Bubba O’Keefe – Promoting Clarksdale Through Tourism and Expansion
By Becky Gillette • Photography by Madge Howell Clarksdale-Coahoma County Tourism Director Bubba O’Keefe is not only responsible for promoting Clarksdale to the world, but also has been intensely involved with restoring numerous buildings downtown and helping create the vibe that has made Clarksdale famous as a blues tourism destination not just in the U.S., […]
Major Blight Frequent and Longer-Lasting Floods are Devastating to the South Delta
By Becky Gillette • Photography Courtesy of the Mississippi Levee Board A repeat of the type of catastrophic Mississippi River flooding seen a year ago would be extremely devastating to families, farms and businesses still struggling to recover from the flooding that inundated hundreds of thousands of acres of prime cropland during most of the […]
Errick Simmons – Greenville Mayor Optimistic About his Town and the Delta
By Becky Gillette • Photography by Johnny Jennings After a historic win for mayor in 2015, Errick D. Simmons recently won re-election to his second term as mayor without facing an opposing candidate. His identical twin, Sen. Derrick Simmons, is also a high achiever, currently serving as Senate Minority Leader of the Democratic Caucus in […]
Nichols Steel Decades of Excellence
By MARK H. STOWERS Steel needs in and around the Greenville area have been met by Nichols Steel for the past two decades. The business began seventeen years ago when the Nichols brothers expanded their already successful business to include more steel work after a local company that had been filling the need left the […]
Planters Bank Celebrates Centennial Rooted in Service and Community
By Aimee Robinette “Planters Bank’s history is as rich as the soil it was founded upon,” says Alan Hargett, CEO, who has spent thirty years of his life weaving himself in its story. It all started back in April 1920, when Planters Bank & Trust began serving customers in the small community of Ruleville. The […]
It’s a Love Thing – Delta Soaps & Scents
By Angela Rogalski Delta native Jennifer Jones Knighton may live on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, but she has a deep and abiding love for her hometown of Cleveland and for all things Delta. Knighton moved to the Gulf Coast twenty-seven years ago, and her business, Delta Soaps & Scents, is located in Ocean Springs, but […]
Brewer Screen Printing Family-Owned For Over Forty Years
By Angela Rogalski Brewer Screen Printing in Greenwood provides custom screen printing for all types of product orders. From T-shirts to decals, banners to signs, and much more in between, Brewer is a full service screen printing company that has been in business for over forty years. Alton Brewer started the business in 1977, and […]
Gary Gainspoletti – A True Advocate for His Community
By Aimee Robinette • Photography by Bill Powell Born and raised in Shaw, this local CPA never left the Delta and continues to see the possibilities available for Cleveland and its residents. While many have left the Delta for better opportunities, Gainspoletti decided to stay and create them. While some residents encourage their children to […]
Entrepreneurial Development Program – Bringing Opportunity to Life in Panola County
By Amile Wilson Panola County has a unique geography. The Gateway to the Delta is bisected by Interstate 55, halfway between Oxford and Clarksdale and only an hour to Memphis. That geographic asset makes Panola County a good location to take advantage of the economic opportunities of all three sites while providing an economic unique […]
The Oliver Family Book: A Mississippi Delta Saga
By Patrick R. Shepard In the 1870s, James Samuel Oliver arrived in the Mississippi Delta by swimming across the Mississippi River—with a fresh bullet wound in his leg. He later journeyed deep into the swampy wilderness known as the Mississippi Delta. Oliver cleared timber and carved out a plantation home near Indianola, Mississippi. More than […]