Society

Have you ever met someone who just steals your heart? Not like a partner does, but someone who touches your heart and you carry them with you always? I remembered someone the other day, Versie Turnage, when I ran into her son, Craven, at the grocery store. He happened to be getting vegetables to go home and cook for his momma. I asked him how she was and I truly meant it - Miss Versie is a fabulous person with such a phenomenal heart!

Eons ago when I was out campaigning, I visited with her. She was one of the few who invited me into her home and truly cared about what I had to say. I knew then that she was wonderful! I think of Miss Versie every time I pass her house, wonder how she is doing. Her yard is always so tidy and her house in pristine condition! If you know Miss Versie, you have an idea of what an adorable person she is inside and out! If you don’t know Miss Versie and run into her out and about, be sure to give her a hug! She is a remarkable woman!

This week, VBS is going on at the First United Methodist Church in Holly Springs. Early in the week, I was up there helping out in the kitchen. I did not realize there was a speaker which comes from the sanctuary downstairs to the fellowship hall. I heard all this clattering around and finally spotted the speaker. It was the end of the evening and all of the children had gathered in the sanctuary. I listened intently to the reflection for the night and was overjoyed when the children actually remembered the Bible Bite they learned earlier. The singing was the best - Shake It Up! I was amazed at the singing voice of Lisa Shaw! If you have never heard her sing, ask her to do so - her voice is fantastic! She was singing right along with the children. I’m guessing the microphone was right up by her because I heard her angelic voice above everyone else’s! Greg Campbell was in on the action, too, and did a fabulous job with his parts in their ending skit.

This was a banner year for VBS with the combined churches, as nearly 50 children in our community attended. It is such a blessing to have a fabulous community mission like this! A big thank you to Prentis Boatwright and the many volunteers from all three churches, the preachers and most of all the parents of the children who allowed them to attend. Looking forward to next year!

(To put your news in City Personals, please e-mail maryclayb@yahoo.com; mail to City Personals, The South Reporter, P.O. Box 278, Holly Springs, MS 38635 or call 662-252-4261. You may also e-mail your City Personal news to south@dixie-net.com).

Mr. and Mrs. Cammie Shackleford of Holly Springs and Stephen Utley of Oxford are pleased to announce the engagement of their daughter, Lauren Olivia Utley, to Aaron Joseph Blackstone, son of Mr. and Mrs. Robert Blackstone of Memphis, Tenn.

The bride-elect is the granddaughter of Vermelle Utley and the late Walter Utley; Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Young of Holly Springs and Mr. and Mrs. Ronald Gonterman of Olive Branch.

Lauren graduated with honors from Baptist College of Health Sciences, where she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in nursing. She is a registered nurse at Baptist DeSoto Hospital in Southaven.

The prospective groom is the grandson of Peggy Blackstone of California; John Blackstone of Nesbit and the late Mr. and Mrs. William Harbin of Memphis.

Aaron is earning a Bachelor’s degree in economics at the University of Memphis and is employed with the athletic department.

The couple will exchange vows on August 13, 2011, at Heritage, the former home of Mr. and Mrs. Walter Utley, in Holly Springs.

Birth

Dickerson

Bob and Mary Dickerson of Fairhope, Ala., are proud to announce the birth of their first child, a son, Samuel Thomas Dickerson (Sam), born July 6, 2011 at Thomas Hospital in Fairhope. He weighed eight pounds, six ounces and was 22 inches long.

Grandparents are Kenny and Dianne Dickerson of Holly Springs; Tom and Sherri Bohlke of Olive Branch; and Connie Bohlke of Oxford.

History is so fascinating! To think about what happened here before we were here is really awesome.

In 1811 (200 years ago) the world went awry, with the earth quaking, the floods flooding, even the sky was alive with comets streaking across the heavens.

Tony Hood is our expert on such happenings and he will be here at the Marshall County Historical Museum to tell us about it.

You are invited to the museum on August 8 at 7 p.m. to hear Tony give a program about the meteor that skimmed right over Marshall County dropping fire.

Please come by and bring your grandchildren and your children too. Remember there is a fee at the door.

We have a new mural at the museum, which was painted by Irene Young, local artist. Irene is the daughter of Jack Young of Red Banks, and Nellie Mae Moore of Holly Springs. The mural shows the Depot, Catholic Church, our Marshall County Historical Museum, the Holly Springs Post Office and Cedarhurst because Irene went to kindergarten there. The paintings are in honor of the museum curator, me!

I am honored to be honored, and it is in memory of Jack Young and Nellie Mae Moore Young, her parents. Come see it; it’s wonderful. She’s quite an artist.

We never know who is coming to visit us. Everybody who comes in is so pleasant and so nice. One day last week we had visitors from Vermont and more that day were from Oregon. One was an Italian war bride of yesteryear. One was an ER doctor, but she didn’t look it or maybe she did as she was beautiful, small, dark and incredibly bright.

The visitor whose letter I put in the paper last week is coming back this week and bringing his family. He feels about Holly Springs as I do, that Holly Springs is really special. We love “Be-Backers!”

Did any of you see the green bird in town with all the red birds? Female cardinals are as green as grass. An expert told me but I’ve never seen one. The birds are prevalent everywhere around here. A tiny little Carolina chickadee likes my figs as much as I do. I try to share but she ruins a lot of them.

Our cotton patch is blooming forth and looks absolutely magnificent. I found out that we weren’t the only cotton in the county. In the last few years, for a while, ours was the only cotton in Marshall County.

Once in Minnesota, in the dead of winter, when the high temperature that day was 20 degrees below zero, I walked out in the yard and the bare winter tree was full of a flock of birds. I looked up and said to the birds, “What kind of birds would live in Minnesota in the wintertime?” One of the birds leaned over and called out, “Chick-a-dee-dee-dee.”

Once I went hunting for fossils not too far from here and I found a petrified turtle but now I’ve lost it. It was such a thrill to find it. I wonder if that turtle died that night in 1811?

The new Farmers Market on the square is great! There’s even fantastic musicians there to add to the Mississippi flavor.

Locals are coming back to see their school pictures in the Hall of Fame on the third floor here at the museum.


Thursday, July 28, 2011
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