He said most class-
rooms have plexiglass be-
tween students and that
students and staff are re-
quired to wear masks and
wash their hands or use
hand sanitizer regularly.
He added administrators
have also been in contact
with MSDH for advice.
“Our numbers may
do something next week Corporal Todd Barnette, 39, of
and I may call you all and Starkville, served in the Army National
say, ‘I think we need to do Guard for 6 years, including a tour in
this,’ but right now, we’re Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom.
just going to take it day by
He joined to get assistance with col-
day and make decisions lege education and to serve his coun-
that we feel are best,” he
try. Barnette will never forget the bond
said.
he shares with all his brothers as well
Board member Brian
Clark said he appreciates
as all the life lessons that stayed with
everything staff and ad- him throughout the years.
ministrators are doing to
keep the students healthy
and in school.
Perry W. McGlynn
“Twenty is 20 more
U.S. Air Force
than we would want,”
he said. “But when you
put it in perspective, we
have over 5,000 students.
Some small businesses
have probably had close
to 20. I think it’s a testa-
ment to how good you
and your staff are trying
to manage.”
Chief Master Sergeant Perry Mc-
Glynn, 93 (deceased), of Columbus,
served in the U.S. Air Force from 1945
through 1971 during World War 2
as well as Korea and was part of an
advisory committee in Vietnam. He
fought on land in Okinawa and Korea
and after returning home, he began
working in the physiological field of
training pilots in their environment.
McGlynn authorized many manuals of
pilot training instructions, several of
which are still in use today. The Chief
Master Sergeant joined as a young
boy of 17 with an 8th grade education
SOLUNAR TABLE
The solunar period indicates to get away from the coal mines in
peak-feeding times for fish and game.
Sun. Mon. Pennsylvania and to get a real educa-
Major 12:52a 1:48a
Minor 8:22a 9:31a tion — he left with a masters degree
Major 1:20p 2:19p
Minor 7:12p — in education. He taught in school for
Courtesy of Mississippi Department

a requirement in order
to adopt the new mascot.
However, no board mem-
bers objected, and several
said they approved.
“I think it’s a good
move,” said board Vice
President Jane Kilgore,
who represents Caledonia
on the board.
The Dispatch
The Commercial Dispatch (USPS 142-320)
Published daily except Saturday.
Entered at the post office at Columbus, Mississippi.
Periodicals postage paid at Columbus, MS
POSTMASTER, Send address changes to:
The Commercial Dispatch, P.O. Box 511, Columbus, MS 39703
Published by Commercial Dispatch Publishing Company Inc.,
516 Main St., Columbus, MS 39703
of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks
one year and then got his doctorate to
work as the educational director at the
Stennis Naval Air Station in Meridian.
It was McGlynn’s honor and privilege
Answers to common questions: to lay down his life for his country. He
saw things that he had never spoken
Phone: 662-328-2424
of again, but his country is free, his
Website: cdispatch.com/help family is safe and that is enough.
Report a news tip: news@cdispatch.com
4A SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2020
Biden faces tough choice of whether to back virus lockdowns
‘Lockdowns can have consequences
that diminish the value of such an approach’
Dr. Amesh Adalja, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins
BY ALEX ANDR A JAFFE
The Associated Press
WASHINGTON — Joe
Biden faces a decision unlike
any other incoming president:
whether to back a short-term
national lockdown to finally ar-
rest a raging pandemic.
For now, it’s a question the
president-elect would prefer
Do masks with antiviral coating offer more protection?
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Do masks with antiviral coating
offer more protection?
It’s an intriguing idea, but there
haven’t been enough rigorous inde-
pendent studies to establish wheth-
er antiviral masks are better at pro-
tecting wearers or preventing the
spread of the virus.
Their specifics vary, but many
antiviral masks are supposed to be
made or coated with materials that
have extra virus-fighting proper-
ties, such as copper.
COMMERCIAL DISPATCH
OBITUARY POLICY
Obituaries with basic informa-
tion including visitation and
service times, are provided free
of charge. Extended obituaries
with a photograph, detailed
biographical information and
other details families may wish
to include, are available for a
fee. Obituaries must be sub-
mitted through funeral homes
unless the deceased’s body
has been donated to science. If
the deceased’s body was donat-
ed to science, the family must
provide official proof of death.
Please submit all obituaries on
the form provided by The Com-
mercial Dispatch. Free notices
must be submitted to the news-
paper no later than 3 p.m. the
day prior for publication Tuesday
through Friday; no later than 4
p.m. Saturday for the Sunday
edition; and no later than 7:30
a.m. for the Monday edition.
Incomplete notices must be
received no later than 7:30 a.m.
for the Monday through Friday
editions. Paid notices must be
finalized by 3 p.m. for inclusion
the next day Monday through
Thursday; and on Friday by 3
p.m. for Sunday and Monday
publication. For more informa-
tion, call 662-328-2471.
Jason Rhodes
LAMAR COUNTY,
Ala. — Jason Rhodes
died Nov. 13, 2020, at his
residence.
Arrangements are
incomplete and will be
announced by Lowndes
Funeral Home of Colum-
bus.
Daryel Lavender
COLUMBUS —
Daryel Lavender, 48,
died Nov. 12, 2020, at
Baptist Memorial Hospi-
tal-Golden Triangle.
Arrangements are
incomplete and will be
announced by Carter’s
Funeral Services of
Columbus.
Sandra Otts
SULLIGENT, Ala.
— Sandra Gail Otts, 70,
died Nov. 12, 2020, at
her residence.
Funeral services
will be at 2 p.m. today,
at Otts Funeral Home
Chapel, with Mitch
Nethery officiating.
Burial will follow in
Pleasant Ridge Ceme-
tery. Visitation is one
hour prior to services
at the funeral home.
Otts Funeral Home of
Sulligent is in charge of
arrangements.
Mrs. Otts was born
Oct. 28, 1950, in Lamar
County, Alabama, to
the late Pauly Gosa and
Edna Austin. She attend-
ed Sulligent High School
and was employed with
Thumbprint.
In addition to her par-
ents, she was preceded
The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com
Biden announced this week.
One member, Dr. Michael Os-
Donald Trump is and has been
blunt about the challenges that
Hopkins Center for Health Se-
curity who added that such a
terholm, suggested a four- to
six-week lockdown with finan-
lie ahead for the country, warn-
ing of a “dark winter” as cases
move could make the situation
worse if people don’t comply
cial aid for Americans whose spike. with restrictions. “Lockdowns
Center for Health Security livelihoods would be affected. But talk of lockdowns are can have consequences that
to avoid. In the week since he He later walked back his re- especially sensitive. For one, diminish the value of such an
marks and was rebutted by two they’re nearly impossible for a approach.”
defeated President Donald
other members of the panel president to enact on his own, During his first public ap-
Trump, Biden has devoted
who said a widespread lock- requiring bipartisan support pearance since losing the elec-
most of his public remarks to down shouldn’t be under con- from state and local officials. tion, Trump noted on Friday
encouraging Americans to sideration. But more broadly, they’re a that he wouldn’t support a lock-
wear a mask and view the coro- That’s a sign of the tough political flashpoint that could down. The president, who has
navirus as a threat that has no dynamic Biden will face when undermine Biden’s efforts to yet to publicly acknowledge
regard for political ideology. he is inaugurated in January. unify a deeply divided country. Biden’s victory, would likely
But the debate has been He campaigned as a more re- “It would create a back- reinforce that message to his
livelier among members of the sponsible steward of America’s lash,” said Dr. Amesh Adalja, loyal supporters once he’s left
coronavirus advisory board public health than President a senior scholar at the Johns office.
Websites for several antiviral mask can cost up to $10; disposable
masks do not provide detailed infor- surgical masks and N-95 masks sell
mation about how researchers test- at large retailers for between 35
ed their safety or effectiveness, said cents and $3 per mask.
Hyo-Jick Choi, a materials science Choi said a simpler way to boost
expert at the University of Alberta. the effectiveness of the masks you’re
But it usually takes years to de- already using is to ensure you’re
sign and test new mask technology, putting them on, wearing them and
said Choi, who is part of a group that taking them off correctly.
has been developing a different type
of antiviral mask since before the
pandemic.
And no mask can fully protect
wearers, “but almost any mask can
help to protect others around the
Mary Katherine Norris
Masks marketed as being “an- wearers,” said Jiaxing Huang, a pro- Mary Katherine “KK” Norris died Oct. 23,
tiviral” often cost more than N-95 fessor of materials science and engi- 2020, in Starkville, Mississippi. She was born
and surgical masks. A single coated neering at Northwestern University. May 12, 1970, in Columbus, Mississippi, to Edwin
Riley Norris and Linda Fleming Norris.
After graduating from Caldwell High School
in Columbus in 1988, KK relocated to the Los
Angeles area where she built a career in wardrobe
AREA OBITUARIES and set design in the film and entertainment
industry. One of her first jobs in California was
in death by her siblings, Sulligent First Baptist He is survived by his as a stylist for actress Parker Posey on the movie
Brenda Parker, Rita Church. children, Mike Seripin
set of “Party Girl.” As KK’s expertise in fashion
Griffin, Becky Burch, In addition to his and Cathy Harbison; and costuming expanded, she specialized in fine
Kenneth Gosa and Steve parents, he was preced- sister, Roseann Sher- vintage apparel and accessories.
Gosa. ed in death by his wife, man; and three grand- After eventually returning to Columbus where
She is survived by Dorothy Seripin. children. her parents lived, KK established The Attic
her husband, Jerry Otts; Vintage Clothing shop and was a proud member
children, Tina Graham of the Vintage Fashion Guild. In addition to
and Gina Allred; six serving a multi-state clientele, she shared her
grandchildren; and creative expertise with events ranging from local
three great-grandchil- community theater productions to independent
dren. and major studio films, including “The Help.”
The Attic was recognized in USA Today and
Frank Seripin on ABC News in 2012 as a top 10 Great Vintage
SULLIGENT, Ala. Store in the country.
— Frank R. Seripin, 86, KK is lovingly remembered by her family and
died Nov. 12, 2020, at many friends for her ready smile, vitality and
North Mississippi Medi- spirit, her knowledge and enjoyment of music
cal Center of Tupelo. and gardening and, in recent years, her delight
in her pet backyard chickens.
Funeral services
are at 3 p.m. today, at She is preceded in death by her father, Edwin
Sulligent First Baptist Norris; her sister, Elizabeth Lee Norris; and her
Church, with Jeff Chaf- grandparents, Powell and Mary Fleming, and
fin officiating. Burial Camden and Lena Norris.
will follow in the Gilmer She is survived by her beloved mother, Linda
Norris; one brother, Riley Norris; and her uncles,
Addition of Sulligent
aunts and cousins.
City Cemetery. Visita-
tion is two hours prior to
services at the church.
Mr. Seripin was born
Aug. 12, 1934, in Detroit,
Michigan, to the late Sign the online guest book at
Rupert Seripin and Oleta www.memorialgunterpeel.com
Maurusaitis. He was a College Street • Columbus, MS
graduate of Georgetown
J.T. Moore
High School and was
employed with Hyster.
He was a member of
On November 6, 2020, J.T.
Moore passed away in San
Diego, California at the age of
93. Son of Ila and Dave Moore,
J.T. was born in Caledonia,
Mississippi on October 2,
1927. He grew up enjoying the
outdoors and life on the farm.
He was voted Caledonia High
School class favorite in 1945 and
continued to be a beloved community member for
another 75 years. At the age of 17, J.T. was drafted
into the Army at the end of WWII. He married
the love of his life, Sarah Hobbs, in May 1952,
joined the Air Force, and moved to California. He
returned to Mississippi with Sarah and their four
daughters and retired in 1969 as Chief Master
Sergeant from the Columbus Air Force Base.
His 20 year military career included tours in
Vietnam, Guam, and Thailand.
After retiring from the Air Force, J.T.
partnered with good friends, Rudy and W.V.
West, in developing West Realty and later served
as president of the Mississippi Board of Realtors.
Upon retiring from West Realty, he went on
to earn a master senior appraiser designation
and launched another successful business
venture. In 1997 retirement stuck as he settled
in his waterfront home on the Tombigbee River
in Aberdeen, Mississippi, where he enjoyed
boating, fishing, and woodworking, and was an
active member of Saint Mark United Methodist
Church. In 2016, J.T. and Sarah moved to San
Diego, California to be closer to family and he
learned to love the year round summer weather.
J.T. adored his beautiful wife Sarah and
treasured his daughters Lucy, Lisa, Janice
and Sarah Ann, their husbands, and his nine
grandchildren. He loved Mississippi and asked
that his remains be returned to Caledonia. Due
to COVID 19, J.T.’s memorial will be postponed
until restrictions on social gathering have been
lifted. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made
to Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.
Paid Obituary
 The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2020 5A

