By Bob Arnold When Janet Currie took stock of the things she had collected after returning to the Wesson area with her husband to live in the house built by her great grandfather in which she grew up, the now experienced businesswoman did what came naturally: she opened a store to sell them. Over 25 years, the store has not only sold her inherited chinaware, but added gifts, decorative accessories and other collectibles to the wide assortment of the products it sells. In the process, Currie has become known as Wesson’s gifts lady, and her store as the place to go when you want something special to give for holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, graduations and other occasions. Today, Currie says she is learning her business all over again after a move to smaller quarters, but the gift lady and her store are still there for Wesson folk seeking that special something for special people on special occasions. Currie grew up in the Wesson countryside off Sylvarena Road in the old house built by Elbert Jefferson Case, spending lots of time with her grandmother while her parents operated an oil field equipment supply company. She recalls Wesson back in the 1950s and 1960s as “a great place to grow up” where she played with friends and enjoyed going to school, which left her with “fond memories of my teachers.” She graduated from Co-Lin High School in 1970 before it became part of Wesson Attendance Center as Wesson High School. She studied on and off during the 1970s at Co-Lin Community College and the University of Southern Mississippi. Currie also started her work life with the City of Jackson tax assessor’s office and travelled throughout Mississippi as a commercial real estate appraiser. , Along the way, she met A.C. Currie, whom she married in 1980 and helped rear his two sons, Bruce and Andrew. Currie sold real estate in the Vicksburg area during the 1980s after settling there with her husband and was a representative for a plumbing and air conditioning manufacturer during the 1990s. In 1990, she also opened her first retailing venture in Vicksburg – Yesterday’s Treasures antique mall – to sell all the old stuff she relished collecting so she could collect more, which was her passion. When she came home, the Wesson store was her second one, begun while she was still operating the Vicksburg store. She called the new store “Another Time. . . Another Place” reflecting its relationship to her initial retailing venture – a different store for a different time. “Looking back, I probably should have called it ‘Janet’s’,’” she jokes. Over the past two decades, Currie has served her community as an active member of the Wesson Chamber of Commerce, including president. After 25 years, Another Time. . . .Another Place has begun a new life in the small one-room white cottage on Highway 51 in front of the Mill Town Mall Antique and Flea Market in downtown Wesson. “I’m downsizing, and it’s a challenge to discern what people will buy and focusing on a narrower product line that will sell when the consumer, increasingly, is shopping online,” she says. “I’m learning the business all over again.” What are your hobbies? Collecting got me into the retail business, and I continue to collect. Old stuff, particularly. I am proud of my Santa Claus collection. I also love decorating at Christmas time. And then there are my animals. Two adopted dogs -- a 12-year-old Vischon Frise and a Chiwawa – and other mixed breeds. Seven cats – five that live outside, and two inside. Are you a reader? I used to be into novels, although not so much anymore because of my vision. Earl Stanley Gardner’s Perry Mason novels and George Simenon’s Jules Maigret mysteries – two of my favorites Do you enjoy movies or theater? In the 42 years I’ve been married, I’ve only been to theaters and movie houses a couple of time, although I do enjoy plays. And then, of course, the old Perry Mason episodes and special movies on television with those complex plots. You can watch them over and over again, and still want to see them again. Do you enjoy any music? I did play the clarinet in elementary, but am mostly a listener. I am a 1960s and 1970s rock and grunge fan. What would you do with lottery winnings if you were so lucky? I have never bought a lottery ticket. So that will never happen. I have good, blessed life without lottery winnings. How would you change the world? People need to be more tolerant of each other, learn to live in harmony and be less judgmental.

