The introduction of the Junior Auxiliary of Columbus 2016 Charity Ball king and queen Saturday evening brought cheers from a capacity crowd at Trotter Convention Center. King Thomas Evans Whitaker and Queen Anna Gaines Gaskin were presented at the 66th annual ball, along with a court of high school seniors who have performed almost 2,000 hours of service in their community, schools and churches.
The fundraising event and Junior Auxiliary’s annual Report to the Community support the nonprofit chapter’s numerous year-round service projects for children throughout Lowndes County.
The king
King Thomas Evans Whitaker was born in Columbus to the late Ethel Evans Whitaker and Robert Vernon Whitaker. He is the grandson of the late Dixie Hardy Evans and Thomas Jefferson Evans, and the late Ethel Bain Whitaker and David Whitaker. His mother was a life member of the Junior Auxiliary of Columbus.
Whitaker is married to Sunny McGahey Whitaker, a life member and past president of JA of Columbus.
Their three children, Evans Dawson, Allison Whitaker and Robert Whitaker, have all participated in the JA Pilgrimage Ball Court. Evans is a life member of JA of Columbus; her husband, Eric, has been a cast member of the Charity Ball pageant.
Robert served as a royal page, and his wife, Macaulay, is an active member of JA.
The Whitakers are the grandparents of four grandchildren: Ellie and Arthur Dawson, and Tom and Dade Whitaker. Ellie was a member of the Charity Ball entertainment last year, and Arthur served as his grandfather’s page last night.
King Tom began his support of JA at an early age, serving as a cast member of the 1960 pageant when he was 4 years old. He served as a member of the 1973 Pilgrimage Ball Court, and has been a Charity Ball patron, attendee, sponsor and volunteer for many years.
In the community
Whitaker is a 1973 graduate of Heritage Academy and an alumnus of Mississippi State University where he obtained a bachelor’s degree in accounting. He is a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity.
After graduation from Mississippi State, he began his career at Beneke Corp., which later became Sanderson Plumbing Products, as a production scheduler. During 36 years with the company, he served as staff accountant, cost accountant, assistant controller, controller, executive assistant to the CEO, director of sales, vice president operations, president and CEO, and owner and CEO of Beneke Magnolia Corp.
He is an active volunteer in the community, most often working behind the scenes in service to others. Never one to shy away from getting his hands dirty, he can almost always be found near a kitchen.
A member of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Whitaker currently serves as junior warden of the Vestry. He is a member of the Usher Team, St. Paul’s Men’s Group, Wired Word Sunday School class, and a supporter of St. Paul’s many outreach programs. He prepares and delivers meals for the Meal Ministry committee, supports the EYC by providing dinners and helping with projects, and has worked in various capacities with Vacation Bible School.
Whitaker annually co-chairs the Eight O’ May Luncheon takeout crew and serves on the Set-up/Clean-up Committee for the fundraising event. He is a regular worker and server at Loaves and Fishes each month with the St. Paul’s team.
Supporting youth
Whitaker’s dedication to children began in college when he volunteered as a Dizzy Dean baseball coach. In 1978 he was awarded an outstanding service award by the Columbus-Lowndes Recreation Commission.
A youth soccer coach for many years, he served as president and vice president of the Columbus Youth Soccer Association. Most recently, “Coach Pops” returned to the soccer fields as an assistant coach to his grandchildren’s 3- and 4-year-old soccer teams. He is presently serving as a Cub Scout den leader of Pack 3 Troop.
King Tom has long been an active volunteer, parent and grandparent for Heritage Academy. He served on the Board of Directors as a member, and later as president and vice president. He is the first graduate of Heritage Academy to serve as president of the board.
He was an active member of the Sports Boosters, serving as president and vice president, volunteering with game duties, and cooking weekly at games. He served as chairman of concessions for football and basketball games and in 2012, returned to cochair the Hospitality Room when Heritage hosted the North State Basketball Tournament.
Through the years, Whitaker has been a supporter of numerous organizations. He has been actively involved with Kids with Character, the Columbus-Lowndes Humane Society, Ducks Unlimited and the March of Dimes. He supports United Way, American Heart Association, American Cancer Society, Spina Bifida Association, Palmer Home for Children, Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
The queen
Queen Anna Gaines Gaskin is the daughter of Dr. and Mrs. Leonard Keith Gaskin. She is the granddaughter of Mrs. Robert Leonard Gaskin, the late Robert L. Gaskin and the late Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Douglas Bateman Jr.
Anna Gaines’ grandmother, Chebie Gaines Bateman, reigned as the 1954 Pilgrimage Ball queen, and her mother, Gaines Bateman Gaskin, reigned as the 1980 Pilgrimage Ball queen. Her grandmother was also a life member of JA, and her mother is currently a life member.
Her brother, Edmund Keith Gaskin, served as a former page to the queen. Anna Gaines and Edmund were members of the Charity Ball Courts in 2011 and 2015. Anna Gaines was also presented as a page and debutante to the Southern Debutante Assembly in Greenwood.
She is a 2015 cum laude graduate of Mississippi State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in human sciences with a concentration in human development and family studies, with an emphasis in child studies. She currently plans to pursue a career as an early childhood educator with future plans of earning a graduate degree in social work, so she can continue to follow her passion for benefiting the lives of children and their families.
While at MSU, she was a Dean’s Scholar, a President’s Scholar and a member of Gamma Beta Phi Honor Society.
Pursuing service
Queen Anna Gaines was active on campus as a Hail State Ambassador for the MSU Foundation, joining other students to encourage philanthropy at MSU. As a member of the student association she served on the environmental affairs committee. She was a member of the Human Sciences Option Club and the Human Sciences Pre-Ministry Club, which explores ways to use her major as a Christian minister. As a member of Delta Gamma Sorority she served on the Rituals and Alumnae Relations Crews.
She was a member of the campus organization “Mentor Me” which focused on mentoring children in the Starkville Boys and Girls Club. She served as vice president her junior year, and president her senior year. As vice president she recruited new members and prepared them to mentor children. As president she was responsible for supervision of the entire organization while mentoring one specific child herself.
Anna Gaines also spent her time volunteering at the ICS Head Start Center in Starkville and at the Elizabeth A. Howard 4-H Therapeutic Riding and Activity Center where she worked with special needs children. She is also a member of the National Association for the Education of Young Children.
Throughout college, Anna Gaines worked at First Presbyterian Church Child Care Center and spent her summers as a self-employed swim instructor.
Active and involved
Gaskin is a 2011 graduate of Heritage Academy where she was a member of the dance team for six years. While a member, the team competed and placed in the UDA Nationals and the MAIS Dance Competition. Her senior year, the team was selected to perform at the 2011 Nokia Sugar Bowl Half Time Show.
She was a member of the State Championship Swim team, which placed first in the MAIS swim meet. She was a member of the SCA Social Club and also performed in three musicals while at Heritage.
Anna Gaines has attended Main Street Presbyterian Church and First Presbyterian Church where she has volunteered with several activities. She is currently sponsoring a child in Kenya through the Christian organization World Vision and also sponsors another child in Rwanda.
Currently Anna Gaines is continuing her work with children by working as a child care provider and as a substitute teacher at Main Street Christian School.
JA Charity Ball Royalty for the past 10 years
Miss Florence McLeod Davis
Miss Elizabeth Spencer Ford
Miss Bailey Blaire Griffin
Miss Elizabeth Harper Ferguson
Miss Jennifer Rose Adams
Miss Madeline Frances Hardy
Miss Kendyl Diane Hall
Miss Margaret Fairfax Davis
Miss Madison Ann Ford
Miss Caroline Emily Borland
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