Parks and band will deliver a dose of swamp blues Tuesday

When Walter Parks visited Columbus earlier this year for a solo concert at the Rosenzweig Arts Center, he earned encore calls and rave reviews from the sold-out crowd. He returns Tuesday, Dec. 4, at 7 p.m. with a different vibe.

First Baptist to present ‘Home for Christmas’

Usually at this time each year, the congregation of First Baptist Church in Columbus is preparing to erect an open-air “village” that represents the Bethlehem of ancient times.

‘Messiah’: A Christmas tradition — a rare opportunity

It’s difficult to know if composer George Frideric Handel imagined, 271 years ago, that his “Messiah” score would be so beloved, so revered, so widely-performed almost three centuries after he wrote it in 24 swift days of inspiration.

‘Christmas for Columbus’ concert to benefit charities

Organizers hope a new holiday tradition takes root Saturday, with the debut of “A Christmas for Columbus,” a benefit concert by the combined choirs of First United Methodist Church, First Baptist Church ensembles and Mississippi University for Women Singers.

Gifts of good cheer: Christmas giving, from your kitchen to theirs

As the days inch closer to Christmas each December, my husband and I know we’re going to hear a knock on the door one evening. It will be a neighboring family, from down the road. They’ll bring us gifts of Christmas carols and a delicious assortment of homemade goodies from their kitchen.

Flower power: A holiday houseplant provides 2,700 life lessons for young green thumbs

At 5:30 a.m. on cold, dark November mornings, most teenagers are still snug in their beds, with visions of school tests or holidays ahead. But at the greenhouses of Palmer Home for Children in Columbus, something is stirring, and it’s not the Christmas mice.

Friday concert of guitar, cello ushers in December

In the year since master guitarist Stephanie Jackson moved to Mississippi from Oklahoma City, Okla., she has come to be charmed by the smaller cities of the Golden Triangle, her new home.

Five tasty ways to enjoy those Thanksgiving turkey leftovers

The big day is tomorrow. In many homes, the dining table’s extra leaves are being inserted and more chairs rounded up from outlying rooms. Silverware is being cleaned, serving dishes lined up, and Thanksgiving meals are in the making. This holiday, more than any other, celebrates food as a focal point that draws us together. Yep, tomorrow the eating will be good.

Hooked!: Mary Betts Williams’ wonderful Kingdom of Stuff

“Most of us are living in the Kingdom of Stuff. Well, this is my stuff,” Mary Betts Williams smiled, opening wide the door of her home in east Lowndes County. Once inside, the visitor soon understands. Mary Betts Williams has been a busy woman.

Stories abound in Ward’s ‘Columbus Chronicles’

Did Andrew Jackson really march down Military Road? What’s the oldest surviving house? What Columbus family provided Eudora Welty her favorite mint julep recipe? For almost three years, answers to such curious queries about Columbus’ past have come from Rufus Ward, in his “Ask Rufus” column in The Dispatch.

‘Hands Across Columbus’ seeks volunteers, support for holiday ministry

Liz and Brett Robinson of Columbus know that, for some, the holidays are short on joy. It’s one of the reasons they founded “Hands Across Columbus” five years ago.

Bountiful baking: Annual Country Store Bake Sale is a Thanksgiving tradition

On Tuesday morning, Nov. 20, Columbus’ S.D. Lee Home will once again witness a festive frenzy of shopping as hostesses select fresh pies and cakes, savory cheesestraws, aromatic breads, jellies and sweet candies to supplement their Thanksgiving feasts.

Storytellers prepare to weave magic at first Possum Town Tales

“Stories live in your blood and bones, follow the seasons and light candles on the darkest night … ”

Patti Davis

Area photographers come together to ‘pay it forward’

A family photo is a cherished heirloom, a gift that can be passed from generation to generation. But not all families enjoy the luxury of booking a session for professional photos. Six area photographers have set out to do something about that this Christmas season. They are banding together to “pay it forward.”

‘Strings for Food’ program benefits food banks

Guitars and green beans are seldom thought of in tandem, but at least one Golden Triangle music shop hopes to be overrun this weekend with the healthy vegetable — and many more non-perishable food items.

In search of home: Sally Kate Winters Family Services reaches out to runaway and homeless youth

Her peers fire texts back and forth, consumed with making plans for the weekend. But “Brenda” has something more significant to think about. She wonders where she will lay her head next week.

Visit Columbus’ spirited past as Ghosts & Legends returns

Some of Columbus’ most spirited characters and tales from the past will rise again Nov. 9-10 during the 2012 Ghosts & Legends Tour.

Decorative Arts Forum and Antiques Show celebrates Columbus’ ties to Ol’ Man River, plus a grand reopening

There was a time, in Columbus’ more distant past, when the cannon boom or shrill whistle of an approaching riverboat ignited an excited flurry of activity.

Here comes Santa Claus, and he’s going green

Plans are underway for the Columbus Christmas parade and its theme of “Going Green — Reduce, Reuse and Recycle.”

Eli Young Band joins Bulldog Bash lineup

When synth pop-rockers Neon Trees last week suddenly canceled their fall college tour — which included Bulldog Bash in Starkville Nov. 2 — Mississippi State’s Student Association was sent scrambling to secure another co-headline act on short notice.