By guest columnist R. Shaw Furlow Over the past seven years I’ve had the pleasure of writing columns for the Wesson News about things and events I hoped were entertaining and informative. I’ve learned a lot myself from doing the research. My main music source book that I used was Legendary Musicians edited by Dr James Brewer from Hazlehurst. He has done meticulous research for many years and was the founder of the Mississippi Musicians Hall of Fame. He also pitched “Mississippi, the birth place of America’s music” to the state’s tourism board, which adopted it for welcome signs and car tags after finding the statement to be accurate. There is no telling how many folks I have interviewed or featured. But mostly I have written about local artists. Dancers and singers from Mississippi School of the Arts. Brookhaven Little Theatre and Brookhaven Region Arts Guild. Songwriters, such as Tony Norton, Cole Powell, J.F. Oakes, Charlie and Libby Hewitt, Andi Cotton, and more. My main man for music has been Tyler Bridge. His help has been immeasurable. In the arts world, my friends Don Jacobs, Jacqui Patten and Derrick Covington Smith have been my go-to specialists. I’ve plugged every festival, concert and art show in our corner of the world, and attended most. I now have promoters calling me trying to get in the column. I especially enjoyed the two drive-through art shows in Hazlehurst and Brookhaven. I delved into the topic of elephants and other wild animals in the circus. From early in my life, I’ve loved the circus. The color, music, pageantry and the elephants caught my attention. At one time. I inquired about auditioning for a Ring Master position with Barnum and Bailey. After I read and studied about animal treatment in captivity, reality hit me in the face, and I changed my point of view. Never too late to learn. That column was one of my most widely read articles. I’ve enjoyed exploring the lives of the Ford siblings, Virgil Brawley, Leontyne Price and other Mississippi artists. I’ve had lots of help along the way. I’ve called on experts in several fields to get information, and all of them were happy to help, especially the good folks at Co-Lin Natchez for their help promoting the Natchez Literary and Cinema Conference and artists, promoters, writers and composers. So, my friends, as they say, all good things must come to an end. This will be my last monthly column. I have often wondered how weekly columnists do it. This is harder work than it seems…at least for me. My biggest source of help has been my editor Bob Arnold. He taught me how to write for a newspaper. I used to call people, especially my friends, by their first names and he changed it in editing. I learned. But some of our toughest conversations were about my ending sentences with a preposition. Yes. I know it’s not correct, but I tried to convince him I was “folksy” and wrote like I talked. I sort of won that one. He agreed I was folksy, and only changed the most egregious ones. One of my biggest pleasures was when people approached me and told me they enjoyed my column . I appreciated it. I’ll be back in the future with feature articles from time to time about topics that interest me. Believe me, I’m not stopping because I’ve exhausted the my resources. Far from it Our little corner of the world is rich in talent and stories and I’ve enjoyed telling them. Until next time, support the arts, my friends. EDITOR'S NOTE: Shaw Furlow is a local composer, musician and arts promoter. He produces an internet-based video show -- From the Shadyside -- that spotlights area musical talent and is a consultant to school bands in the region. Bob Arnold is Editor of the Wesson News.

The Mississippi Agriculture and Forestry Museum will host a special ‘Five Minutes of Family with Santa’ event on Saturday, December 17, from 9:30 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. inside the General Store. Admission is free and pictures with Santa Claus are $5.00 per family. During this event, Santa Claus will be available for photo opportunities inside the General Store, located in Small Town, Miss., on the museum grounds. Bring your family out to visit with jolly old Saint Nick and grab a quick holiday picture! For $5.00 each family gets five minutes with Santa. Pictures will be taken with visitors’ phones and cameras by museum staff so everyone can join in the photo. The Mississippi Agriculture and Forestry Museum, located at 1150 Lakeland Drive in Jackson, is open Monday through Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. For more information about the Museum, call 601- 432-4500 or 1-800-844-8687, visit www.msagmuseum.org and follow the Mississippi Agriculture and Forestry Museum on Facebook.

