Ole Miss loses LB Shackelford for 6-8 months

OXFORD — Less than a week ago after a particularly disappointing practice, Mississippi linebacker D.T. Shackelford was among the team’s most outspoken players, pushing his teammates to raise their performance.

The coaches weren’t surprised. Houston Nutt called him one of the unquestioned team leaders. Defensive coordinator Tyrone Nix marveled at how a still relatively young player could command so much respect.

But now that leadership almost certainly will be lost for the upcoming season.

Shackelford, a 6-foot-1, 244-pound junior, has a torn ACL in his right knee and will be out six to eight months.

New staffers join Dispatch newsroom

The Dispatch welcomes two new staffers to the newsroom this week.

Local Voices: ‘As profitable to God as possible:’ an Africa visit, Part 3

I must tell you about our visits to the home of the women who are HIV/AIDS positive. We went along with the counselors of the Care for AIDS organization. They do not have cars, so we walked on cobbled hillsides to five women’s homes in the nearby village.

Freshman Stafford playing key role in New Hope’s success

Taylor Stafford leads the New Hope High School baseball team this season with a .397 batting average.

New Hope coach Lee Boyd said Stafford’s work in center field is equally impressive.

The freshman (4-2, four saves) also has excelled on the mound and shown an ability to protect leads.

Good job, Taylor. Now go get the balls.

Severe weather possible in north Miss.

Nearly 30 counties in north Mississippi were under a tornado watch Monday as a line of severe weather threatened to push hail, heavy rain and damaging winds into the state.

Staples’ Meridian concert filmed for CBS

The long-running “CBS Sunday Morning” television show was in Meridian Friday night to film Mavis Staples’ performance in the MSU Riley Center. The segment is set to air Easter Sunday, April 24, according to the Riley Center.

Poetry is topic of Wednesday Table Talk

The Friends of the Columbus-Lowndes Public Library continues its Table Talk series April 13 with a dual presentation by Tom and Emma Richardson. Dr. Tom Richardson, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Mississippi University for Women, will discuss various ideas about “what poetry is” by reading examples of “poems about poetry” and poems that experiment with language and the “look” of poems on the printed page.

Johnson centennial plans announced

Bobby Rush, Honeyboy Edwards, Keb Mo and the Warren Haynes Band are set to join other musicians May 6-7 in Greenwood to mark the 100th anniversary of blues icon Robert Johnson’s birth in Copiah County May 8, 1911.

MUW to dedicate Memorial Garden as family, friends remember Dorabel Craig

Family, friends and members of the extended community at Mississippi University for Women in Columbus will gather Friday, April 15, to dedicate the Dorabel Craig Memorial Garden. The ceremony to honor Dorabel Moore Craig, Class of 1938, will take place at 1:30 p.m.

Clean Sweep in high gear

“Clean Sweep Columbus, a Great American Clean-up Event” is searching for volunteers to help clean up the Friendly City. Clean Sweep will kick off Saturday, April 16, at 9 a.m. at the Magnolia Bowl in downtown Columbus.

Bagnall filling in the blanks through art

At age 95, Norma Bagnall is still filling in the blanks. The Massachusetts resident, who is a frequent visitor to Columbus, became a snowbird this year to escape the unusually harsh New England winter.

MSU plant sale set for April 15-16

The horticulture club at Mississippi State University will offer garden enthusiasts a wide variety of plants and educational seminars at their annual spring plant sale.

Local voices: ‘My spirit leapt up within me’: an African visit, Part 1

What began as an afternoon of horseback riding and a glass of wine on the front porch, ended in an invitation to an adventure of a lifetime, a journey that was both joyful and heartbreaking, both life-giving and incredibly draining.

Nagy helps New Hope earn key wins

This time, New Hope High School senior Zac Nagy meant to swing.

One day after his bloop single drove in two runs against Saltillo, Nagy helped seal a 17-7 non-district win against Columbus High on Saturday afternoon with his first home run of the season.

Fikes, Hamilton beat Caledonia

CALEDONIA — Brandon Fikes is far from intimidating on the mound.

His stature more closely resembles a pinch runner than a starting pitcher for one of the state’s perennial baseball powers.

Then he throws his fastball — far from the fastest, but it gets where it needs to be.

Ask Rufus: A presidential visit to Columbus

Nov. 2, 1909, was to be a red letter day for Columbus. President William H. Taft was coming to town. He was to be accompanied by his Secretary of War, Hon. J. M. Dickinson, a Columbus native. (A few years later, Crawford native T. W. Gregory served as Woodrow Wilson’s Attorney General.)

Local voices: ‘They swarmed us like bees’: an African visit, Part 2

The Limuru Children’s Center, the primary focus of Global Connections, is home to 42 orphans. By our standards the facility is substandard, but when I went into town and other places, I realized how upscale Limuru is by comparison. The Center, a residential facility for elementary school age children, is open during the day for preschool children.

Grilling on the River event offers a sneak peek at summer

Despite the mid-April date on the calendar, summer was in full swing at Grilling on the River, Saturday.

Ala. man loses lawsuit over tooth found in KFC chicken

A state appeals court says a man isn’t due any money after claiming he found a human tooth in the crust of a piece of KFC fried chicken in Montgomery.

How the government shutdown could affect you

If brinkmanship continues in Washington and the federal government “shuts down” after 12:01 a.m. Saturday, some federal offices in Mississippi will close, some will remain open and some remained uncertain even as the clock ticked down.