Private schools
Continued from Page 1A
“I do hope schools will
be forthcoming and share
it,” Dobbs said at an Aug.
19 press conference. “Be-
cause every school is go-
ing to have coronavirus.
It’s like everybody gets
the flu sometimes.”
Arguing private
schools are just like other
private businesses, how-
ever, some local school of-
ficials told The Dispatch
they do not have to com-
ply with the state order.
Instead, they report to
the Midsouth Association
of Independent Schools
(MAIS), a group repre-
senting private schools
in Mississippi, Arkansas,
Louisiana and Tennessee.
Among at least 13 pri-
vate schools in the area,
only five are listed on
MSDH’s website, and
only three — Starkville
Christian School, Annun-
ciation Catholic School
in Columbus and Mag-
nolia Christian School in
Macon — have reported
their numbers consistent-
ly. The three schools have
had a total of four cases
since the semester start-
ed, and none reported
new cases this week.
Officials at three of
the seven private schools
not listed as reporting to
MSDH told The Dispatch
they report to MAIS. The
organization, however,
is not sharing school-by-
school data with MSDH,
department spokesper-
son Liz Sharlot said. The
organization reports total
numbers of positive cas-
es among all its member
schools weekly to the de-
partment, according to
a Wednesday statement
from MAIS.
Mississippi law deems
violations of MSDH orders
regarding “life-threaten-
ing communicable diseas-
es” a felony punishable by
a fine of up to $5,000 and/
or imprisonment of up to
five years, Sharlot told
The Dispatch on Tuesday.
However, Sharlot said
the department will not
enforce the order in hopes
to “encourage a partner-
ship” with the schools.
Additionally, no schools
have been fined for not re-
porting, she said.
“We continue to work
with the schools as a part-
nership and
encourage
direct re-
porting to
( M S D H ), ”
Sharlot said
in an email.
“There is
a fine, but Sharlot
again, we
want to encourage a part-
nership.”
There is also inconsis-
tent reporting from some
public school districts.
None of the schools in
Noxubee County School
District is listed as re-
porting to MSDH. As of
Friday, school districts in
the four-county area have
seen at least 268 positive
cases among students and
staff since school started,
according to numbers
the districts reported to
MSDH or The Dispatch.
Independence vs.
transparency
Some private school
officials not reporting to
MSDH argue the state
order does not apply to
them in the first place.
According to the MAIS
statement, the organi-
zation does not consider
private schools “agents of
the state” and questions
the “legitimacy and effi-
cacy” of the reporting re-
quirements.
“Unlike state schools,
independent schools are
not agents of the state,”
the statement reads.
“They are small business-
es that happen to be in the
business of teaching chil-
dren. … No other Missis-
sippi small businesses
are required to report
hearsay evidence of ‘posi-
tive cases’ to MSDH on a
weekly basis.”
MAIS Executive Di-
rector A. Shane Blanton
did not respond to The
Dispatch’s email or calls
for comment by press
time.
Jeremy Nicholas, head
of school at Starkville
Academy, said his staff re-
ports weekly numbers to
MAIS and alerts parents
when students test posi-
tive or have come in close
contact with positive indi-
viduals. The school has
668 students and 74 staff
members, and has seen
16 positive cases since
school started Aug. 10
with most students learn-
ing in person.
“We are not a state
school. In a sense, we are
a business,”
Nicholas
said. “Are
there other
small busi-
nesses …
reporting to
the health
department Nicholas
how many
positive cases (they) have
every week? Probably
not.”
Additionally, Nicholas
said the school may not
have the most accurate
numbers because it relies
on a self-reporting system
and cannot force parents
to disclose health-related
information.
“As long as we are re-
porting to our home asso-
ciation, that association
is reporting to the state
health department and
we are reporting to our
patrons, then we are satis-
fying every bit of commu-
nication that we believe is
necessary,” he said.
Rachel Thomas, coun-
selor at Columbus Chris-
tian Academy, said the
school has 230 students
— all learning in person
— and 35 staff members.
The school has had two
f a c u lt y numbers, House said she people know that we are
members thinks it’s the right thing taking all the measures
and one to do. we can to navigate the
student test “I personally think, for circumstances as best as
positive everybody to stay healthy we can.”
since school within our Randy Witbeck, princi-
began Aug. school en- pal of Starkville Christian
10. The v ironment School (non-MAIS mem-
school re- Thomas and the en- ber), agreed. There have
ports via MAIS to MSDH, tire commu- been two students test
she said, so there’s no du-
nity, that it’s positive, he said.
plicated effort.
important to “We are totally inde-
“We just do it all as
have the cor- pendent, but when re-
one association,” Thomas House
said. “ … I would assume rect num- quests are made of us …
it’s more efficient that bers. … It really can drive that make sense or seem
way.” individual decisions,” she to help those who are
Bobby Eiland, head- said. “... If parents are try- trying to work (in) the
master of Hebron Chris- ing to make a decision on medical field, we don’t
tian School in Pheba — what school they want to see any reason why not to
also an MAIS member send their child to, I just go ahead and comply with
school — said the school think it’s important that that,” he said.
has had four students and
one staff member test
positive since students
returned to school in per-
son Aug. 6. He said he
supports MAIS’s position
on the reporting require-
ments but declined to
elaborate.
However, private
school officials who com-
ply with the state order
argue such public reports
amid the pandemic are
important.
Magnolia Christian
School Principal Gabri-
el Knepp said his school
reports the data weekly
in respect for the state
authority. Since school
started Aug. 26, there’s
only been one positive
case on the small campus
of 36 students and four
staff members, he said.
Joni House, principal
of Annunciation Catholic
School, said her school —
although an MAIS mem-
ber school — reports the
data directly to the Cath-
olic Diocese of Jackson,
which then shares the
data with MSDH. Since
school began in person
Aug. 24, there’s only been
one positive case among
students and staff, she Tell your child a bedtime story.
said.
Even if she’s not re-
quired to report the

CARES Act
Continued from Page 1A
had to shoulder additional costs buying
personal protective equipment (PPE),
provide training and afford overtime pay
to first responders, he said.
“This is great news for our city,” Smith
said in a Friday statement. “We made ap-
plication early for these funds and our
submission was approved 100 (percent).
We have had ongoing expenses related
to the COVID pandemic, and this is a
great help to Columbus.”
Police Chief Fred Shelton said his
department purchased air filtering ma-
chines for its officers, in addition to pay-
ing for PPE and other COVID-related
expenses.
“We bought them equipment to help
our officers breathe cleaner air,” Shelton
said. “We had officers that had tested
positive for COVID and had to be quar-
antined, so we (also) had to call extra of-
ficers in to come to work in their place.”
The additional cost put a strain on
the budgeted expenses, he said, but he’s
glad to see the costs reimbursed.
“If there (does) come a need where we
have to serve the public more, we’ll have
some more money to get more equipment
to continue to do what we do,” he said.
There’s no set date on when Smith
and council members will
discuss the distribution
of the money, Dillon told
The Dispatch. The matter
is not placed on the city
council meeting agenda
for Nov. 17 so far.
Ward 2 Councilman Mickens
Joseph Mickens said the
money is “wonderful”
news to the city. Moving
forward, he said, he would
like to save the money and
build up the city’s reserve
funds.
“Don’t touch it,” he said.
“We need to put it back Beard
into reserves and keep it
there, because we don’t know what this
pandemic is going to cause.”
Ward 4 Councilman Pierre Beard said
he appreciates Mickens’ point, but the
funds can also be used for street paving,
boom truck purchases or solving the
city’s flood problems.
“Half a million dollars stretch a long
way,” Beard said. “I would strongly sug-
gest putting it into the infrastructure of
the city.”
Opinion
6A SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2020
PETER BIRNEY IMES Editor/Publisher
BIRNEY IMES III Editor/Publisher 1998-2018
BIRNEY IMES JR. Editor/Publisher 1947-2003

Dispatch
The
BIRNEY IMES SR. Editor/Publisher 1922-1947

ZACK PLAIR, Managing Editor

BETH PROFFITT Advertising Director
MICHAEL FLOYD Circulation/Production Manager
MARY ANN HARDY Controller

PARTIAL TO HOME
Taking good care
For his ser-
vice to his coun-
try in Vietnam,
he was spit
upon and called
a “baby killer.”
For his devotion
to his Southern
wife, he was
reviled by his
mother-in-law
as a “damn Yan-
kee.” As reward Birney Imes
for his military
service, he
was denied medical care afforded most
veterans. And now, at 78, he has a rare
medical condition that prevents him
from driving even a riding lawn mower.
If Sam Medore needed reason to be
a bitter man, he would not have to look
far. And yet …
Last week Cheryl Miller Brown, a
high-school classmate, called to say her
across-the-street neighbor wanted to
save a colony of bees living in a struc-
ture he was about to demolish.
I am not in the bee removal business,
but after a phone conversation with
Cheryl’s neighbor, I agreed to take a
look.
This was not the first time a colony
of apis mellifera, or honeybees, had
facilitated an interesting introduction.
Sam Medore grew up in Dover, New
Jersey, the son of an Italian father, who
arrived in America on a banana boat,
and a native New Yorker.
As were many boys of his generation,
the teenage Medore was beguiled by a
Charles Atlas ad in the back of “Boy’s
Life” magazine. He became a body-
builder.
Medore attended Kentucky Wesley-
an on a baseball scholarship. While an
undergraduate, he was named Mr. Ken-
tucky in a bodybuilding competition
and elected president of his fraternity,
Sigma Phi Epsilon.
Upon graduation, with a tour of duty
in Vietnam a certainty, Medore enlisted
in the Marine Corps and headed to
Quantico, Virginia, for Officer Candi-
date School.
Sam Medore holds two snapshots from his younger days when he competed in
bodybuilding contests. Medore, 78, still lifts weights and walks six or seven miles a
day, either on the streets of his Old Aberdeen Road neighborhood or a treadmill.
He shipped out to Vietnam in 1965
where among his assignments was the
unenviable task of inventorying bodies
of American servicemen before they
were shipped home.
“Mainly, I was scared as hell,” he
says of his Vietnam experience. “No-
body wanted to be in Vietnam.”
Back stateside at Quantico, Medore
was offered the rank of major if he
would re-enlist. He refused and for the
final three months of his tour was given
grunt jobs.
It was during this period he met Jan
Egger, a fourth-grade teacher at an
on-base school. Egger was teaching a
unit on Japan and Medore, a second-de-
gree black belt in karate, was part of a
delegation that visited her class.
Despite the vehement objections of
his future mother-in-law, who writhed
at the thought of her daughter marrying
a northerner, Jan and Sam had a huge
wedding at First Baptist Church.
Birney Imes/Special to The Dispatch
The story with his father-in-law was
different, however. Dayton Egger was
the only survivor in his unit in the June
6, 1944, D-Day Invasion at Normandy
and had come home with a severed
spinal cord, confined to a wheel chair
for life.
During Christmas break and in the
summer when Dayton’s caregivers were
on vacation, Sam took care of his father-
in-law.
“He loved me,” Sam said of his
father-in-law.
Dayton Egger was a beloved local
figure. He traded in precious stones,
and many a bride of that era wore an
engagement ring, the product of his
jeweler’s bench. Every weekday, using
hand controls, he drove a yellow Check-
er Cab, the same vehicle used by New
York City cab drivers, to the downtown
post office where he would wait until
someone, who knew him came along
and collected his mail for him.
The Medores spent their workin life
as school teachers in Virginia. They
have one child, Andy, an IT specialist in
Oxford.
Upon retirement in 2000, Sam and
Jan moved to Columbus. By then his
mother-in-law had died, and Sam would
assume the role of Dayton’s primary
caregiver until he died in 2004. Jan was
struggling with a host of health prob-
lems including congestive heart failure
and diabetes and would soon become
an invalid. She would let no one care for
her but Sam, who did so until her death
in 2016.
Even so, the ever-tireless Medore
found time to help his neighbors and for
15 years repaired wheelchairs for Bap-
tist Memorial Hospital as a volunteer
“He’s a great neighbor,” says Cheryl,
“not just for me, but for anyone who
needs help.”
Glenn Lautzenhiser, a longtime
friend, concurs. “You know there’s the
saying, ‘He’d give you the shirt off his
back.’ Sam is one of those people,” said
Lautzenhiser.
Exercise and physical health has
been a constant in Medore’s life, a sanc-
tuary of sorts. Most mornings he rises
at 6 and walks six or seven miles. His
does his evening workouts in a living
room chock-a-block with weights and
exercise equipment.
“That has been my outlet,” he says.
“Some people drink or smoke. I just
exercise.”
And so it was on the morning of
Veterans Day, I sat with Medore on the
side porch of the spacious house on
Old Aberdeen Road that once belonged
to his in-laws, then his wife and her
brother, all of whom have died. “It’s just
me,” he says.
A misting rain was falling on a yard
blanketed with brown leaves. About 10
yards in front of us a small circle of rose
bushes meeting at a wrought-iron arch.
A modest wooden sign hangs from the
arch: “Jan’s Garden.”
“I built that as a memorial for Jan
after she died,” he said.
Birney Imes (birney@cdispatch.com)
is the former publisher of The Dispatch.

