Mementos, trash from Louisville fall in Caledonia after tornado

Ripped and weathered scraps of paper and photographs from Louisville — tiny reminders of the hurt and destruction a tornado caused there — fell from the sky into Caledonia yards Monday.

Browning on Business: Shoe store coming to downtown Columbus

For a couple of weeks there has been a sign in front of a vacant storefront in downtown Columbus that reads, “Taylor Smith Shoes.” Just beneath that sign is another that reads, “Coming Soon.”

Tornado levels Lowndes Co. church

A tornado completely destroyed Springfield M.B. Church on Monday. It had stood for nearly 150 years in a field on the east side of Highway 45 South, down toward Macon.

A zest for dolls and life: West Point woman with impressive doll collection says ‘you have to be interested in something’

Marguerite Breland’s apartment is full of dolls. She does not know how many.

Not too long ago her great-granddaughter counted and put the tally at around 100.

Browning on Business: Biscuit-maker opening shop in Starkville

On Mother’s Day weekend in Starkville a placed called The Biscuit Shop will open. There is an interesting story here.

Columbus kid makes his pitch

Dean Sasser, an 8-year-old who suffered severe head trauma in a February car accident, threw out the ceremonial first pitch before Heritage Academy’s baseball game Tuesday evening.

Browning on Business: New restaurants open in Columbus, Starkville

A new sandwich place opened Monday in Columbus.

Community rallies around young Steens cancer patient

Just before spring last year, Will Ayers, a 13-year-old student at Caledonia Middle School, had a procedure at Baptist Memorial Hospital-Golden Triangle.

When the results came in, he and his mother were at home in Steens, and his mother said they had to go to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis.

Tales From The Crypt alive and well

For the 24th time the lives of nearly-forgotten people buried in Friendship Cemetery have come alive through evening tales told by local high school students standing among tombstones.

Browning on Business: Sports merchandise store, gas station open on Hwy. 45 N.

Sports fans, there is a new store inside Leigh Mall in Columbus.

Outtakes: Burger challenge remains unmet

Alone at the bar, I stared at three bites of hamburger and six or so french fries. Could I finish?

Browning on Business: Cotton District cafe closes after 6 years

Jean’s Cafe, a little Cotton District restaurant in Starkville with a faithful following and cheese wontons capable of inspiring near-religious devotion, closed Saturday.

Caledonia gearing up for Easter egg hunt

Caledonia’s annual Flashlight Easter Egg Hunt is set for April 12 at Ola J. Pickett Park.

Rissa Lawrence, who is coordinating the event, updated the town’s board of aldermen on the event’s status during its monthly meeting Tuesday.

KiOR gets $25M financial commitment

KiOR announced that it had closed the deal Monday on $25 million in financing that will keep the biofuel maker’s doors open at least through August.

Browning on Business: New boutique in downtown Columbus

In downtown Columbus on Fifth Street there is a four-month old boutique to know about.

It is called In Style Boutique. The owner is Jackie Watson of Columbus and she said her passion, for as long as she can remember, was to open an apparel store for fashionable women.

Columbus Light & Water to KiOR: No more water

KiOR has been told not to release anymore wastewater from its facility into the Columbus water system because of potential harmful materials that could be present in the Texas-based alternative fuel company’s discharge water.

KiOR stares down default on MDA loan

If KiOR does not finalize the details of a $25 million commitment from a California investor within the next nine days the company expects to default on a $75 million loan it received from the state of Mississippi.

Browning on Business: Starkville has national restaurants on horizon

Did you hear three restaurants are slated to open in Starkville later this year?

KiOR has ‘substantial doubts’ about future

KiOR may be done in Columbus.

On Monday, the company filed its end-of-the-year financials with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The 257-page report paints a bleak picture of the company’s future.

Developer: Hyatt Place will be open for business in June

The Hyatt Place under construction on Highway 45 since 2010 will be open for business in June.

That’s what Sunny Sethi, the hotel’s developer, said last week while giving a tour of the four-story, 70,000 square foot structure, which sits just south of Belk in Columbus.