By Kara Kimbrough Before you call me hypocritical for my next statement, yes, it’s true: I advocated buying Marie Callender’s pies for Thanksgiving if baking was not in your wheelhouse or time frame. With that disclaimer out of the way, I was saddened recently while walking through the supermarket baking aisle and realized that cinnamon, spices and everything else baking-related-nice were fully stocked. One aisle over, shoppers were putting prefabricated, cellophane-wrapped baskets filled with coffee mugs, miniature grilling sauces, hot cocoa mix and s’mores kits in their carts. Here’s a radical idea: instead of buying pre-made food and beverage kits (or any type gift) this year, why not consider making a few homemade treats this year? I guarantee, even the simplest baked goods will be remembered and appreciated, not just during the Christmas season, but all year long. I speak from personal experience when I say gifts made in the kitchen are sometimes the most meaningful. Each Thanksgiving, my aunt would package Christmas bags for each family member filled with homemade treats. Tins of old-fashioned Chex mix or “scrambles” as she called them, jars of hot chocolate and spiced tea mix; cheese straws, caramel corn and homemade candy were just a few of the annual treats. The last Christmas bag she created before going to her heavenly reward got me through my final graduate school project in 2010. The story of me munching on her treats while working 48 hours straight and her recipe for chocolate Crock-pot candy made its way into my column that year. Remembering how her treats were appreciated, I try to make a few homemade gifts each Christmas season. I presented jars of instant spiced tea to two friends at a catch-up Christmas lunch last week. It's the only gift I’d had time to prepare in the early morning hours before we met. Suffice to say, my time management skills have been lacking as of late. Ironically, I never liked spiced tea in the past, so my aunt substituted hot chocolate mix in my bag. Now that I’ve become a daily hot tea drinker, I’ve acquired a taste for the fragrant beverage. An electric kettle has become a lifesaver- it’s a gift I highly recommend one for the tea-lovers in your life. This week, I’m planning to make a slightly different version of my aunt’s “scrambles.” This batch, using a recipe I found in a cookbook compiled by a Columbia church, doesn’t contain cereals, but instead, a few of my favorite salty snacks. As an aside, one of my crafty friends at the lunch (the other one is equally talented, but prefers to showcase her creativity through the written word) presented each of us with a bottle of homemade vanilla. Complete with a tag created on the computer, it’s a gift I’ll value and use throughout the year, especially during the holiday baking season. Also on my must-make list are cinnamon-sugar pecans and peanut brittle using a friend’s mom’s recipe. Last, a gift that’ll need to be eaten within a few days (but I doubt my friend will complain) is crock-pot apple butter. Placed in Mason jars and decorated with festive Christmas material and ribbon, it’s the perfect gift. I mean, who can find fault with fragrant apple butter? If, like me, your time management is not where it should be, I still encourage you to carve out a little time to bake – or make-homemade gifts this year. Unlike the shrink-wrapped s’mores basket, they’ll be used and remembered well after the other gifts have been forgotten. Hilda’s Instant Spiced Tea Mix 1 cup Lipton Instant Tea 2 cups Tang or other orange drink mix 1 cup white sugar 1-2 scoops of Country Time or other lemonade powdered drink mix 1 teaspoon ground cloves 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon Orange, thinly sliced with peel on Cinnamon sticks Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl, then pour into jars. Serving directions to add to a tag: Place 1-2 teaspoons in a mug and fill with hot water. Add thin orange slices and cinnamon sticks for a festive touch. Columbia Party Mix 1 cup butter or margarine, melted 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce 1 teaspoon curry powder ½ teaspoon garlic salt 1/8 teaspoon hot sauce 6 cups corn chips 4 cups cheese crackers (Cheez-Its or similar brand) 3 cups mixed nuts 6 cups popped popcorn 1-1/2 cups walnut pieces Combine first 5 ingredients, stirring well. Combine corn chips and remaining ingredients in a large roasting pan, stirring to combine. Bake at 250 degrees for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Spread on paper towels to cool. Makes 16 cups. “Repeat Performance,” Woodlawn United Pentecostal Church, Columbia Cinnamon-Sugar Pecans 1 egg white 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract 4-5 cups pecan halves 1 cup white sugar 1 teaspoon sea salt 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Grease a large baking sheet. In a small bowl, combine sugar, sea salt and cinnamon, set aside. In a large bowl, whip egg white and vanilla with a whisk until frothy. Add pecans to wet mixture, one cup at a time, stirring to coat nuts evenly. Make sure all nuts are well coated before adding more. Once pecans are completely coated, sprinkle dry ingredients over pecans and stir until evenly distributed. Spread the pecans evenly on the prepared baking sheet. Do not use parchment paper or foil; bake pecans directly on the baking sheet. Bake at 250 degrees F for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Remove and let cool before packaging. Crock-Pot Apple Butter 8 pounds apples: Granny Smith, Fuji, Gala or Pink lady (can combine varieties if you’d like) ½ cup apple juice 2 cups packed brown sugar 1 cup white sugar 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon ¼ teaspoon ground cloves Peel and quarter apples and place in a large crock pot. Add all other ingredients and stir well to coat apples. Cook on LOW 9-10 hours (your house will smell amazing while it’s cooking!) Strain contents through a wire mesh strainer into a large pot and place back into your crockpot, discarding seeds and cores in the process. Cook an additional hour uncovered until thick. Place into sterilized jars (I sterilize my jars in the dishwasher) and refrigerate. Makes 6-7 pint jars. * Include a tag stating the apple butter should be eaten within 1 month. Kara Kimbrough is a food and travel writer from Mississippi. Email her at kkprco@yahoo.com.