OUR VIEW THE NATION

Roses and thorns There is no return to normalcy

A rose to Angela Hu of Tupelo,
who has purchased the 1.9 acre
property on Highway 45 near the
Highway 82 interchange, a building
previously occupied by Ryan’s Buf-
fet. The building, located in a prime
location along the Highway 45 retail corridor, has
been vacant since the spring of 2018, when the
owners of the property put it up for sale. Although
Hu does own a Chinese-style restaurant in Colum-
bus (Hibachi Buffet) and a seafood restaurant in
Tupelo, she has yet to decide what she will do with
the property or when a new business may open
there. Even so, the sale of the property is signif-
icant. We wish Hu every success as the property
gains its new lease on life.
A rose to Lowndes County Sher-
iff’s Office, the city of Columbus,
The Community Benefit Committee
and the Salvation Army for their
efforts to provide Thanksgiving
turkeys to those in need. Intended
to make up for Annie Barry’s annual Thanksgiv-
ing meal delivery, which was canceled this year
because of COVID-19 precautions, the group of
organizations will distribute 500 turkeys during a
drive-through event at the Columbus Soccer Com-
plex at 9 a.m. on Nov. 21. Although it won’t entirely
take the place of the prepared and home-delivered
meals Barry and her volunteers have provided for
the past 25 years, the turkeys are certain to be a
blessing to many residents who might not other-
wise have the traditional holiday meal.
A rose to Columbus Municipal
School district and to graphic
designer Jay Harper, for the new
Falcons logo, which was unveiled
Monday at Joe Cook Elementary
School. The new logo — along with
logos for each of the city’s schools and the school
district — is a part of the district’s rebranding
efforts, which coincide with the anniversaries of
Union Academy (155th) and Franklin Academy
(200 years in February). The new logo will replace
the “Falcon in flight” logo that was copied from
the Atlanta Falcons and implemented in 2005.
Harper, a graphics designer for the Mississippi
School Board Association, has provided an origi-
nal design that is registered with the state, which
means for the first time the school district can
earn money from sales of merchandise bearing
the new logo. Beyond the potential financial bene-
fits, the new design is attractive and helps create
enthusiasm for the district.
The day after the
secretary of defense
was fired is not a great
time for the secretary
of state to joke about a
transition to a “second
Trump administra-
tion.” If he was, in fact,
joking.
I’ve had conversa-
tions in the past few
days with people who
Mona Charen
disliked Trump enough
to pull the lever for
Biden but still believe that the
Republican Party is sound and
will snap back to normal now that
Trump is defeated.
I’d like to believe that, but the
auguries are not good so far. The
party’s leaders have closed ranks
around Trump, repeating the lies
and conspiracies he’s spinning
about a stolen election. They are
laying the predicate for the next
four years — the stab in the back.
Trump didn’t lose; he was robbed.
Biden is not the president; he’s the
usurper.
You really couldn’t have asked
for a more open-handed Democrat
than Joe Biden. He has made every
effort to soothe the bitterness of
our politics and attempted to unify
the country. Someone on CNN said Joe Biden was legitimately elected
he had “slammed” Trump for fail-
ing to concede, but that’s wrong.
He said it was “embarrassing” and
wouldn’t burnish Trump’s legacy
— which is about the mildest way
to describe what Trump is doing.
But major figures in the Repub-
lican Party — from Majority Lead-
er Mitch McConnell to Minority
Leader Kevin McCarthy to the
head of the Republican National
Committee to the attorney general
and the aforementioned secretary
of state — are playing along with
the charade of distinguishing
between “legal” and “illegal votes.” of Representatives as well as a
Republican attorneys general from U.S. senator welcoming a fringe
10 states have petitioned the Su-
preme Court to intervene and stop
the vote counting in Pennsylvania.
Some Republicans, recognizing
that Trump’s attempt to discredit
the election is his most severe
assault on democratic
norms yet, are attempt-
ing to right the ship,
and God bless them.
Sen. Mitt Romney
was among the first
to congratulate Presi-
dent-elect Biden. Sens.
Lisa Murkowski, Susan
Collins and Ben Sasse
have also extended best
wishes to the winner.
George W. Bush issued
a gracious statement,
as did a number of governors —
Larry Hogan, Phil Scott, Gover-
nor-elect Spencer Cox and Charlie
Baker.
But McConnell, one of the most
influential men in the party, is say-
ing that “President Trump is 100
percent within his rights to look
into allegations of irregularities
and weigh his legal options” as if
this is just a speeding ticket. And
McCarthy told Fox News: “Presi-
dent Trump won this election. So
everyone who is listening, do not
be silent about this. We cannot
allow this to happen before our
very eyes.”
Meanwhile, Rush Limbaugh has
laid down the marker for the next
four years: “There’s simply no way
president.” Funny, Rush didn’t
explain why, if the Democrats were
successful in stealing the election
from Donald Trump, they didn’t
also steal it from Sens. Thom Til-
lis, Joni Ernst, Susan Collins and
Lindsey Graham?
The Trump Republicans have
gone wading in the fever swamps
and invited the creatures to the
inner circle. We’ve always had con-
spiracy theories, but we’ve never
before elected a conspiracy mon-
ger, and we’ve never before had
the minority leader of the House
conspiracist (Representative-elect
Marjorie Taylor Greene).
In recent months, we’ve learned
that 37% of Trump supporters be-
lieve that all or parts of the QAnon
conspiracy are true, and that 34%
of Republicans and Republican
learners think the COVID-19
pandemic was intentionally started
by powerful people (the figure for
Democrats and Democratic lean-
ers was 18%).
Into that warm petri dish for
incubating crazy thinking, insert
one defeated Trump claiming voter
fraud and you get yesterday’s new
polling showing that 70% of Re-
publicans do not believe the 2020
election was “free and fair.”
The difference between 37% and
70% is the difference between a
disturbing tendency and a poten-
tial crisis of legitimacy.
About 72 million Americans
voted for Donald Trump. If the
vast majority of them believe —
falsely — that the election was
stolen from them and that their
votes didn’t count, what does that
do to any opportunity for national
healing? How do they respond if
the sitting president goes beyond
filing frivolous lawsuits and urges
state legislatures to submit alter-
native slates of electors (as Mark
Levin has urged)? Or if he asks the
military to take to the streets by
invoking the Insurrection Act?
Some object that Republicans
who are indulging the president’s
tantrum are merely playing for
time and waiting for him to come
to terms with reality. That makes
no sense. By helping him to stoke
the base’s paranoia, they are mak-
ing it less, not more, likely that he
climbs down off the crazy tree.
No, the branch of Republicans
that brought Trump to power is
now attempting to poison the well
for sane Republicans in the future.
Instead of being able to focus on
policy or (gasp) possible coopera-
tion with the Democratic president
on urgent matters like the pandem-
ic, the narrative will be set by the
grievance machine. The Trump
crowds were still chanting, “Lock
her up!” in 2020. Is there any doubt
that they’ll be chanting, “Trump
won!” in 2024?
Mona Charen is a Senior Fellow
at the Ethics and Public Policy
Center.
Lifestyles LIFESTYLES EDITOR
Jan Swoope: 328-2471
THE DISPATCH n CDISPATCH.COM n SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2020 n 7A

Pandemic
Picture this concerns
cancel 2021
Local artists prove “every picture tells a story” JA Charity Ball
BY JAN SWOOPE
jswoope@cdispatch.com

T
he decision was a hard one,
but Junior Auxiliary of Co-
lumbus has announced can-
cellation of its spring 2021 Charity
Ball. Uncertainty surrounding
progress against COVID-19
compelled the nonprofit chapter to
make the call on the 71st annual
event. The JA celebration entails
intense pre-planning and tradition-
ally fills Trotter Convention Center
to capacity. This past spring’s 2020
Charity Ball was also sidelined by
the global pandemic.
“This difficult decision was
made after months
of discussion and
consideration,” said
JA of Columbus
President Carrie
Martin. “Canceling
the Charity Ball in
advance ensures us
enough time to plan Martin
a safe and consider-
ate way to honor our king, queen
and the court.”
Ball Chair Meryl Fisackerly
added, “We had
to think long and
ABOVE: Midge hard about this,
Maloney talks
but unfortunately,
about artist Jenny
Vega’s illustrations given the pandemic,
in Maloney’s chil- we felt it was in the
dren’s book, “Lu- best interest of the
cas Flies a Kite” community that
on Thursday. Both we not hold a large Fisackerly
Maloney and Vega event. By making
live in Columbus. this decision early we’ll still be
RIGHT: Jeanette able to, in a safe and effective way,
Jarmon of Colum- honor royalty and the court with a
bus displays sever-
al original paintings smaller event.”
of her illustrations Junior Auxiliary carries out
for “Mando Tula multiple service projects year-
with Ruby on the round to benefit local children.
Side.” She painted They include clothing children in
the heads of her need, which the chapter has done
grandchildren to for decades, and one of JA’s newer
depict youngsters projects, Feed to Succeed. The
gathered around effort provides backpacks of food
“Ruby.”— Photos
by Jan Swoope/Dis- each week to children who may
patch Staff not get enough to eat at home on
weekends.
Some service work has adapt-
BY JAN SWOOPE project. Inspired by her 5-year-old Clifton echoed that. ed to current changes in local
jswoope@cdispatch.com grandson, Lucas, Maloney had “The illustrator has to set the schools. In response to the pan-

J
eanette Jarmon was hooked
from the first phone call back
in March. Novelist and chil-
dren’s book author Sue Clifton of
Oakland, Mississippi, had called
the Columbus artist to ask her to
illustrate a children’s book. As
Clifton shared her whimsical tale
over the phone of a mandolin-play-
ing tarantula, a lonely old woman
named Ruby and their mutual love
of Ozark mountain music, Jarmon’s
imagination started firing.
“When I heard her read the
story to me I thought, “I’ve gotta do
it,” Jarmon said. “Mando Tula with
Ruby on the Side” would be her
third children’s book to illustrate,
and Clifton’s 12th book to write.
Not long before Jarmon received
her call, Midge Maloney and artist
Jenny Vega, both of Columbus, had
also paired up for a children’s book
penned “Lucas Flies a Kite,” and
enlisted Vega to illustrate. In it,
Lucas and his mother take a picnic
to the park where the tow-headed
boy rescues an imperiled butterfly
named Buttercup. In a reciprocal
twist, Buttercup later does him
a favor, and Lucas realizes that
kindness can often solve even the
simplest problems.
In both books, charming stories
come alive visually through illus-
trations. Collaborations like these
are taking place in the Golden
Triangle area more often than
many might think. The blend of
storytelling and art is essential in
books intended for children.
“Illustrations give them a better
understanding of the story, and
when they can visualize a charac-
ter with the story they are reading,
it makes it more real to them,” said
Maloney.
story,” she said. “I demic, JA of Columbus partnered
can’t even draw a this fall with the Columbus Arts
stick figure, but what Council to develop Art Reach,
Jeanette sent me providing individual art and school
was so fantastic. Her supply boxes to more than 1,500
art is so unique. We elementary school students in
worked wonderfully Columbus, ensuring children did
not have to share supplies.
together.”
Clifton A Pen Pals project pairs mem-
While every
bers and students in an exchange
illustrator’s goal is
of letters, promoting literacy,
to advance the story, approaches
encouragement and social interac-
vary.
tion. The new S.T.A.R.S. Initiative
Jarmon completed her paintings
— Students Talking and Rehears-
on canvas over a period of about
ing for Success — helps junior
three months. Clifton — a former
and senior high school students
principal and educator with a de-
prepare for interviews for scholar-
gree from The W, plus two masters
ships, college and jobs in a virtual
and a doctorate from Ole Miss —
format.
sent her illustrator pictures from
Although the ball will not be
the Ozarks but allowed Jarmon
held next spring, the chapter will
ample freedom in visualizing the
move forward with its annual Re-
characters and action.
port to the Community, published
See ARTISTS, 8A by The Dispatch, and appreciation
to sponsors who make the service
work possible.
See CHARITY BALL, 8A

‘United We Feed’ enters final week

Donations of non-perishable foods collected through Nov. 21 Collection bins in Oktib-
beha County are monitored
said Oliver. “We are in this
together, and it takes strong
BY JAN SWOOPE items for distribution to 24 food selves and their families,” said by Starkville Kiwanis Club neighbors to develop and main-
jswoope@cdispatch.com pantries and programs through- Brittney D. Oliver, executive volunteers. Food will be inven- tain a strong community.”

