Articles by Tess Vrbin
Ellis recalls four decades of growth and change in MSU baseball, SEC sports
In 1978, four words secured the next 42 years of Jim Ellis’ career: “Ron says you’ll do.”
Ron Polk had been Mississippi State University’s baseball coach for three years by then and approved Ellis’ hiring as the radio announcer, a role Polk made sure Ellis stayed humble about, Ellis told the Starkville Rotary Club at its Monday meeting.
Starkville considering recycling contract with Waste Pro
When Starkville first paused a recycling program that operated at a financial loss, city leaders considered forming a partnership with Mississippi State University’s program, which has a contract with the Waste Pro USA office in Columbus.
Strict safety measures contain SPD COVID outbreak
Sgt. Kenley Reaves was the first to get sick.
The Starkville police officer started feeling like he might have the flu on Oct. 1. Over the next nine days he experienced a range of symptoms, from chills and a 102-degree fever to dizziness and sore eyes. He was briefly admitted to North Mississippi Medical Center in West Point.
Aldermen Little, Walker not running for reelection
Two Starkville aldermen said at Tuesday’s meeting they will not run for reelection in April 2021.
David Little of Ward 3 told the board in a prepared announcement that “after several months of prayerful consideration and thoughts” he would not be running for a third term.
100 Women Who Care gains rapid momentum in Starkville
Alison Buehler and Nelle Cohen hadn’t seen each other in months, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, when they met up for coffee a few weeks ago.
“She was working on something. … She’s always working on something in the community,” Cohen said of Buehler. “She told me about (100 Women Who Care) and I was so intrigued. I said ‘I’m in!'”
Oktibbeha supervisors bring back mask mandate
Oktibbeha County resumed its requirement for protective face coverings, proven to curb the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus, at county-owned buildings and social gatherings outside the Starkville city limits after a 3-2 vote from the board of supervisors Monday.
Higgins: Variety of industries eye North Star, other Golden Triangle sites
The Golden Triangle continues to be a sought-after region for industrial growth, even during a pandemic, Golden Triangle Development LINK CEO Joe Max Higgins told the Starkville board of aldermen at its Friday work session.
Tupelo property manager buys Ryan’s building
The building that formerly housed Ryan’s Buffet near the interchange of Highways 82 and 45 has a new owner after two and a half years of uncertainty about the property’s future.
Golden Triangle COVID-19 numbers continue to increase
COVID-19 coronavirus cases in the Golden Triangle continue to rise along with those nationwide, with 339 new cases in the past week after 215 new cases the week before.
SOCSD teachers: Pitfalls of online learning include student stress, varying parental involvement
The typical responsibilities of teaching took on new challenges with the COVID-19 pandemic, and teachers in the Starkville-Oktibbeha Consolidated School District are still learning as they go, Adrienne Minor said.
Economist: Recession will last until COVID-19 is ‘under control’
The economic crisis resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic has no real historical precedent, not even the Great Depression, Chris Erickson, a professor and the interim department head of economics at New Mexico State University, told the Starkville Rotary Club via Zoom at its Monday meeting.
SOCSD sixth grade moves online after teachers test positive for COVID-19
All sixth graders at Partnership Middle School in Starkville-Oktibbeha Consolidated School District will attend classes entirely online after two instructional staff members tested positive for COVID-19, district Public Information Officer Nicole Thomas confirmed to The Dispatch this morning.
Starkville will take legal action to obtain easement for bridge project
The heavily traveled bridge on Old West Point Road just south of Garrard Road is old and eroding, and the guardrails are so close to the intersection that drivers have hit them repeatedly.
The only solution for an “unsafe” bridge like this one is to replace it, Starkville Mayor Lynn Spruill said.
Second Baptist pastor, deacon held liable in lawsuit; ordered to pay $500K
Tears and hugs were abundant among members of Second Baptist Church in Starkville on Wednesday afternoon.
The 12-day trial for a five-year lawsuit in Oktibbeha County Circuit Court ended with financial penalties against Pastor Joseph Stone and Head Deacon Terry Miller, after the jury found them responsible for negotiating a May 2013 contract with Long Beach-based TCM Construction to build a new sanctuary without the church’s board of trustees’ approval and withholding money collected through church offerings from the trustees.
Oktibbeha mask mandate ends after split supervisors vote
Oktibbeha County no longer requires protective face coverings, proven to curb the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus, at county-owned buildings and social gatherings outside the Starkville city limits.
Second Baptist leaders claim they followed majority of congregants’ will
Pastor Joseph Stone and Head Deacon Terry Miller of Second Baptist Church in Starkville denied wrongdoing from the witness stand last week in a civil trial over a church dispute over the failed construction of a new sanctuary.
Supes to consider changes to garbage billing, vicious dog ordinance
Oktibbeha County supervisors will consider a proposed policy for collecting unpaid garbage bills at Monday’s meeting after discussing it at length during a work session on Wednesday.
Aldermen likely to request state funding to relocate library
Mayor Lynn Spruill and six Starkville aldermen decided Tuesday at a special-call work session to pursue three potential projects to ask the state to fund, narrowing down a longer list of ideas from earlier this month.
Witnesses describe deception, push for ‘obedience’ from Second Baptist pastor
Before September 2015, Bennie Hairston trusted Rev. Joseph Stone.
Witness: Second Baptist pastor created ‘cult-like following’ over failed sanctuary project
Tasers. Threats of violence. Police alerted to show up at the first sign of trouble.
Business meetings at Second Baptist Church in Starkville had become contentious, even dangerous, as the congregation was divided due to a years-long dispute over a failed construction project, Charles Ware, a spokesman and adviser for the church’s board of trustees, said Tuesday on the witness stand in Oktibbeha County Circuit Court.