It’s Christmas time in Wesson and Wesson Garden Club (WGC) members are making sure you know it, with their decorating efforts throughout the town to spread the spirit of Christmas to everyone. It’s their way of thanking everyone for support throughout the year and wishing everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! The Wesson Garden Club is a member of The Garden Clubs of Mississippi, Inc., National Garden Clubs, Inc., Deep South Garden Clubs, Inc., Natchez Trace District-Garden Clubs of Mississippi.

By Bob Arnold It’s win-win-win for local shoppers, the businesses they patronize and the local economy when Wesson folk buy their Christmas gifts in town. The convenience offered by going first to Another Time. . . .Another Place, Busy B’s, Dollar General, Family Dollar and the Mall Town Antique and Flea Market Mall and Wesson Ace Hardware, among other local businesses, before driving off to an out-of-town store saves shoppers time and money on gas for their cars. The local businesses, meanwhile, enjoy the benefits of sales dollars. In the process, the local economy grows because every dollar spent at a local business generates 3.5 dollars that are recirculated to create more local jobs and fund government services supported by taxes. Scratch off the names on your Christmas list when you shop locally at: Another Time. . . .Another Place, which has moved to a new location on Highway 51. In the small one-room white cottage in front of Mill Town Mall, Janet Currie is analyzing the wants and needs of her customers as she downsizes and addresses online competition, but continues to offer an array of quality, relatively low-cost gift possibilities. For this Christmas season, she recommends flower arrangements, vintage jewelry, metal ware, ornaments and decorative accessories, such as crosses. Busy B's & Salon 51 at Highway 51 & Factory Street. At Busy B’s, Vera Boyles features a wide array of clothing for infants and toddlers -- dresses, play suits, jumpers and gowns -- and juniors -- pageant and prom dresses. At the Salon 51 side of her business, Christmas shoppers can purchase gift certificates for salon services and hair care products, which make good stocking stuffers. Dollar General on Spring Street has the elements that will turn your home into a warm and welcoming setting to celebrate the Christmas and holiday season – artificial trees and florals, ornaments and lighting, candles and scents and assorted décor to create the special ambiance along with candies, holiday mugs for coffee, tea, eggnog and other seasonal drinks and kitchen essentials with a Christmas flare for get-togethers with family and friends. For gifts, consider sheet, quilt and comforter sets, bed pillows, bath towels and cosmetics. Family Dollar on Highway 51 just south of Wesson Baptist Church, not be outdone by its Spring Street competitor, is another place to shop for holiday décor and social gatherings and gifts, with Christmas trees, lights and ornaments; holiday candies, an array of toys for the kids and home items, including glasses and small appliances. Mill Town Antiques and Flea Market Mall houses some 70 vendors under its roof on Highway 51 between Factor and Spring Streets. It’s a unique alternative to Walmart that offers almost everything -- and more – with a touch of the “old,” even “historic” in gift items that set them apart and give them distinction: knives, collectible coins, glassware, jewelry, including handmade items; leather goods, clothing, furniture, pottery. Wesson Ace Hardware on Highway 51 across from Mill Town Mall. For the people on gift list who enjoy browsing extensive hardware store inventories, gift cards in amounts up to $500 are a good choice. Pick up Christmas trees, decorations and lighting, and those who enjoy wrapping gifts for friends and family can select from gas and wood pellet grills and smokers by Weber, Traeger and Big Green Egg; power tools and accessories by DeWalt, Milwaukee and Craftsman; and heaters and humidifiers. In midst of the hardware items are Sherpa fleece throws and Muk Luks women’s cabin socks, wool boot socks and women’s ballerina slippers, which are also nice gifts. A few other places to stop while shopping: Ashley's 51 on Highway 51, where proprietor Jarred Ashley has built an animal feed business in addition to his human food service. Hunters might find ground blinds and turkey calls there. Shop 'n Wash, the Ashley family's sister store beside the railroad tracks on the north side of town, is a solely a human food