I
n a year that has intensi-
fied food insecurity across
Mississippi and the nation,
United Way of North Central
Mississippi is hoping the
final week of its annual United
We Feed food drive will be a
big one. Donation bins in a
four-county area are available
for donations of non-perishable
food items through Saturday,
Nov. 21.
Throughout the four-week
drive, which began Oct. 31,
volunteers have collected food
out Choctaw, Oktibbeha,
Webster and Winston Counties.
Monetary donations as well
have been welcomed, to use to
purchase additional foods. The
UWNCM partners this year
in the initiative with Starkville
Kiwanis Club, Starkville Com-
munity Church and the Junior
Auxiliary of Louisville.
“We are proud to have
support from many local busi-
nesses that also recognize the
challenges our neighbors face
in accessing food for them-
director of UWNCM.
Multiple businesses serve
as donation sites. In Oktibbe-
ha County, they include OCH
Regional Medical Center,
OCH Wellness Center, Greater
Starkville Development Part-
nership, Starkville Daily News,
Starkville Properties, Big Buns
& More, Kroger, Vowell’s Mar-
ketplace and the Sportsplex.
For drop-off locations in other
counties, visit unitdwayncms.
com/united-we-feed-1 or call
662-323-3830.
toried, categorized, shelved
and distributed at the Starkville
Community Church which
has donated the use of their
warehouse. JA of Louisville will
assist in monitoring donations
made in Winston County.
UWNCM staff and volunteers
will oversee all donations and
organize food distributions.
United We Feed is a com-
munity initiative held during
UWNCM’s 2020 campaign.
“We emphasize the signifi-
cance of our collective impact,”
Suggested items
Non-perishable foods for
donation could include canned
fruits and vegetables; canned
meats, stews, soups and chili;
coffee; dried beans; breakfast
foods and snacks; juice; mac
and cheese; packaged dinners;
pasta; peanut butter; rice; and
jelly (plastic jars only).
For more information, call
the UWNCM office at 662-
323-3830 or e-mail brittney@
unitedwayncms.org.
8A SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2020
Artists
Continued from Page 7A
“The story starts out
sad and ends up real
happy,” Jarmon said. “So
I did the initial pages in
darker and more neutral
colors, and then it bright-
ens up. By the last page,
it’s moonlight and firelight
and dancing.”
One challenge was
making Mando Tula the
tarantula “cute.”
“I had to make her cute
and sweet,” laughed Jar-
mon. She did it, in part, by
giving the musically talent-
ed arachnid “pigtails” and
eyelashes. Along the way,
the artist’s colorful images
incorporated auxiliary crit-
ters that also lived in the
mountain holler — a dog,
mice, donkey, grasshopper
and crows among them.
She gave Ruby’s porch
posts faces and even paint-
ed her grandchildren’s
heads in an image. Some of
Jarmon’s original paintings
are being displayed at
book signings; prints are
for sale.
■■■
Vega has been interest-
CALENDAR
Today
Blood drive — Knights
of Columbus Blood Drive is 8
a.m.-12:30 p.m. at the Activity
Center across from Annunci-
ation Catholic Church at 823
College St. Appointments
encouraged; Bill Adams, 662-
370-9534, or vitalant.org.
Face coverings required. Visit
vitalant.org/health to start
health history questionnaire.
Sunday Funday — An
arts and music mini-fest from
noon-5 p.m., South Lafayette
Street, downtown Starkville.
Visit facebook.com/starkville-
sundayfunday/.
Now through Nov. 21
United We Feed food
drive — United Way of
North Central Mississippi
requests donations of non-per-
ishable food items. Find
drop-off locations in multiple
counties at unitedwayncms.
com/unitd-we-feed-1.
Thursday, Nov. 19
Downtown Draw-
down — Junior Auxil-
iary of Starkville hosts a
drawdown-style fundraiser,
5:30-8:30 at South Lafayette
Street. Winner gets $5,000.
Tickets $100, available now.
Numerous prizes; food trucks
on site, outdoor event. Do not
have to be present to win. For
tickets, Mary Dowell, 601-
433-1599 or maryarmour91@
gmail.com.
Saturday, Nov. 21
Hitching Lot Holiday
Market — Find locally
homegrown, homemade and
handcrafted items from 9
a.m.-noon at this annual event
at the Hitching Lot Farmers’
Market, Second Street and
Second Avenue North, Colum-
bus. 662-328-6305.
Monday, Nov. 30
Virtual Christmas
Tree Lighting — Colum-
bus lights its city tree via
Facebook Live and WCBI at 6
p.m., with carolers and special
Charity Ball
Continued from Page 7A
Martin remarked,
“While we certainly want
to honor traditions, we
also don’t want to lose
sight of Junior Auxiliary’s
goal, which is to serve
the children of Lowndes
County.”
Fisackerly said, “We
anticipate that in 2022
we’ll be able to have our
typical Charity Ball event,
but for the time being we
really just want everybody
in our community to be
safe.”
■ For more Life-
styles content, includ-
ing Felder Rushing,
planning safe holiday
gatherings and South-
ern Gardening, go to
cdispatch.com.
Jenny Vega’s drawings in “Lucas Flies a Kite” have an
almost ethereal quality.
ed in art since the age of
4. She comes from a “long
line” of family artists,
including her parents,
grandparents, aunts and
uncles. She often works
in oil and water color. For
her first book illustra-
tions, however, she chose
colored pencils and pens
as her medium.
“When Midge told me
the story, I pretty much
made up the characters
in my head,” Vega said.
“It took about five or six
guests including Santa and
Miz Claus. Virtually chat with
Santa following the lighting.
Main Street Columbus, 662-
328-6305.
Tuesday, Dec. 1
“Deck the Halls” —
Lowndes County Master
Gardeners host a Christmas
decorating seminar at 10 a.m.
via Zoom. (Members may sign
up to attend in person at the
Lowndes Extension office, if
desired.) Register for the video
conference at
msstateextension.zoom.
us/meeting/register/tJws-
dO2sqD4rH9aNj7xibIs0KN-
Ciuhbdb5VI to receive a link.
662-328-2111.
Wednesday and
Thursday, Dec. 2-3
Holiday Bazaar —
Shop for Christmas at the
annual Holiday Bazaar held
at the Mill; more details to
come. Follow on Instagram@
StarkvilleHolidayBazaar; 662-
323-3322.
Friday, Dec. 4
Grinch Fest — Don’t let
the grinch steal your Christ-
mas; watch for plans. This
event from 5-8 p.m. features
downtown shopping, activities
and getting your “passport”
The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com
I learned a lot more about
the Ozarks, a lot about
tarantulas and about the
book publishing process.”
Both “Mando Tula with
Ruby on the Side” and
“Lucas Flies a Kite” are
now finished products,
available at amazon.com.
“Mando Tula” is also at
barnesandnoble.com.
In their unique visu-
alizations, Jarmon and
Vega complemented the
authors’ intent in different
ways — Jarmon through
Jan Swoope/Dispatch Staff Courtesy photo her vibrant paintings,
This vibrant illustration by Jeanette Jarmon in “Mando Vega with delicate imag-
Tula with Ruby on the Side” embodies joy and action. es. Each suits their story.
Both artists are glad they
months to get everything come to life.” “I was really grateful took on the challenge.
organized Vega was about half- to have something to do “I think if I was to give
and tweak way through the project at home to concentrate any advice (to a potential
it after when the pandemic hit in on,” said Jarmon. “And I illustrator), it would be
talking March. The work, howev- had some research to do.” just to be able to be com-
about (the er, continued. That included studying fortable with the author,”
drawings.)” At Jarmon’s home, get- videos of tarantulas, how said Vega, who is already
Maloney ting the book assignment they look and move. lined up for Maloney’s
remarked, in March proved good “Every time I do a next children’s book. “The
“I gave her Vega timing. book, I learn something. rest goes from there.”
the idea
of what I
wanted, and she drew
the pictures just the way
I wanted them. She took
my ideas and made them
stamped in Whoville. Main
Street Columbus, 662-328-
6305.
Sunday, Dec. 6
The Art of Hospitality
— The Columbus Arts Council
presents Ralph Null, Sarah
Labensky, Terry Conerly and
Jason Sims sharing advice on
entertaining with wines, food
and flowers, 1-4 p.m. at the
Rosenzweig Arts Center, 501
Main St. Bid on table arrange-
ments, fine wines and art.
Tickets $50. columbus-arts.
org, 662-328-2787.
Saturday, Dec. 12
Whoville Cruisin’ —
Cars, trucks, golf carts and
gators are invited to decorate
“Grinch-style” and join this
cruise through downtown
Columbus at 3:30 p.m. Meet
at the Hitching Lot Farmers’
Market, Second Avenue and
Second Street North, between
2-3 p.m. (No vehicle to be
driven outside parade route
that is not street legal.) Main
Street Columbus, 662-328-
6305.
Tuesdays in December
Holiday Fun at 501 —
Bring your lunch and enjoy
sounds of the season 11 a.m.-
1 p.m. at the Columbus Arts
Council, 501 Main St. Drinks,
live music and holiday fun
provided. Free. Music by: Dec.
1-Mother Goose; Dec. 8-Jessica
Horton; Dec. 15-Miz Claus;
Dec. 22-Suzuki Strings. 662-
328-2787.
Sports
HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL: WEST POINT 42, HOLMES COUNTY CENTRAL 28
SPORTS LINE
662-241-5000
THE DISPATCH n CDISPATCH.COM n SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 16, 2020
B
SECTION

Green Wave keep drive for five alive with win at Holmes
BY THEO DEROSA
tderosa@cdispatch.com
LEXINGTON — Cam-
eron Young took the snap
and ran right, heading
straight for a crowd of de-
fenders.
As players from both
teams were knocked off
their feet, the West Point
junior looked like he’d be
the next to be tackled.
After all, Holmes County
Central senior defensive
back Calvin Head was
right in front of him, arms
extended, waiting.
But Young wasn’t ready
to go down just yet.
Neither was West
Point.
Young stayed on his
feet and leapt into the
end zone with a 12-yard
touchdown run to break
a fourth-quarter tie, and
the Green Wave (8-3)
soon moved on to the sec-
ond round of the MHSAA
Class 5A playoffs with a
42-28 win over the Jag-
uars (7-3).
“They just refused to
lose,” West Point coach
Chris Chambless said.
The victory kept alive a
chance at a public school
record for state champi-
onships with 12 all time as
well as the Green Wave’s
shot at their fifth straight
Class 5A title.
“We’re trying to make
history: five in a row,
man,” junior linebacker
Keon Cunningham said.
Cunningham fought
through pain to make an
impact on both sides of
the ball for West Point
on Friday. In the second
quarter, he caught a 21-
yard touchdown pass
from Corbin Kelley; on
Holmes County Central’s
ensuing drive, he sniffed
out a fourth-down screen
for a loss to give the Green
Wave the ball back.
“He was cramping a lit-
tle bit tonight, but he still
pushed himself through,
and he was able to make
some big plays for us,”
Chambless said.
Cunningham said no
matter what side of the Theo DeRosa/Dispatch Staff
West Point running back Cameron Young (2) scores a 12-yard touchdown in the
See WEST POINT, 3B fourth quarter to put the Green Wave ahead 35-28 in Friday’s game in Lexington.

