Articles by Jan Swoope
Quick Bites welcome spring
Mississippi State University Extension Service’s Quick Bites programs for March encourage warm thoughts of spring.
For peanut butter lovers
We’ve spent a lot of time wishing much of our recent calendar behind us, starting with practically the entire year of 2020. Now, add ice-geddon to the list for most Mississippians. We’re ready to look ahead to March. And March 1 happens to be National Peanut Butter Lovers’ Day.
Love where you live: A new thrift store and reopened pantry are all about community care
When Andy Setiawan transitioned from his role as youth pastor at The Assembly in Columbus to outreach pastor in January, he knew he was going to be “in it 100 percent.” Outreach has always been integral to The Assembly congregation, whether as volunteers clearing tornado debris from the yards of people they’ve never met or hoisting hammers on a home repair for someone in need of a little help. It’s all about the premise “love where you live.”
A neighborly warm-up
Monday’s fading light gleamed dully off our ice-crusted front pasture and a lightly-traveled rural road bordering it. As tends to happen in the Prairie, neighborly gestures are part and parcel of the culture. I’d gotten a text a bit earlier that a relative was bringing supper.
‘We need to talk’: Libraries help inspire conversations about race relations during Black History Month
As Youth Services Librarian Jayme Evans selected books to highlight in February at West Point’s Bryan Public Library, she kept in mind that Black History Month should mean more than simply knowing the names of some famous black people and being able to memorize a quote by Martin Luther King Jr.
Fuel for Super Sunday
Whether your team made it into the Super Bowl or not (mine didn’t), chances are you’ll be tuning in. It’s the last hoorah for America’s game in what has been a wacky season.
Making the best of it: Activity planning goes into overdrive during pandemic
Adaptability has been a keyword of the COVID-19 pandemic; that is as true of senior living facilities as it is of every household, workplace, school or church around the globe. When the novel coronavirus abruptly curtailed most in-person family and community interaction last March, staff at such places as Garden Hill Assisted Living in Lowndes County were challenged to help provide reassurance, guard health and enrich daily life during an unprecedented period of isolation.
A savory pie to cozy up to
In spite of our above-average temperatures the past couple of days, we know we’re in for more chilly times ahead. One dish that always sounds appealing to me in cool weather is shepherd’s pie.
Creative partnerships: Building skills and success for the creative economy
Whether a painter completing an ethereal landscape, or a writer crafting a page-turning plot, creatives among us add substance and beauty to the world at large. No matter how intense the talent, however, the painters, writers, sculptors, the weavers, potters, playwrights and poets unaware of how best to connect with the buying public often languish professionally.
February Quick Bites help usher in new year
As winter’s grip slackens and visions of spring stir, February Quick Bites video programs help begin the transition with topics including flowers, good soil and the digital footprint we’ll leave behind in 2021.
Presidential bites
Inauguration Day 2021 will be like no other. COVID-19 and events before, on and after Jan. 6 have made sure of that.
MLK Day in the year of COVID
In typical times, Martin Luther King Jr. Day would find Anna Jones circulating among a crowd gathered in West Point for a procession. When blessed with good weather, the march can draw up to 300 participants, Jones said.
Small changes can add up in new year
It’s all but inevitable that a new year brings at least some thought of trying to “do better” this time around.
We’ve earned that NYE chocolate
Let’s just say we’ll worry about resolutions on New Year’s Day. For New Year’s Eve, let’s eat, drink and be merry — within our immediate family pod, of course.
Welcome the new year
Oh, 2020, what a year you’ve been. We are relieved to see your days numbered and welcome the promise of 2021.
Quick Bites help make the new year more beautiful and delicious
One way to start off 2021 would be to resolve to take advantage of free Quick Bites video programs offered monthly by the Mississippi State University Extension Service.
Still time to make sweet memories
Plenty of memories are made in the kitchen this time of year, often around the fun of making holiday cookies as a family.
Christmas at the Mansion: Area designer is tapped to decorate the historic Governor’s Mansion
Scott Reed was in ninth grade when he began making a little extra money as a delivery guy for a West Point flower shop.
SCT’s ‘It’s a Wonderful Life: The Radio Play’ to stream online
In a year that has seen Broadway go dark and most live community theatrical productions shuttered, Starkville Community Theatre is rising from the pandemic to deliver some holiday entertainment — 2020 style.
Cozy comfort in a jar
We all know the feeling. The countdown is on for St. Nick’s worldwide tour, and we’re still looking for ways to share a little holiday cheer with a neighbor, a friend or perhaps a child’s teacher.