venue, with grocery items and various takeout selections, and offers pizza gift certificates and Marathon gas cards that make good stocking stuffers. Copiah Nutrition on Highway 51 – a place to grab an energy drink while shopping, and add a gift card to the shopping cart at the same time for someone who will appreciate the healthy meal replacement shakes, energy teas, pre and post workout drinks, high protein snacks and other Herbalife products it sells at its Wesson location or on its website. Dump's Barbeque, a restaurant where Christmas shoppers can not only order food for parties and dinners, but acquire the secret sauce that gives its smoked meats a distinctly different flavor. Owner Ken Dale Sullivan sells it in pint and quart size mason jars. Buy a gift card for barbeque lovers. Uncle Ray’s bait shop, convenience store and eatery across from Lake Lincoln State Park on Sunset Drive sells its famed chicken gumbo by the quart. That's just for starters -- some of the more visible Christmas shopping stops in town. But if you ask around, you may find a home-based artisan or craftsperson with interesting gifts. You can even find your Christmas tree a few miles out of town, where Gary Keller grows them and will cut down your choice on his ten-acre property on Highway 51 in Beauregard. Whether its local arts and crafts, collectibles, something different to use, wear or eat and drink, Wesson is often the place to find what is unavailable or not easily found elsewhere. "Out-of-town visitors often think they have made a surprise discovery when they stumble on stores and restaurants in Wesson that residents often take for granted," Mill Town Mall's Melissa Meredith says. Local businesses are the backbone of a community. When you shop locally, you get to know the people behind the business and you enjoy a connection you would not otherwise have. Local businesses also buy locally themselves. They hire architects, designers, cabinet shops, sign makers and contractors for construction. They use local accountants, insurance brokers, computer consultants, attorneys, advertising agencies help run it. Local businesses give communities their flavor. The combined presence many local businesses makes it different from every other city or town in the world. By supporting those businesses, you help preserve the uniqueness Wesson. Local businesses define our sense of place, and their survival depends on our patronage.

By Bob Garver With “Avatar: The Way of Water” opening next weekend, no new wide release wanted to open this weekend and have only one week to make money before they got squashed. I’ve already reviewed first-place domestic box office finisher “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” as well as runners-up “Violent Night,” “Strange World,” and “The Menu” in second through fourth place, respectively. As much as I’d like to revisit “The Menu” and heap on more praise, this week’s review will be for fifth-place finisher “Devotion.” The film stars up-and-comers Jonathan Majors and Glen Powell as a pair of heroic Korean War fighter pilots in 1950. Jesse Brown (Majors) is the more gifted flyer of the two, but as an African-American, he’s held back by the prejudices of the day. He’s not completely shut out, and things are starting to turn around, especially considering his incredible skill, but there are still many that look down on him. Tom Hudner (Powell) is also a gifted flyer in Brown’s unit. He’s not as talented as Brown, but he’s seen as more likeable, media-friendly, and promotable. He wishes there was more he could do for his superior colleague, but Brown and his wife Daisy (Christina Jackson) insist that Hudner not fight Brown’s battles for him, just be there for him. Hudner spends the bulk of the movie trying to figure out how to be there for his friend without overstepping. I’ll come right out and say it – we’ve already had a fighter pilot movie this year with “Top Gun: Maverick,” a film that may end the year as the #1 box office performer worldwide. That movie even had Glen Powell, who, between this film, that one, and playing John Glenn in “Hidden Figures” is getting quite the reputation as Hollywood’s go-to guy to play aviators. The marketing for this movie has tried to push it as a sort of successor to “Top Gun: Maverick,” trying to pull in audiences that made that film a hit. But it’s actually having the opposite effect, making this film look like a cheap knockoff that doesn’t need to be seen by audiences that have already had their fill of fighter