Shanklin ADAMS COUNTY CHRISTIAN 22, HERITAGE ACADEMY 20, OT

cousins lead
Noxubee
County over
Overtime blues: Patriots fall to Rebels in
Booneville
BY BEN PORTNOY
bportnoy@cdispatch.com
MAIS Class 5A semifinal round
MACON — Noxubee
County senior running
back Bobby Shanklin
sauntered down the Ti-
ger sideline donning an
ear-to-ear grin.
Minutes after Shank-
lin himself tossed a de-
fender with his right
hand, sidestepped past
a second and raced into
the end zone for a 55-yard
touchdown run, his first
cousin and sophomore
running back Derrick
Shanklin crossed the
plane to give Noxubee
County the insurance
score it needed in a 32-8
win over Booneville in
Friday’s MHSAA Class
3A second-round match-
up.
“I just knew when my
cousin scored I had to get
one,” Derrick said. “I had
to get one right back be-
hind him.”
Resting a bum ankle
See NOXUBEE, 3B

Prep football Garrick Hodge/Dispatch Staff

roundup: West
Lowndes falls
at Biggersville
BY THEO DEROSA
tderosa@cdispatch.com
BIGGERSVILLE —
The West Lowndes High
School football team’s
2020 season came to an
end Friday with a 36-14
loss at Biggersville in the
first round of the MH-
SAA Class 1A playoffs.
The Panthers entered
the fourth quarter trail-
ing just 20-14 against the
undefeated Lions, but the
home team pulled away.
West Lowndes’ season
ended with a 4-6 record.
Aliceville (Ala.) 48,
Cleveland (Ala.) 42,
AHSAA Class 2A
playoffs, second round
CLEVELAND, Ala.
— Aliceville High School
(Alabama) survived
Cleveland (Alabama) 48-
42 in Friday’s road game
to advance to the AHSAA
Class 2A quarterfinals.
Landon Ball returned
a kickoff 83 yards for the
go-ahead score for the
Yellow Jackets (8-4) with
9 minutes and 24 seconds
remaining.
Ball caught two touch-
down passes from Tyjari-
See ROUNDUP, 3B
Heritage Academy’s Wesley Miller (1) runs back a punt during a high school football playoff game Friday in Columbus. The Patriots were
defeated in the MAIS semifinals 22-20.
BY GARRICK HODGE
ghodge@cdispatch.com
With the season on the line,
Heritage Academy sophomore
quarterback Mack Howard
rolled to his right. He knew the
stakes. If the Patriots couldn’t
convert this two-point conver-
sion, their dreams of repeating
as MAIS Class 5A state champi-
ons would be over.
Immediately feeling pres-
sure from Adams County Chris-
tian School defenders, Howard
looked to his receiver Trey
Naugher, who was finishing his
route in the end zone. Unable
to plant his feet with a defender
closing in, Howard fired a pass
on the run. Naugher, who was
the recipient of press coverage,
looked to his right, only to see
the pass sail behind him. ACCS
defenders jumped with elation,
running toward their sideline.
“That’s been our goal line
pass play: put the ball in 12’s
hands and try to get it to Trey
or Harris (Gunter),” Heritage
Academy coach Sean Harrison
said. “Their corner did a great
job of jamming, and that’s life.
The corner made a play, we
didn’t, and that’s life.”
Howard and several other
members of the Heritage Acad-
emy offense fell to the ground in
disbelief, filled with heartache.
Tears soon followed. After trail-
ing at halftime, the Patriots (8-
3) couldn’t finish the comeback,
losing 22-20 in overtime Friday
at home in the MAIS semifinal
round.
“There’s nothing to hang
their heads on; they played
their hearts out,” Harrison said.
“That was a great high school
football game. We just came up
three yards short.”
Penalties and turnovers
plagued Heritage Academy’s
offense in the first half. Howard
turned the ball over four times
(three interceptions, one fum-
ble), including one costly give-
away inside the red zone. But
the Patriots’ defense picked up
its signal caller in his first year
as a starter, only surrendering
six points on the four turnovers
and keeping the deficit at a re-
spectable 6-0 at halftime.
“It’s unbelievable,” Harrison
said of the defensive perfor-
mance. “Coach Whiteside came
up with another great plan. I
thought we put them in some
really bad spots and held up …
It was the best defensive per-
formance of the season as far
as tackling and gang tackling
goes.”
But ACCS delivered defen-
sively, too, holding the Patriots
to 184 total yards of offense. Of-
fensively, Cory Sewell (156 rush-
ing yards and two touchdowns
on 28 carries) and Blake LaPrai-
rie (90 yards on 19 carries) did
just enough to lift ACCS (10-2)
to a state championship match-
up against Leake Academy.
With the score tied at 14-
all with 4 minutes remaining
and the ball on Heritage’s 40-
yard line, ACCS had a golden
opportunity to end the contest
in regulation. Nevertheless,
clock management was not the
Rebels’ forte, with coach David
King using all three timeouts
by the 7:23 mark of the fourth
quarter. With little passing
game to speak of and a hurry-up
offense not utilized, ACCS ran
out of time to engineer a scoring
drive, leading to overtime.
Sewell plunged into the end
zone for the Rebels on their sec-
ond play of overtime, then per-
haps made his biggest contribu-
tion of the night by converting
the two-point attempt to give
ACCS an eight-point lead.
On Heritage Academy’s en-
suing possession, Howard, not
normally known for his mobil-
ity, answered for his team on
third-and-long, sprinting 11
yards for a rushing touchdown
after seeing nobody open.
“We knew each game was
going to be something new, but
(Mack) grew up so much faster
than we could hope for,” Harri-
son said.
Unfortunately for the Patri-
ots, their season ended on the
next play. With the loss, ACCS
has been the only team to knock
Heritage Academy out of the
playoffs since 2016. The Rebels
beat the Pats in the 2017 quar-
terfinals and 2018 semifinals,
and Heritage Academy won last
year’s title.
“I told the coaches I don’t
really know how to act because
every time the season ends I’ve
been mad at something, but
not today,” Harrison said. “I
couldn’t ask for anything more.”
As Heritage Academy play-
ers emerged from the locker
room after listening to their
coaches speak one last time,
they were greeted by applause
from parents and fans in atten-
dance. Though the season did
not end in a state title, Harrison
said he will remember fondly a
group that dealt with unprece-
dented circumstances in 2020.
“I’ll remember the perse-
verance, number one,” Har-
rison said. “Missing all the
team bonding in the summer,
having to work out 15 kids at
a time and rolling them in and
out. Asking them to sacrifice
their weekends by staying away
from the get-togethers. I think
they did a good job: We went all
season without a single case.
I think this team, coach Tony
(Phinisey) said it after the game
best: ‘A lot of people are going to
look back on 2020 as the worst
year of their life. But this group
made it a pretty good year for us
old men coaching them because
of everything we watched them
do for us and do for each other.’”
2B SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2020 The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com

Mississippi State volleyball swept by Kentucky

BY THEO DEROSA
tderosa@cdispatch.com
STARKVILLE — some defensive stuff and
Those in attendance
at the Newell-Grissom
Building on Friday yelled
their approval when Mis-
sissippi State’s Gabby
Waden matched Ken-
tucky’s Maddy Skinner
with an equally emphatic
kill.
It was just two points
into Friday’s match, but
the Bulldogs seemingly
looked like they could
hang with the No. 2 team
in the nation.
Then Kentucky
showed why it had earned
that ranking.
The Wildcats won the
next seven points to build
a commanding 8-1 lead,
went on to take the set
and soon finished a sweep
of Mississippi State in Fri-
day’s match in Starkville.
Set scores were 25-15, 25-
12 and 25-16.
“I think we got a little
shell shocked at times
about how good and
polished Kentucky is,”
Mississippi State head
coach Julie Darty Dennis
said. “We played certain
stretches really well, and
execution was really good
at those times, but we
were kind of going back
to the streakiness that we
were trying to get away
from for us to compete
and stay in matches with
really good teams. We
have got to be a better of-
fensive team.”
The Bulldogs fell to 2-5
on the season after huge
Mississippi State junior Gabby Waden (8) led the Bull-
dogs with eight kills in Friday’s match against Kentucky
and 10 in Saturday’s contest.
upset wins over No. 7 Tex-
as A&M last week in Col-
lege Station, Texas. Mis-
sissippi State had never
beaten the Aggies before.
“I think it was one of
those small milestones
that we talk about a lot
in the locker room about
building a culture and a
program that we can be
proud of,” Darty Dennis
said.
But the Bulldogs
weren’t able to build on it
against Kentucky on Fri-
day, as they posted a poor
hitting percentage. Mis-
sissippi State hit just .042
compared to Kentucky’s
.357 mark.
“We have to have more
arms that can score, and
to hit that low of an effi-
ciency isn’t gonna get you
enough points,” Darty
Dennis said. “I think from
the service line, we also
have to be a lot cleaner if
we are getting after it like
it looks like we are with
eight errors. I think we
have to have a lot more
Courtesy of Mississippi State Athletics
aces than we put up today,
so I think there are a lot of
things we’ve got to kind of
clean up overnight.”
Waden led Mississippi
State with eight kills, Deja
Robinson had seven, and
Callie Minshew had six.
For Kentucky, Skinner
had 12 kills, Alli Stumler
had 10, and Azhani Tealer
had nine.
Saturday: Kentucky 3,
Mississippi State 0
Mississippi State was
swept again by Kentucky
on Saturday in Starkville.
Set scores were 25-17, 25-
17 and 25-16.
This weekend’s match-
es were originally sched-
uled for Thursday and
Friday before being post-
poned by a day because of
COVID-19 contact tracing
within the Wildcats’ pro-
gram.
But Darty Dennis said
after Friday’s match that
the delay didn’t really af-
fect the Bulldogs’ perfor-
mance.
“I think it gave us
another day to practice
serve and pass, and I
don’t think that that had
anything to do with the
product that we put out
there,” the coach said.
“It’s one of those things
where we had a day to kin-
da figure out some lineup
stuff, and, if we had to
play yesterday, we might
have been a little bit more
surprised.”
Darty Dennis said she
was just happy her team
has gotten to play so far
with the uncertainty that
surrounded the begin-
ning of the season in Oc-
tober.
“We just want to make
sure that this fall season
ends on a high note and
that the girls are excited
about some milestones
that we set as a program
this fall,” she said.

GOLF

Johnson plays like No. 1 and

seizes control at the Masters
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
AUGUSTA, Ga. —
Dustin Johnson began his
assault on Augusta Na-
tional with a 5-iron for a
tap-in eagle, and he never
relented until he matched
the 54-hole record at the
Masters and built a four-
shot lead to put himself in
prime position for another
major.
Johnson has been in
this position before, and
he plans to lean on his ex-
perience.
Not from the 82 he shot
at Pebble Beach in the
2010 U.S. Open. Not the
three-putt from 12 feet on
a bumpy 18th green that
cost him at Chambers
Bay. Not even the one-
shot lead he lost three
months ago at Harding
Park. They were among
four times he had at least
a share of the 54-hole lead
in a major without con-
verting.
He’s talking about the
last three days at Augusta
National. It’s been a mas-
terful performance.
“If I can play like I did
today, I think it will break
that streak,” Johnson said
Saturday. “Tomorrow, it’s
just 18 holes of golf. I need
to go out and play solid. I
feel like I’m swinging re-
ally well. If I can just con-
tinue to give myself a lot
of looks at birdie, I think
I’ll have a good day.”
A third round that be-
gan with 10 players sepa-
rated by one shot turned
into a one-man show.
The No. 1 player in the
world looked every bit the
part with a 7-under 65,
pulling away with the ea-
gle and two birdies in the
opening four holes, nearly
holing a wedge from the
seventh fairway, handling
the par 5s on the back
nine with two-putt bird-
ies and going the last 30
holes without a bogey.
He was at 16-under
200, matching the 54-hole
record Jordan Spieth set
in 2015 when he won the
Masters by four shots
over Phil Mickelson and
Justin Rose.
The cast of challengers
are not nearly as experi-
enced.
Two of them are Mas-
ters rookies. Sungjae Im,
the supreme ball-striker
from South Korea who
won his first PGA Tour
title two weeks before the
COVID-19 pandemic shut
down golf in the spring,
birdied the last hole for
68. Abraham Ancer of
Mexico saved par on the
18th for a 69.
Joining them at 12-un-
der 204 was Cameron
Smith of Australia, who
had 12 straight pars be-
fore running off three
straight birdies and then
closing with three scram-
bling pars for a 69.
“He’s been there before
multiple times, and No. 1
in the world,” Ancer said.
“I think he’s right where
he wants to be. We know
that we have to go low,
and that’s it. It’s very sim-
ple. If DJ goes out there
and plays really solid like
today, it’s going to be pret-
ty much impossible to
catch him. Whatever has
to be done out there has to
be pretty special.”
Still, there is enormous
pressure on Johnson be-
cause of his history. He
has not converted two
54-hole leads, nor has he
won at two majors where
he shared the 54-hole
lead. His only major was
the 2016 U.S. Open when
he rallied from four shots
behind at Oakmont.
“Anyone with a four-
shot lead is expected to
win,” Smith said. “There’s
going to be plenty of boys
firing tomorrow.”
Attacking flags is what
Augusta National has al-
lowed in November, with
rain earlier in the week
and warm, calm condi-
tions that have kept the
turf soft and vulnerable.
Johnson, who had to sit
out two tournaments after
testing positive for the
coronavirus a month ago,
still came into the Mas-
ters having won twice,
finishing runner-up three
times and tying for sixth
in the U.S. Open.
“I’m very comfortable
with having the lead go-
ing into tomorrow. I’ve
been in this situation a lot
of times,” Johnson said.
“I’m looking forward to
the challenge. It’s still go-
ing to be a tough day. I’m
going to have to play well
if I want to get it done.”
Justin Thomas and Jon
Rahm had their chances
only to make untimely
mistakes. Rahm nearly
topped his second shot on
the par-5 eighth, which he
attributed to mud on his
golf ball, and hit his next
one off a tree and into the
bushes on his way to a
double bogey.
Thomas sailed his sec-
ond shot over the 15th
green and into the water,
making bogey on a par 5
where he was hoping to
make up ground. Both
bogeyed the 18th hole.
Thomas shot 71, Rahm
had a 72.
Asked to describe his
day, Rahm didn’t mince
words.
“Seriously? How would
I describe? Pretty awful,”
he said.
Starting times for the
final round have been
moved up to finish by 3
p.m. so CBS can honor
its NFL contract, and it
will be threesomes off
both tees. And just like all
week, and all year, there
will be no roars to add to
the pressure.
“Unfortunately for all
of us chasing DJ is there’s
no fans or nothing to
make that moment even
harder, to have the buzz,
to have the adrenaline, to
have a little bit more pres-
sure put on him that won’t
be there this year,” Thom-
as said.
Defending champion
Tiger Woods will stick
around Sunday to present
the green jacket, and he’ll
have to leave his at Augus-
ta National.
Woods was 4 un-
der through 10 holes to
start the Masters, and
he picked up only one
more shot over the next
44 holes. He finished off
a 71 in the second round
Saturday morning, had a
72 in the third round and
was 11 shots behind.
U.S. Open champion
Bryson DeChambeau
was more dizzy than sore.
He felt so odd Thursday
night that he had another
COVID-19 test to be sure
— it came back negative
— and the betting favorite
was in the middle of the
pack, 13 shots behind.
 The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2020 3B

