Christmas from the heart: Grassroots outreach plans to feed 5,000

“This started out in 2007 with, ‘Hey, can you cook a ham? Can you make some green beans?’ and now this,” smiled Liz Robinson, her eyes bright with excitement. “We started out with 100 kids and their families, and now we’re feeding 5,000 people!”

Radiothon to benefit children of Haiti

Most of us take peanut butter for granted, but did you know one jar can provide the protein a Haitian child needs for an entire month?

Final plans underway for First Baptist’s ‘First Christmas’

The thud of a carpenter’s hammer and whir of the potter’s wheel will meld with other sights, sounds and smells of a re-created Bethlehem village Dec. 2-4, when First Baptist Church in Columbus presents its annual First Christmas each evening from 6-8 p.m.

Gutter Busters: This bowling league scores big, in more ways than one

Penny Burchfield walks to the line and sizes up her task, undistracted by the low, rumbling symphony of bowling balls and staccato knock of falling pins all around her. Cheers and high fives break out from a nearby lane, and when Penny bowls a spare, she gets them, too.

‘Road to Bluegrass’ showcases Opry alumni Nov. 25

When Thanksgiving’s feast is settled, and kick-off for Egg Bowl is still hours away, a toe-tapping bluegrass show Friday night at the Rosenzweig Arts Center in Columbus will bring three Grand Ole Opry veterans to the stage in “The Road to Bluegrass.”

Ring in the season: For some Salvation Army bell ringers, it’s all in the family

On Thanksgiving morning 2010, Max, Cameron and Carrington Davis woke up with something a bit different on their minds than most children. They looked forward to the holiday with family, of course, but there was something else.

‘Strings for Food’ offers guitar services for food bank donations

With the help of a philanthropic Golden Triangle, a Strings for Food drive hosted by Backstage Music in Starkville Saturday hopes to collect more than 1,500 pounds of non-perishable food items to boost area food banks for the holidays. And, in this case, giving back may never have sounded so good.

‘Strings for Food’ offers guitar services for food bank donations

With the help of a philanthropic Golden Triangle, a Strings for Food drive hosted by Backstage Music in Starkville Saturday hopes to collect more than 1,500 pounds of non-perishable food items to boost area food banks for the holidays. And, in this case, giving back may never have sounded so good.

Area performers channel icons in ‘Happy Flower Radio Hour’

Some of country/western music’s best-known pioneers will be on stage Saturday, Nov. 19, at the Columbus Arts Council’s Rosenzweig Arts Center. Or, at least some of their best-loved songs will be interpreted by local singers paying homage. The old-time “Happy Flower Radio Hour” is a nostalgic trip to an earlier time, when families gathered around the radio for entertainment — when shows like the “Grand Ole Opry” and “National Barn Dance” aired.

‘A Mayberry Christmas:’ Y Drama Team brings beloved characters back, times two

It’s Christmas Eve in idyllic Mayberry, but old Ben Weaver is feeling like Scrooge. The fictional shop owner is determined that Sheriff Andy Taylor and Deputy Barney Fife must lock up Sam Muggins for transgressions Weaver takes exception to. Andy, on the other hand, thinks a little human kindness is in order on this special night. What ensues — enacted by the YMCA Drama Team Nov. 18-19 at Rent Auditorium in Columbus — is a heartwarming prelude to the season.

In his latest book, historian explores battles and bravery that shaped the Civil War

“You can draw military maps and say this happened here and that happened there, and the result is ‘this’ — but that doesn’t tell us what it was like to march 40 miles a day in the dead of winter,” Dr. Brandon Beck said thoughtfully. “It doesn’t tell us about the pain, the privation, hardship, the worry and agony,” he continued, his words coming measured and distinct, as if a picture of the past is vivid in the author’s mind.

Golden Triangle aviation history told in new book

Somehow, Stuart Vance of Starkville knew that recording the history of aviation in the Golden Triangle was going to be his “thing.”

Historic church architecture, gardens and antiques are focus of Decorative Arts and Preservation Forum

The year was 1863. The country was mired in civil war, but in the small town of Columbus, Miss., Father J.B. Mouton, a French missionary, had a vision. He saw a new church, one inspired by his memory of the glorious 13th-century Sainte-Chapelle in the heart of Paris.

Mystery afoot in CMS’ ‘Death Aboard the Duchess’

When The Duchess, a fictional cruise ship, sets sail from Columbus Middle School Auditorium Thursday at 6:30 p.m., everybody on board will leave “port” with a secret — and one of the passengers won’t be coming back.

New Harmonies: Smithsonian exhibit and CAC offer immersion into early music of America

Roots. As a little girl, Linda Lou Richardson couldn’t get enough of the tinny tunes coming from her parents’ old battery-operated radio. “LuLu” would dance through the house, clutching a ragged straw broom like a treasured guitar, singing along to Hank Williams Sr., live from the Grand Ole Opry.

Kirkin o’ the Tartans service to honor Presbytery heritage

On Sunday, Oct. 30, the beautifully plaintive song of the bagpipe will call the congregation of Columbus’ First Presbyterian Church to worship at the “top of the hill” on Bluecutt Road.

Saturday to mark grand opening of Starkville Pilot Club Music Trail

The exuberant beat of an “alligator” drum and plink of marimbas will ring out at Starkville’s McKee Park on Lynn Lane Saturday at the grand opening of the first phase of the Pilot Club Music Trail at 10 a.m.

Christie’s ‘Mousetrap’ mystery begins Thursday at MUW

Murder and mystery take centerstage Oct. 27-29 when the Department of Music and Theatre at Mississippi University for Women presents Agatha Christie’s “The Mousetrap” in Cromwell Theatre.

Ghostly tour will delve into Columbus’ spirited past

On Friday, Oct. 28, “Spirited Columbus” tours will explore the city’s “haunted past.”

Deluxe mini-buses will carry passengers on tours departing at 6:15 p.m., 6:30 p.m., 7:30 p.m., 7:45 p.m., 8:45 p.m. and 9 p.m. from the Hitching Lot Farmers’ Market site at 200 Second Ave. N.

CAC is ‘raising the roof’ with NYC trip fundraiser

The Columbus Arts Council’s Rosenzweig Arts Center is “raising the roof” with its second annual New York City Trip Raffle.