pilots in 2022. I assure you it's no knockoff – too many talented people are putting their backs into this effort, and Jesse Brown’s story most definitely deserves to be told - but it is a notch below the superior performer creatively, and that is translating into a terrible performance commercially. Probably the biggest problem with the film is the decision to dwell too much on this portion of Brown’s life. Don’t get me wrong, this is obviously an important part, and no biopic would be complete without it, I’m just not sure it was a great idea to limit the film’s timeline to just one year. Yes, the film centers around the friendship between Brown and Hudner, and I know the two didn’t know each other until 1950, but Brown has achieved so much success already at the start of the movie that there are barely any obstacles to overcome. I think a straight-up Brown biopic would have been the way to go rather than focusing on his relationship with the frankly bland Hudner. “Devotion” is a competent movie with dedicated performances. War movie aficionados will have a pretty good idea of what they’re going to get here: bonding among the officers, family dynamics with Brown, some bullying and heated conversations about race relations, comic relief antics during a shore leave (Brown’s encounter with a celebrity is a highlight of the film), and of course, tense flying sequences. It’s a fine choice if you’re into this kind of movie, but it can be tedious if you’re all fighter pilot-ed out for a while. Grade: C “Devotion” is rated PG-13 for strong language, some war action/violence, and smoking. Its running time is 139 minutes. Contact Bob Garver at rrg251@nyu.edu.

By Only In Your State End the year with a bang by catching the Geminid meteor shower! Not only is it the final meteor shower of 2022, but it’s one of the most spectacular of all meteor showers because of its reliability. Luckily, it will be visible from Mississippi – no special equipment required. A year-end favorite for stargazers, the Geminid meteor shower occurs in December every year. It typically peaks during mid-December, and 2022 is no different. Shannon Dizmang/Flickr This year, the Geminids will peak on the nights of December 13th and 14th. Of all the celestial events that take place throughout the year, the Geminid meteor shower is not to be missed. It’s touted as one of the “best and most reliable” annual meteor showers. St0rmz/Flickr Fun fact: The Geminids were first recorded in 1833, after being spotted by passengers on a Mississippi riverboat. So, what makes the Geminids so special? Well, for starters they're stunning! Like fireballs streaking across the sky, Geminids are bold, white, and bright. Stephen Little/Flickr The slow-moving, long-lasting meteors, which are sometimes referred to as “earth grazers,” are easy to spot with the naked eye. Geminids aren’t just easy on the eyes. They’re abundant, too. David DeHetre/Flickr Stargazers can expect to see anywhere between 50 and 150 meteors per hour! The number of meteors visible depends on several factors, including the brightness of the moon. Though the Geminids can be seen without any special equipment, there are a few ways to improve your view. First, you’ve got to pick the perfect viewing spot. John M. Cooper/Flickr What makes a perfect viewing spot? The darker, the better. Choose a place free of light pollution. Also, head to your viewing location at least 30 minutes before the meteor shower begins, giving your eyes time to adjust. Second, timing is everything. Tasayu Tasnaphun/Flickr The Geminid meteor shower starts around 9 p.m. and lasts into the early morning hours. However, for the best views, you should check out the Geminids at 2 a.m., which is when they peak. Last, you’ve got to look in the right place. Nick Miller/Flickr Geminids radiate from the constellation Gemini, but you actually don’t want to look directly at the constellation during the meteor shower. Geminids will be visible across the night sky. Plus, those viewed near the radiant typically have shorter trains, which, in turn, makes them more difficult to spot. To learn more about the Geminid meteor shower, check out the EarthSky website. So, what do you think? Do you plan on watching the Geminids this year? Have you checked them out in the past? If so, what’d you think? Tell us! Celestial events sure are stunning. The only issue is that they only come around every so often. Don’t worry, though. There are lots of beautiful places in Mississippi that you can explore all year long.