Noxubee
Continued from Page 1B
that was heavily taped
and that both he and head
coach Teddy Young con-
ceded was probably just
80 percent healthy, Bobby
didn’t see the field in the
opening 24 minutes due
to his coach’s concern.
With the elder Shank-
lin sidelined, the Noxu-
bee County offense was
afforded every opportu-
nity to quash what little
hope remained on the
Booneville bench but per-
sistently impeded itself.
Racing out to a 14-0
lead courtesy of a 1-yard
touchdown run by quar-
terback Chrishaad Ru-
pert and a 3-yard plunge
by running back Damian
Verdell via a Booneville
fumble, Noxubee County
the lead to three scores
with under three minutes
remaining in the half, the
Tigers coughed up the
football on the Booneville
5-yard line to bail out the
visiting Blue Devils.
Following the fourth
Booneville punt of the
night, Noxubee County
gift wrapped its second
fumble of the contest as
Blue Devils linebacker
Eli Murphy scooped and
scored from 25 yards out
to pull his squad within a
touchdown.
“The first half, the big-
gest thing is we weren’t
finishing,” Young said.
“We were moving the
ball, got in the red zone,
turned it over four times.
We just had to finish and
After Rupert found An-
tonio Fowler on a 17-yard
touchdown pass, Derrick
Shanklin earned the fam-
ily’s second score of the
night. Running the same
outside handoff Bobby
scored on a quarter and
a half prior, Derrick burst
through the Noxubee
County offensive line and
darted into the end zone
Ben Portnoy/Dispatch Staff
for a 15-yard score to
Noxubee County running back Damian Verdell (7) out- push the final margin to
races the Booneville defense on a two-point conversion 24 points.
in the first quarter of Friday’s MHSAA Class 3A sec- “It felt great to get a
ond-round game in Macon. The Tigers won 32-8. touchdown after my big
cousin,” Derrick, who’s
Bobby Shanklin was af- I could,” Young added.
two years Bobby’s junior,
forded his wish less than “But he convinced me at
said. “I know I’m going to
two minutes into the sec- halftime.”
be the man, so I knew I
ond half. Taking an outside had to step up.”
“I’m hungry,” Shanklin handoff toward the Boon- Having ditched his
told Young at halftime. “I eville sideline, Bobby shoulder pads as he
to his family to add to its
touchdown haul Friday
after watching Bobby find
the end zone. In doing so,
the Tigers now move on
to face North Panola with
a spot in the Class 3A
semifinals on the line.
“Those guys are play-
makers,” Young said
of the Shanklin cous-
ins. “The offensive line
blocked well, receivers
blocked well downfield,
and those guys did the
rest of their part.”
Noxubee County 32,
Booneville 8
B0800—8
NC 14 0 12 6 — 32
First quarter
NC — Chrishaad Rupert 1 run (kick failed)
NC — Damian Verdell 3 run (Verdell run)

again found itself deep
in Blue Devil territory as
the clock inched toward
halftime.
But rather than stretch
that was the speech at
halftime — finish offen-
sively.”
Egging on Young to
allow him onto the field,
want it. I feel it. Just let
me play, and I’m going to
show you.”
“I was just trying to
keep him out as long as
Shanklin dodged a pair of
Blue Devil defenders on
his way to pay dirt to ex-
tend the Noxubee County
lead to three scores.
stood outside the Noxu-
bee County locker room
following the win, Der-
rick Shanklin conceded
through a grin he owed it
Second quarter
B — fumble return TD (two-point run successful)
Third quarter
NC — Bobby Shanklin 55 run (kick failed)
NC — Antonio Fowler 17 pass from Rupert (kick
failed)
Fourth quarter
NC — Derrick Shanklin 15 run (kick failed)

West Point
Continued from Page 1B

ball he was on, the Green
Wave’s offense and de-
fense had each other’s
back throughout Friday’s
game. It’s a hallmark of
his team’s success, he
said.
“We’re going to play to-
gether all the way,” Cun-
ningham said. “That’s
West Point football.”
Of course, this year’s
edition of West Point foot-
ball hasn’t quite looked
the same as Green Wave
teams of years past.
Against Lake Cormorant,
West Point lost its first
Region 1-5A game since
2015; the following week,
the Green Wave lost again
at Grenada. The setbacks
gave West Point the No. 3
seed and a road date for
the playoffs.
And despite miscues
Friday night — two fum-
bles at inopportune times
— the Green Wave still
made it through.
“That’s because our
guys play extremely
hard,” Chambless said.
“They believe in them-
selves and in each other.”
That faith rewarded
West Point in the biggest
of moments Friday night.
After Holmes County
Central’s Jerrell Boyd ran
for a 15-yard touchdown
and tied the game 28-all
on a two-point conversion,
the Green Wave got to
work with just over eight
minutes to go.
A pass interference
penalty saved West Point
on an early third and
long, and senior back
JaKobe Pate kicked the
offense into gear from
there. On a crucial third-
and-6 from the Jaguars’
31-yard line, the Green
Wave went back to Young,
who bounced outside to
move the chains. Then
Young powered through
to the right corner from
12 yards out and the lead
with 2:36 remaining.
“Him and Kobe Pate,
they’re a great comple-
ment for each other,
and they both pull for
each other,” Chambless
said. “When one of them
scores, both of them
score.”
With a seven-point
lead, West Point geared
up to stop a dynamic Jags
offense featuring Boyd,
quarterback Levi Wyatt,
Mississippi State commit
Corey Ellington and LSU
commit Khamauri Rogers
one last time.
As it turned out, the
Green Wave didn’t have
to.
Holmes County Cen-
tral fumbled the kickoff
return, and West Point’s
Chris Dean recovered at
the 20-yard line. Two pen-
alties and a 2-yard Young
touchdown run — his
fourth score of the game
— later, the Green Wave
had a 42-28 lead and some
breathing room.
It was just what West
Point needed after hav-
ing difficulty stopping the
Jags all night, particularly
on third and fourth down.
The Green Wave will try
to clean that up, though
they’re pleased it didn’t
cost them their season.
“When it’s money
down, we’ve got to get off
the field. We were gassed
tonight — stayed on the
field way too long,” Cham-
bless said. “But at the
same time, we pulled out
a win. We’re going to en-
joy it.”
West Point won’t have
long, of course, before
jubilation becomes prepa-
ration. The Green Wave
hope to “avenge” their
earlier loss to the Char-
gers, Chambless said,
though that won’t come
easy.
“We’ll see,” he said.
“Grenada’s got a great
football team. They’ll
be fresh. They haven’t
played very many games,
and we’ve played every
one of ours.”
As usual, the Green
Wave expect the Char-
gers to step it up for next
week’s game, a chance
for Grenada to eliminate
a state powerhouse. West
Point wouldn’t have it any
other way.
“We’re going to give
it our all,” Cunningham
said. “I know they’re go-
ing to give us their all.
We’re going to get every-
body’s best shot.”
West Point 42,
Holmes County Central 28
WP 7 14 7 14 — 42
HCC 6 6 8 8 — 28
First quarter
WP — Cameron Young 1 run (Alex Harper kick),
clock 10:24
HCC — Jerrell Boyd 8 pass from Levi Wyatt (kick
failed), clock 7:45
Second quarter
WP — Young 2 run (Harper kick), clock 11:58
HCC — Corey Ellington 15 pass from Wyatt (run
failed), clock 9:35
WP — Keon Cunningham 21 pass from Corbin Kelley
(Harper kick), clock 6:35
Third quarter
HCC — Ellington 31 pass from Wyatt (Boyd run),
clock 7:50
WP — Joseph Vance 1 run (Harper kick), clock 5:16
Fourth quarter
HCC — Boyd 15 run (Boyd run), clock 8:11
WP — Young 12 run (Harper kick), clock 2:36
WP — Young 2 run (Harper kick), clock 1:38

Roundup
Continued from Page 1B
an Williams and finished
with four receptions for
93 yards. On defense, Ball
also intercepted two pass-
es.
Williams ran for a
touchdown and was 13 of
22 passing for 229 yards
and four touchdowns. Ty-
Quan Simon, who caught
the other two touchdown
passes, had six grabs for
73 yards.
Jermaine Brewer had
10 carries for 83 yards
and a touchdown for Al-
iceville. He caught two
passes for 55 yards.
Aliceville returns
home to host Mars Hill
Bible on Friday for a
chance to make the state
final four.
Other scores
Prep Girls Basket-
ball
Caledonia 52,
Hamilton 24, Friday
HAMILTON — The
Caledonia girls beat Ham-
ilton 52-24 in Friday’s
road game.
Amaiya Quinn scored
15 points to lead Caledo-
nia. Tenyzia Lathan had
12, and Libby McMur-
phey had 11.
Caledonia hosts West
Lowndes on Tuesday.
Columbus Christian
Academy 70, Regents
School of Oxford 45, Fri-
day
STEENS — The Co-
lumbus Christian Acad-
emy girls beat Regents
School of Oxford 70-45 in
Friday’s home game.
Audrey Foreman had
24 points for Columbus
Christian. Morgan Whit-
ten had 18, and Faith
Yeates had 9.
The Rams will play at
Grace Christian School
on Monday in Louisville.
Holmes County Central
47, Starkville 44
Prep Boys Basket-
ball
Columbus 44, Ridge-
land 30
KOSCIUSKO — The
Columbus High boys bas-
ketball team beat Ridge-
land 44-30 at the Premier
Medical Shootout on Sat-
urday in Kosciusko.
Blake Burnett scored
18 points to lead the Fal-
cons, and Willie Young
had 11.
Columbus will play at
Kemper County on Tues-
day in De Kalb.
Regents School of Ox-
ford 52, Columbus Chris-
tian Academy 50, Friday
STEENS — Regents
scored the winning bas-
ket in the final five sec-
onds to claim a 52-50 win
over Columbus Christian
on Friday.
Joe Michael Edwards
had 17 points for the
Rams. Jackson Howard
had 10, and Drake Shaw
had eight.
Starkville 56, Holmes
County Central 39
Caledonia 71, Hamil-
ton 49, Friday
Prep Girls Soccer
Mississippi School for
Mathematics and Science
4, Winona 0
Mandy Anderson had
two goals as the Missis-
sippi School for Mathe-
matics and Science girls
soccer team beat Wino-
na 4-0 on Saturday at the
Lowndes County Soccer
Complex.
Weslyn McMurrin and
Lauren Rutherford added
goals for the Blue Waves
(3-0.)
“After a hard-fought
win Thursday, it was great
to see the girls respond
so strongly less than 48
hours later,” head coach
Chuck Yarborough said
in a news release. “Our
on-field communication
continues to improve, and
we are playing the ball to
space more effectively as
the season develops. Wi-
nona was disciplined and
played a physical match.
I was particularly pleased
that our girls calmly ad-
justed and played to their
potential.
“Our defenders de-
serve a shoutout,” Yar-
borough added. “Center
backs Karlene Deng and
Destiny Van led the way
eliminating threats in our
defensive third, and goal-
keeper Camille Newman
preserved the clean sheet
with two saves.”
MSMS will host Varda-
man on Tuesday.
Starkville 2,
Caledonia 1
CALEDONIA — The
Starkville girls beat Cale-
donia 2-1 on Saturday.
Emma Wilson had
both goals for the Yellow
Jackets.
Starkville will host
Kemper County on Tues-
day.
Caledonia 4, Kosciusko
1, Friday
Prep Boys Soccer
Starkville 6, Caledonia
0
CALEDONIA — The
Starkville boys beat Cale-
donia 6-0 on Saturday in
Caledonia.
Josh Eaves had two
goals for the Yellow Jack-
ets.
Caledonia 2, Kosciusko
0, Friday

