Hairston to represent Lowndes in state DYW

Rising high school senior Reed Hairston of Columbus will represent Lowndes County at the state’s Distinguished Young Women program in Meridian July 14-16.

Learn by doing: 4-H youth prove you’re never too young to learn skills for a lifetime

A group of 4-H youth are proving that grilling out isn’t just for grown-ups. Mouth-watering aromas wafting from Columbus’ Hitching Lot Farmers’ Market site June 14 were evidence enough. Youth ages 8 to 18 were invited to take part in the annual Lowndes County 4-H Grilling Contest.

Like father, like sons: Father’s Day and every day, teamwork grows across generations

There was a time when the hallmark of Columbus and towns like it were family-owned businesses, passed on from one generation to the next. Sons and daughters often followed fathers into trade as naturally as summer gives way to autumn.

Helping Hands, United Way need community’s help with fan drive

In response to oppressive temperatures, United Way of Lowndes County and Helping Hands are teaming up for a seventh annual summer fan drive.

Chill out: Freezer pleasers that beat the heat

It is officially hot. And muggy. Don’t forget muggy. Area weather pundits have crossed the threshold, breaking the 100 degree barrier of heat indices in their sweltering forecasts. It’s summertime in Mississippi, and the hunt is on for relief.

All wrapped up: Summertime grills call for fast, foil pack dinners

A short road trip I took into south Mississippi this past weekend included a stop at a popular national restaurant chain where foil-wrapped “campfire” meals are currently a featured special.

A winged fancy: Big rigs to tiny flyers — that’s the large and small of it for one Columbus collector

The odds of finding a big rig trucker who has a fascination with dainty hummingbirds may be fairly slim, but Ollie Hollis of Columbus fills the bill.

CD release party launches ‘Welcome to the Show’

Songwriter and musician Shane Tubbs of Columbus has been singing all his life, but in public for only 10 years or so. His earliest outing on stage, other than church, was a Columbus Arts Council Open Mic program.

Orchids find a sweet spot with unintentional gardener

Betty Thornbrough modestly insists she has no green thumb. The blooming display of orchids in her office at First United Methodist Church, however, begs to differ.

Fried pie lady: A market find, fresh from the cooker

Saturday was a glorious morning to be at Columbus’ Hitching Lot Farmers’ Market. The rising sun in a cerulean sky promised a fine start to the long weekend as a milling crowd greeted one another and shopped up and down the shaded corridor of vendors.

‘Lest we forget’: Preserving the memories — Lowndes County serves the nation

Never straighten a picture hanging lopsided on the wall, or put right a crooked lampshade. It might cost your life. A.J. Price, 94, still remembers that caution about booby-traps to soldiers tasked with search or evacuation of houses near the front lines. It was World War II, and he was serving in the 63rd Infantry Division. He was “one of the lucky ones” who made it back home, he says. Too many did not.

Dunkelberg takes to the fiddle for upcoming show

Aidan Dunkelberg of Columbus was only 4 years old when he first picked up the violin and began training with the Suzuki Strings program. Eleven years later, he is preparing for a solo showcase in his hometown.

Sounds of Summer set for June 9 kickoff

Sounds of Summer will soon return to downtown Columbus.

Extension Service to offer June ‘Quick Bites’

School may be out, but there is plenty to learn this summer with the Mississippi State University Extension Service Quick Bites programs.

Changes coming to Operation Christmas Child shoebox items

Operation Christmas Child Collection Week is months away — mid-November — but some area churches, organizations and individuals will be shopping this summer for items to fill thousands of “shoeboxes” destined for children in more than 100 countries.

Cherokee Garden Club: 65 years strong and counting

The spring of 2016 marks a milestone for the Cherokee Garden Club of Columbus. The group that formed in 1951 celebrates its 65th anniversary.

‘Journey to Freedom’ author to speak in Columbus

If you could change one thing in your life, what would it be? That’s a compelling question posed by Scott Reall, author of “Journey to Freedom: Your Start to a Lifetime of Hope, Health and Happiness.”

‘Making pretty colors’: Textiles artist from the Netherlands finds power in tranquility, dirt and the ‘un-pretty’ of nature at Noxubee Refuge

The tranquility of northeast Mississippi’s Sam D. Hamilton Noxubee National Wildlife Refuge is a far cry from the bustle of Amsterdam.

Loaves & Fishes heads ‘Down on the River’ for gala theme

In a river town like Columbus, a gala themed “Down on the River” seems just the thing. The Loaves and Fishes Community Soup Kitchen will embrace the concept at their third annual Festival of Flavors fundraiser set for Friday, June 3 at Lion Hills Center and Golf Course.

Questions about mental health? Ask the doctors

The questions can vary.

“How do I help a family member addicted to alcohol or drugs?”

“My child has behavioral problems in the classroom and at home. What are my options?”

“How do I get help for someone suffering from depression who resists help?”

Thursday offers an opportunity to seek answers.