Open enrollment through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) Marketplace began November 1 and continues through January 15, 2023. Five health insurance companies will offer plans in Mississippi. They are Ambetter from Magnolia Health, Molina Healthcare, Vantage Health Plan of Mississippi and UnitedHealthcare. Cigna also joined the Marketplace in 2022. “Carefully review the options available to you and in your area,” said Mississippi Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney. “Make sure that the plan you are considering provides the coverage that you need. While low monthly costs are attractive, you also need to consider copays and deductibles that you may have to pay later. Check with the provider to see which facilities are in-network.” Mississippians can see plan options, monthly premiums and more by visiting www.healthcare.gov/see-plans/. For other insurance-related questions, contact the Mississippi Insurance Department at 601-359-3569.

Taken from an article published by NAPS While the holiday season is generally a time of joy and celebration, military families can often experience a very different range of emotions. Active service members and veterans returning home for the holidays might struggle to participate in family gatherings or even find the season particularly distressing. And, for the families of those service members who do not return, the holidays can be an agonizing reminder of a loved one’s absence. In the spirit of the season, honoring the sacrifice of all men and women who proudly served in our armed forces through charitable giving can make a big difference. Children of Fallen Patriots, a foundation that honors the sacrifices of fallen military heroes by helping ensure the success of their children through college education, has outlined several ways that showcase how charitable giving ensures strong futures. Support Veteran-Serving Organizations Tens of thousands of non-profits exist in the United States dedicated to serving veterans and their families. With so many different veteran-serving organizations in the States, it’s crucial to ensure donations are doing the most good for heroes in need. A good way to evaluate an organization is to use Charity Navigator, a renowned nonprofit evaluation site. The site rates charities on the cost-effectiveness and overall health of their programs on a four-star scale, evaluating their measures of stability, efficiency, and sustainability. Care for Military Families in Need Service members selflessly put their own lives on the line to ensure better lives for all Americans, but their families sacrifice much as well. While many organizations offer support directly to veterans, the family back home can get lost in the shuffle. Children of Fallen Patriots provides college scholarships and educational counseling to military children who lost a parent in the line of duty. Studies show that almost 25,000 children have lost a parent in the line of duty over the last 35 years. A college education is a significant financial burden, and the majority of surviving military spouses make less than $50,000 annually. Since 2002, Children of Fallen Patriots has provided over $61 million in support to over 2,700 children, including over 1,300 graduates. Additionally, the Gold Star family-focused nonprofit earned a perfect rating from Charity Navigator—an accomplishment less than 1% of the 200,000 rated charities have earned. “The best way to honor the sacrifice of our service members is to ensure better futures for their children,” said David Kim, co-founder and CEO of Children of Fallen Patriots. “A college education is the single most important gift we can give to the children of our fallen heroes, especially during the holiday season—a particularly difficult and stressful time for Gold Star families.” Generosity Goes Beyond The Wallet Making a donation is one of the easiest ways to support veteran-serving organizations, but plenty of options exist. More and more people give their time by coordinating fundraising events, such as bake sales and 5k runs. They also spread the word on social media so the country’s veteran community is supported and speak up about the issues that adversely affect them. Learn More For further facts on what you can do, visit www.fallenpatriots.org.