Dear Abby

D
EAR ABBY: Last weekend, my
companion and I went to one
of our favorite restaurants
for an intimate dinner. Per social
distancing regulations, a mid-70s
couple was seated approximate-
ly 15 to 18 feet away. Halfway
through our meal, they began
FaceTiming with their great-grand-
children and family.
Their conversation continued
for more than 10 minutes, with
exchanges about what pres-
ents “Jack” had received for his
birthday and what the mother
was fixing for dinner. To say that
our dinner was rudely interrupted
by their overly loud and personal
FaceTime discussions would be an understate-
ment.
I kept thinking that, surely,
when they told their family mem-
bers that they were having dinner
at a restaurant, the conversation
would have been politely discon-
tinued by one of them. I didn’t
even feel like staying for the usual
coffee and dessert and, on my way
out of the restaurant, I stopped by
their table to gently but firmly say
I thought they had been extreme-
ly rude. The man stood up and
accused me of being the one who
was being rude. He went so far as
to run after our car yelling as we
pulled out of the parking lot.
Dear Abby I don’t even carry a cellphone
with me when in a restaurant,
beauty salon or other public place as I feel
everyone deserves privacy on either side of the
conversation. Is it wrong to politely make people
aware of their inconsiderate actions when it
affects others? — ANNOYED IN FLORIDA
DEAR ANNOYED: It would have been perfectly
acceptable to make your thoughts known to the
manager of the restaurant, while pointing out
that the carryings on at the nearby table was the
reason you didn’t stay for dessert and coffee.
Frankly, you were lucky the man who ran after
your car didn’t go further than he did.
DEAR ABBY: Am I wrong? Our special-needs
son and his dad (my husband, “Nick”) often get
into nasty arguments. Usually, it’s over nothing
worth yelling about, but if it’s not going Nick’s
way, Nick starts yelling and swearing, using ugly
words.
As a mother, I step in and tell him to stop
the yelling and swearing. Then he yells at me
and tells me to “butt out” because I’m making
it worse and to mind my own business. As a
mother, isn’t this what I am supposed to do? Our
son is 46, but he has the mental capacity of an
8- to 10-year-old, plus other health problems. —
CONCERNED MOM
DEAR CONCERNED: I don’t think you are
wrong for trying to intercede. However, it might
be more effective to point out to your husband,
while you are both calm, that an adult sinking to
the level of an 8- to 10-year-old is ridiculous and
ineffective. I wish you had mentioned what kind
of things your husband and son argue about,
but since you didn’t, allow me to point out that
there are better ways to deal with conflict than
screaming matches.
Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren,
also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was founded
by her mother, Pauline Phillips. Contact Dear
Abby at www.DearAbby.com or P.O. Box 69440,
Los Angeles, CA 90069.

Horoscopes
TODAY’S BIRTHDAY (Nov. 15).
There have been times you led with
determined intensity and won. This
year is different, though, marked
by flexibility and an openness to
the influence of wise guides around
you. You’ll often find yourself in the
middle of unplanned and magical
scenarios. Your family grows, and
finances augment to match. Gemini
and Pisces adore you. Your lucky
numbers are: 6, 44, 36, 5 and 10.
ARIES (March 21-April 19).
Don’t assign value-judgments to
anything beyond your control. There
is little point in saying something
you have no power over is “good”
or “bad.” Your time is better spent
working with the realities.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20). A
change that is completely internal,
where nothing in the environment
is altered, is the hardest sort of
change to make. It’s not impossible,
but why go the difficult route? New
environments make change easier.
GEMINI (May 21-June 21).
You’re willing to be a little uncom-
fortable — a trade-off for becoming
who you want to be. When you think
about the things you’ve gotten used
to, it’s amazing how far you’ve come
from the person you were.
CANCER (June 22-July 22). You
have to own something before you
can gift it to another. You have love
in you, and you give it. You have hap-
piness in you, and you give it. You
have truth in you, and you give it.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). When
you stop one thing to start another,
there will be people affected. They
may feel they are losing you or a
sense of rhythm you provide, and
they will react to that. This is just
part of the cost of change.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). Every
single person is a work in progress.
You are patient with yourself, work-
ing with whatever comes naturally to
you instead of expecting something
other than your current experience.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23).
Handle responsibilities as early as
possible to put yourself in the best
position to master the afternoon’s
knotty challenge. This one will
engage you on multiple levels, espe-
cially intellectual and emotional.
SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21).
If there’s one thing you can be to
make life easier on yourself, it’s a
good listener who is patient and
careful not to interrupt. Listening
well will save you from making un-
necessary mistakes.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec.
21). Your opportunities are not
“out there”; rather, they are close
at hand — within your inner circle,
in fact. Turn your questions toward
your loved ones, toward yourself and
toward all spiritual resources.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19).
Half of your tactics will be winners,
and the other half can be filed away
as attempts that didn’t work... but
which is which? You’ll be inspired to
get more scientific about it.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18).
Someone wants to be the reason for
your smile but doesn’t know how to
make this happen. Could you drop
hints? Once they figure out what
to — metaphorically — bring to the
party, they’ll bring it!
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20).
Why do people open up to you?
You’re genuinely interested in what’s
in their hearts and minds, and you
reflect this with warm attentiveness.
You may hear more than you bar-
gained for today!
Classifieds
ADS APPEAR IN THE COMMERCIAL DISPATCH,
THE STARKVILLE DISPATCH AND ONLINE
Medical / Dental
EMPLOYMENT
CALL US: 662-328-2424
Education
NOXUBEE COUNTY School
District seeks special edu-
cation teachers for employ-
ment in Macon, MS area.
Teach elem special ed stu-
dents. Some positions req
Bachelors+5 yrs exp, oth-
ers a Masters. All posi-
tions req eligibility for MS
teaching license w/en-
dorsement in mild/mod
disabilities. Please mail re-
sume to HR, NCSD PO Box
540 Macon, MS 39341 &
reference job#MREP20.
General Help Wanted
software critical to the op-
eration of Galvanizing Pro-
cessing Lines; maintain
automation hardware and
programming interfaces;
monitor electrical system
operations; perform dia-
gnostic testing on mill
equipment;To place ads starting at only $12,
troubleshoot
call 662-328-2424
and maintain or visit ads.cdispatch.com
electrical
equipment, network sys-
tems and collaborate with
engineers to design
THE DISPATCH n CDISPATCH.COM and ex- NOVEMBER 15, 2020 n 4B
n SUNDAY,
ecute upgrades; monitor
mill performance relating to
volume, quality, delay rate
General Help Wanted and yield and make im-
Manufacturing Stocks & Bonds
provements in these areas;
JOB OPPORTUNITIES:
SECRETARY will provide
maintain backups of all
software related to mill op-
DIGITAL ENTREPRENEURS
NEEDED!!
general clerical & office eration and support sys- Whether you want to design
support. Clerical duties will tems. Supervision duties a life or make EXTRA
include but not limited to include technical oversight MONEY!!
answering the phone, re- and evaluation of one sub- *Profit in first 48−72 hours
cord keeping, file mainten- ordinate Lab Technician. *All from your
ance, editing employee Position requires Master of SMARTPHONE or
time, Accounts Payable & Science Degree in Engin- COMPUTER
Receivable, basic com- eering with a specialization *Work whenever you want
puter skills including Mi- in Electrical Engineering or *More time freedom
crosoft Word, Excel, etc. its equivalent (Bachelor’s For more information, text
Must be able to function in degree in Engineering plus the word "Freedom" to
high volume setting & pos- 5 years progressive experi- 601.850.1528.
sess great communication ence in the field of Electric- All 50 states
and interpersonal skills. al Engineering).
SITE LEAD SUPERVISOR Please send resume to
will be responsible for su- Jason King, 1945 Airport
RENTALS
pervision of employees on Road, Columbus, MS
the job site. Interested 39701
candidates should mail
resume to: Blind Box 678 ADS STARTING AT $25
c/o Commercial Dispatch
PO Box 511
Columbus, MS 39703 BUSINESS Apts For Rent: South

PART TIME mature person Large 2−bedrm apartment.

for retail store. Sales ex-
perience a plus, computer
skills and very flexible
hours. Email resume to
job115@cdispatch.com
RETAIL STORE needs entry
level employee. Part time,
Manufacturing ADS STARTING AT $25 Recently renovated, very
nice, includes washer /
STEEL DYNAMICS Colum- Business Opportunity dryer, lots of closets, great
bus, LLC located at 1945 location. Must see inside.
Airport Road, Columbus, FIRST PENTECOSTAL $800. 662−364−1610
MS seeks Electrical Engin- CHURCH is accepting BIDS
eer to maintain, imple- for the following: Exterior Apts For Rent: West
ment and design automa- walls w/ 8" metal stud
tion and computer equip-

VIP
framing, EIFS on east &
flexible hours, ideal for ment, components and south walls & Porte−
local college student. software critical to the op- cochere, wood blocking &

Email letter of introduction
or resume to
job114@cdispatch.com
Did you
eration of Galvanizing Pro-
cessing Lines; maintain
automation hardware and
programming interfaces;
monitor electrical system
operations; perform dia-
Rentals
metal parapet cap, alum−
inum framed windows &
doors, install stone veneer
on 7 columns, exterior Apartments & Houses
1 Bedrooms
metal door & frame 1 door,
Porte−cochere metal stud

?
gnostic testing on mill framing, Interior walls 3 5/
2 Bedroooms
know equipment; troubleshoot
and maintain electrical
8 metal stud framing per
plans. 662−245−1098. 3 Bedrooms
equipment, network sys-
tems and collaborate with Furnished & Unfurnished
engineers to design and ex-
ecute upgrades; monitor Sell idle items 1, 2, & 3 Baths
mill performance relating to
with a quick action Lease, Deposit
volume, quality, delay rate
& Credit Check
In 2016 The and yield and make im-
provements in these areas;
classified ad.
viceinvestments.com
Dispatch won
327-8555
maintain backups of all
software related to mill op-
the Bill Minor Medical / Dental
eration and support sys-
Prize for the best tems. Supervision duties
Apts For Rent: Other
include technical oversight
news story in and evaluation of one sub-
the state. ordinate Lab Technician.
Position requires Master of
Science Degree in Engin-

The
Dispatch
eering with a specialization
in Electrical Engineering or
its equivalent (Bachelor’s
degree in Engineering plus
5 years progressive experi-
ence in the field of Electric-

SERVICE DIRECTORY
al Engineering).
Please send resume to
Jason King, 1945 Airport
Road, Columbus, MS
39701

PROMOTE YOUR SMALL BUSINESS STARTING AT ONLY $25

Building & Remodeling General Services General Services Painting & Papering

SUGGS CONSTRUCTION DUMP TRUCK HAULING. WORK WANTED: Licensed QUALITY PAINTING.
CO. Building, roofing, Slag − $400 & Bonded. Carpentry, minor Ext/Int Painting.
remodeling, & home repair. Clay Gravel − $250 electrical, minor plumbing, Sheet Rock Hang, Finish &
Licensed & Bonded. Available for hauling any insulation, painting, demo− Repair. Pressure Washing.
662−242−3471. materials. Filling in
swimming pools.
lition, gutters cleaned,
pressure washing, land−
Free Estimates. Ask for
specials! Larry Webber,
Read local.
Carpet & Flooring Columbus. Call Walter, scaping, cleanup work. 662−242−4932. cdispatch.com
662−251−8664. 662−242−3608.
SULLIVAN’S PAINT
Lawn Care / Landscaping SERVICE
Special Prices.
JESSE & BEVERLY’S Interior & Exterior Painting.
LAWN SERVICE 662−435−6528
Mowing, cleanup, tree
cutting, landscaping,
sodding & bush hogging.
662−356−6525
Fall Special: 4 Rms $99
1 Room − $50
2 Room − $70 TERRA CARE
3 Rooms − $90 LANDSCAPING L.L.C.
Carpet−Rugs−Tile−Cars Phone: 662−549−1878
DAVID’S CARPET & Landscaping, Property
UPHOLSTERY
CLEANING
Clean Up, Plant Care, Are you a painter?
Bush Hogging,
Call for more info! Herbicide Spraying Advertise here!
662−722−1758
Automotive Services
General Services

A & T TREE SERVICES

Bucket truck & stump
removal. Free est.
Serving Columbus
since 1987. Senior
citizen disc. Call Alvin @
242−0324/241−4447
"We’ll go out on a limb for
you!"

