A rose to a community organization that hopes to assist in the recovery from the Feb. 23 storm, working with local agencies and organizations while sustaining support for the recovery effort after state and national relief organizations have left. The Community-based Recovery Committee will organize as a 501(c)3 nonprofit, allowing it to receive government funds and grants. It will include volunteers from nonprofits, agencies and religious groups to coordinate issue-specific volunteers and complement and supplement existing recovery programs. CBRC will coordinate volunteers and manage recovery efforts, including home repairs and rebuilding, on a long-term basis and will ensure that people with needs don’t fall through the cracks or lose access to help long-term. The CBRC will appoint volunteer members to one of several subcommittees, which will focus on everything from managing state and federal funds, deciding how they are best used, coordinating volunteers, writing grants for additional recovery efforts, and helping those affected with long- and short-term needs.
A rose to the Greater Starkville Development Partnership and Starkville officials for providing the public an opportunity to listen, learn and ask questions about annexation during a Thursday “Lunch and Learn” session. Mayor Lynn Spruill gave a presentation — the same that consultant Mike Slaughter, who has been working with the city since it began its annexation study, presented to aldermen in early February — during the Lunch and Learn. The presentation touched on a variety of topics, from how Starkville’s population will change to the number and type of housing units in the proposed annexation area, to the number of street lights needed for the new area and how much sales and ad valorem taxes it’s expected to generate. The success of an annexation relies heavily on support from those most affected by those plans, so it’s important that citizens have the opportunity to understand the process and present their own ideas and suggestions.
A rose to Mississippi State University for its donation of a bus to the Oktibbeha County Emergency Management Agency to be used as a mobile command center. MSU donated the bus — a 24-passenger Goshen Coach that was in service from 1996-2018 — on Friday. The bus could serve as a workspace for events ranging from storm responses to search and rescue operations. It can be used for anything that would require OCEMA officials to be on the scene, making their work more efficient and timely. We applaud the university for their generous donation. Ultimately, it will improve emergency response efforts throughout the county.
A rose to the Starkville High School boys basketball team, which played Meridian Saturday evening in Jackson for the State 6A championship. The Yellow Jackets advance to the title game by holding off Brandon, 64-61 Wednesday as SHS ran its record to 29-1. Starkville and Meridian will be familiar foes in the title game. On Nov. 8, the Yellow Jackets defeated Meridian, 60-53 in the second game of the season. Win or lose, making it to the title game is a notable achievement. Congratulations, Yellow Jackets!
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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