The Mississippi Department of Education (MDE) has opened nominations and applications for the Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST). The award is the highest honor the United States gives to teachers of science, technology, engineering, mathematics and computer science. Two Mississippi seventh through twelfth teachers will be selected for the 2022-23 PAEMST award cycle. National honorees receive a $10,000 award from the National Science Foundation, recognition at a White House ceremony, and the opportunity to provide input on policies to improve science, technology, engineering, mathematics and computer science education. Parents, students, fellow educators or members of the public can nominate a seventh- through twelfth-grade teacher who teaches science, technology, engineering or mathematics as part of their contracted teaching responsibilities. Teachers may also nominate themselves. Eligible teachers must have at least five years of full-time employment as a kindergarten through twelfth-grade teacher prior to the 2022-2023 academic school year, with science, technology, engineering or mathematics teaching duties during each of the past five years. Nominations will be accepted until January 9, 2023. Teachers must complete the application process by February 6, 2023. “There are so many Mississippi seventh- through twelfth-grade teachers deserving of a PAEMST award for their dedication to students in the subject areas of science and mathematics,” said Dr. Kim Benton, state superintendent of education, interim. “I encourage friends, families and colleagues to nominate a teacher who is achieving positive student outcomes and is passionate about teaching and learning. Teachers may also strongly consider nominating themselves.” Congress established the PAEMST Awards in 1983. The awards recognizes teacher with deep content knowledge of the subjects they teach and the ability to motivate and enable students to be successful in those areas. Awardees reflect the expertise and dedication of the nation’s teaching corps, and they demonstrate the positive impact of excellent teachers on student achievement. The National Science Foundation administers PAEMST on behalf of The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. To nominate a teacher or apply, visit paemst.org.

Copiah-Lincoln Community College’s Workforce Education Division recently received notification of approximately $1.2 million dollars in funds awarded to the college by AccelerateMS. The funds will be used to enhance in-demand workforce education programs including industrial welding, commercial truck driving, and electrical lineman. Thanks to the new funds, these programs will soon see upgraded equipment and offerings at current locations and expansion to new locations, including the college’s Natchez Campus and Simpson County Center. Co-Lin continues to offer short-term workforce education training programs at both the Wesson Campus and Simpson Center to meet regional demand for welders. This significant funding will allow the college to invest in welding simulators to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of the overall training program. Simulators provide limitless skill repetition needed by students for proper training regardless of the cost or availability of supplies. Students will also benefit from the skill diversity by this advanced technology as it will allow students to safely learn the trade while gaining knowledge across many different genres of industrial welding such as ship fitting, pipe fitting, industrial maintenance, and heavy equipment repair. Additionally, the immediate feedback provided by this system will allow students and instructors to quickly see mistakes and then customize individual learning experiences to address those skill needs. “Our college makes every effort to meet the skill needs requested by our business partners and takes seriously the needs of the labor force in the Co-Lin district,” stated Dr. Jane Hulon Sims, Co-Lin President. “We are extremely grateful to receive this funding from AccelerateMS to take our workforce education training programs and student skills to the next level.” The success of the recently implemented Workforce Education Electrical Lineman program on the Wesson campus has validated the expansion of the program. The AccelerateMS special project award will go a long way to add much-needed equipment for the current location and will allow Co-Lin to proceed with additional sites for the lineman school. District industry partners have asked for program expansion to be offered in the Natchez and Simpson County areas, as the program has been extremely successful in training and placing graduates in excellent employment opportunities. According to state data provided by the Mississippi Department of Employment Security, there is a combined total of 357 openings for heavy/ tractor-trailer truck drivers and industrial truck/ tractor operators annually. This school year, in response to the significant need for commercial vehicle operators, Co-Lin Workforce Education increased offerings in commercial truck driving training by implementing programs on the Wesson and Simpson Campuses. The initiative will have produced 12 graduates by the end of this quarter. Funding will allow for additions to the truck driving fleet as Co-Lin will be able to offer training and testing on both automatic and standard transmission vehicles at all class locations. “The backing from AccelerateMS will allow our truck driving program to diversify its fleet which is critical in providing training for the commercial vehicles that our industry partners are now deploying,” Luke Laird, Co-Lin Workforce Center Director adds. “This award will substantially benefit the skill and talent pipeline in these high-demand fields within our ecosystem.” According to the organization’s social media and website, “AccelerateMS is the leading office for workforce development strategy and delivery in Mississippi. The AccelerateMS Ecosystem approach is designed to develop and improve strategies that meet the unique needs of specific regions within the state.” For more information on the mentioned programs or class dates and training schedules, visit www.colin.edu/workforce and follow us on social media.