Got leaky pipes?

Find a plumber in the
classifieds.

Just a click away! The best place for personalized

advertising in your community.
ads.cdispatch.com
ADS STARTING AT

$12
CUSTOMIZE YOUR AD:
Featured ads $5 Sponsored ads $3
Premium placement Preferred placement in search
on classifieds home page. results and highlighted online.

Highlight $3 Graphic $10.50

Highlight your ad Enhance your ad with
with a dash of color. an attention getter.
 The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2020 5B

Apts For Rent: Other Mobile Homes for Rent Musical Instruments

COLEMAN
3BR/2BA MH in New Hope.
$650 dep + $650/mo. No
MERCHANDISE ALLEN DIGITAL ORGAN
for sale. $550. ON THE WEB
RENTALS pets, quiet area. Leave full Good for church.
TOWNHOUSES & APARTMENTS name & message, ADS STARTING AT $12 Call 662−425−6505. Visit www.cdispatch.com
205−712−6697.
1 BEDROOM Antiques Sporting Goods
for a printable copy of
2 BEDROOMS these puzzles.
REAL ESTATE
CHRISTMAS OPEN HOUSE
3 BEDROOMS Magnolia Antique Mall
Crawford Army Surplus
on Main in Crawford.
Sat., Nov. 21, 2020 Now for sale: Metal Ammo
LEASE,
© The Dispatch

10AM−5PM
ADS STARTING AT $25 cans 30&50 cal, $10;
DEPOSIT 302 Alabama St.
Columbus
.155mm Howitzer treated
AND Lots & Acreage
wood ammo boxes,
$5&10; Army steel
CREDIT CHECK Building Materials bunkbeds, $125; Field
1.75 ACRE LOTS Good/ Artillery camo nets with
662-329-2323 Bad Credit Options. Good
credit as low as 20% down,
5 FT. Chain Link Fence.
Top rails, caps, band, etc.
spreader poles, $225;
Unissued camo (BDU/
$499/mo. Eaton Land, Reasonably priced. ACU/ABU) military 6−
2411 HWY 45 N 662−361−7711. Call or text pocket fatigues, $35 & M−
662−549−7167
COLUMBUS, MS 65 field coats & fire−
retardant coveralls, $50;
For Sale: 17+/− acres, Firewood / Fuel
3442 Nashville Ferry Rd. polypro col weather under
Houses For Rent: North garment, $18;
Has 2 trailer spots on FIREWOOD FOR SALE.
property. Partially wooded. Various lengths. OCP T−shirts, $5.
COLONIAL TOWNHOUSES. $25,500. 662−327−8712. 662−295−2274. Call 662.769.1889
2 & 3 bedroom w/ 2−3
bath townhouses. $650 to
$750. 662−549−9555. LAMAR CO., AL−80 ACRES
Shop
Ask for Glenn or text. ED SANDERS GUNSMITH
hunting land, north of Open for season!
Millport. $585 per acre. Tue−Fri: 9−5 & Sat: 9−12

Classifieds
Call for more info, Over 50 years experience!
ads.cdispatch.com 205−695−2248 or Repairs, cleaning, refin−
205−799−9846. ishing, scopes mounted &

Sudoku YESTERDAY’S ANSWER

zeroed, handmade knives.
Houses For Sale: Other Located: Hwy 45 Alt, North
of West Point, turn right on
Sudoku
Yokahama Blvd, 8mi & turn Sudoku is a number-
left on Darracott Rd, will placing puzzle based on
Yesterday’s answer
see sign, 2.5mi ahead Sudoku
a 9x9 gridis a several
with num- 5 2 1 9 8 3 6 4 7
shop on left.
ber-placing
given numbers. puzzle
The object 7 6 9 5 4 1 3 8 2

2020 Conceptis Puzzles, Dist. by King Features Syndicate, Inc.

662−494−6218.
based onthe
is to place a 9x9
numbers 3 4 8 7 6 2 5 1 9
Wanted To Buy grid with several
1 to 9 in the empty spaces 6 5 3 2 1 8 9 7 4
given
so thatnumbers. The
each row, each 8 7 4 6 5 9 1 2 3
HOSPITAL BED NEEDED object
column and each 3x3 the
is to place box
numbers 1 9 2 3 7 4 8 6 5
contains the1same
to 9 number
in
with working electric
controls for head and feet.
the empty spaces so 2 3 7 1 9 6 4 5 8
662−549−0144 only once. The difficulty 4 1 5 8 3 7 2 9 6
that each row, each
level increases from
column and each 9 8 6 4 2 5 7 3 1
Monday
3x3 boxtocontains
Sunday. Difficulty Level 11/13

the same number only once. The difficulty level

increases from Monday to Sunday.

Houses For Sale: Other

COMMUNITY
ADS STARTING AT $12
Good Things To Eat

ACROSS
1 Hard stuff
6 Chicago team
11 Book section
12 Snowy bird
13 Precipitous
14 Silly one
15 Angry cat
sounds
17 “The Simp-
sons” bartender
18 Chanting
sounds
19 Away from
the wind
22 Soup sphere
Trailers & Heavy Equipment 23 Least strict
24 Chop finely 42 Pane material 21 Miniature
25 Posture DOWN 24 Supply with
27 Cubby hole? 1 Diagonal staff
30 Baseball’s mover 25 Painter’s
Casey 2 Punctual place
You’ll find the best deals 31 Oscar winner 3 Black Sea city 26 San Anto-
when you advertise Mahershala 4 Last letters nians, e.g.
and shop here! 32 Groom’s garb 5 Kicking out 27 Explorer
33 Catchphrase 6 Implore Vasco
ads.cdispatch.com
35 Sun Valley 7 Sense of self 28 Cheers
setting 8 Kitchen come- 29 Frisco team
38 Fuming ons 30 Not flexible
Five Questions: 39 Ultimate 9 Vacation spot 34 Test type
40 New parent, 10 Rider’s horse 36 Possesses
for example 16 Spirit ses- 37 Corrida cry
1 They are
41 “Cabaret” sions
director 20 Shining
names of
restaurants
featured on
eater.com.

2 Canada

3 “Passen-
gers”

4 Alfred

5 Pencil
6B SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2020 The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com

Religion
Keep trusting God no matter what happens
C
ovid-19 is on my God!’” (Psalm good and bad times no matter who know your name trust in trusts in the Lord, and whose
the rise again 31:14) NLT what happens. “Trust in him at you, for you, Lord, have never hope is the Lord.” (Jeremiah
with the There will be all times; ye people, pour out forsaken those who seek you.” 17:7) NK JV
number of cases times in our lives your heart before him: God is (Psalm 9:10) NIV So be encouraged today
increasing daily. It when it seems like a refuge for us. Selah.” (Psalm We’re living in such a time and always remember: We can
has been predicted before we can get 62:8) K JV where it seems like all we hear always trust God no matter
that the second out of one situation, When we’re burdened by is bad news. Nevertheless, what happens in our lives
surge will be worse another one will life’s circumstances, we have we don’t have to be afraid, we because He is trustworthy.
than the first. A come. In times like to keep our mind on Jesus have to keep trusting God no “Trust in the LORD with all
lot of people have these, we have to and keep trusting Him to matter what happens, know-
your heart; and lean not unto
been hospitalized keep trusting God give us peace no matter what ing that every thing will be
your own understanding.”
while others are no matter what hap- happens. “Thou wilt keep him alright. “They will have no
Sherry Ivy (Proverbs 3:6) K JV
being quarantined pens. Then we can in perfect peace, whose mind fear of bad news; their hearts
at home. Although be like Job and say, is stayed on thee: because he are steadfast, trusting in the Minister Sherry Ivy is a Min-
many are recovering from “Though He slay me, yet will I trusteth in thee.” (Isaiah 26:3) Lord.” (Psalm 112:7) NIV ister of The New Providence
it, there are still people who trust in Him.” (Job 13:15) K JV K JV Even when doctors have M. B. Church (Healing & Yoke
are dying from the virus. In It’s easy to trust God when Sometimes our problems given up all hope and say Destroying Ministry) in Macon
spite of this, we have to keep everything is going great, but will get worse before they get there is nothing else they can Mississippi, under the lead-
trusting God no matter what when things are not going better. When this happens to do, we can’t lose our hope in ership of her husband, Pastor
happens because He’s in well, it seems difficult to trust us, we have to hang in there God. We have to keep trusting Willie J. Ivy Sr. You can contact
control. “But I am trusting God. We have to learn how and keep trusting God no Him no matter what happens. her via email at minsivy@
you, O Lord, saying, ‘You are to keep trusting God in our matter what happens. “Those “Blessed is the man who yahoo.com

For our complete church directory listing, visit us online at www.cdispatch.com/religion

Due to local restrictions, churches likely have modified service types and hours. Please contact a church before attending a service.

Where the Spirit of the Lord is F eatured C hurch

“There is Liberty”
Ke nne th Mo ntg o m ery www.memorialgunterpeel.com
Proudly serving our community 716 Second Ave. N. • Columbus, MS • 662-328-4432
for over 30 years 903 College St. • Columbus, MS • 662-328-2354

2500 Military Road Suite 1

Columbus, MS
662-328-7500 WEST REALTY COMPANY
westrealtycompany.com
Don West, Broker/Owner

COLUMBUS CHURCH OF CHRIST — 2401 7th St. N. Sunday Bible Class 9:30 a.m., Worship
10:30 a.m., Sunday Bible Study 5 p.m., Wednesday 6:30 p.m. Paul Bennett, Family Life Minister;
Billy Ferguson, Minister of Discipleship; Hunter Johnson, Youth Minister.

If you would like your church to be the featured church of the week,
submit a photo by emailing it to community@cdispatch.com.
Photos should be horizontal and high quality.
• RECYCLING SINCE 1956 •
Specializing in industrial accounts The Dispatch will publish photos at no charge as space permits.
662-328-8176 973 Island Rd. 1-800-759-8570

R Free Estimates
LER OO 1721 Hwy 45 N
EE FIN Licensed
& Insured Columbus, MS
W H INC. G ®

COMMERCIAL 662.848.0919
“A Family Business Since 1946” RESIDENTIAL Monday-Saturday 10am-8pm
662-328-3625 • 662-328-7612 In Style. In Reach. Sunday 1pm-5pm

Support Our Community Churches When Caring Counts... SHELTON’S TOWING, INC. TRINITY PLACE
by advertising here.
Call Beth, Mary Jane,
Since 1960 RETIREMENT COMMUNITY
or Luther to
24 Hour Towing Offering independent living apartments, personal
care/assisted living suites, and a skilled nursing home
schedule your ad. FUNERAL HOME & CREMATORY 1024 Gardner Blvd. 300 Airline Road • Columbus, MS • 327-6716
328-2424 1131 Lehmberg Rd., Columbus • 662-328-1808 328-8277 “Our Bottom Line Is People”

Hunting • Fishing
Northeast Exterminating Working Or Stepping Out — We Have A Complete
Line Of Clothing For You And Your Family
If it Jimmy Linley • Richard Linley
LLC
Oktibbeha County Co-Op
crawls, Columbus
Check Out Our Boot & Cap Section
662-323-1742
call... 662-329-9992 201 Pollard Rd., Starkville

BRISLIN, INC. Insurance Services:

Young
Sales • Service • Installation Shelton Cleaners Personal
Auto Insurance Agency
Residential • Commercial • Industrial Home GEORGE F. YOUNG
Since 1956 3189 Hwy 45 N. • 328-5421 Commercial Office-662.570.1688
www.brislininc.com Final Expense Cell-662.251.3563
1702 6th St. N. • 328-5361 gfyoung08@gmail.com
4051 Military Road • 662-328-5814 1205 Gardner Blvd.,Columbus, MS

APAC-MISSISSIPPI, INC.
Michael Bogue & Employees
Lake Norris Rd. 328-6555

INDUSTRIAL SERVICES, INC The McBryde Family

www.hydrovaconline.com 1120 Gardner Blvd. • 328-5776

Jarrett’s Towing This ad space can be yours

Wrecker Service for only $10 per week.
5209 N. Hwy 182 E. • Columbus, MS 39702
329-2447 We unlock Telephone: 662-327-1467 Call today 328-2424
If no answer 251-2448 cars P.O. Box 1278 • 1616 7th Ave. S., Columbus, MS 39703 to schedule your ad.

If you need to change your church’s online listing or would like to add
your church information, call 328-2424 or email changes to tinap@cdispatch.com
 The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2020 7B

SSunday
unday CComics
omics
8B SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2020 The Dispatch • www.cdispatch.com

Puzzles