A rose to Matt Dowell, who officially becomes the executive director at Golden Triangle Regional Airport on Friday upon the retirement of Mike Hainsey, who leaves after 19 years in the position. There was little suspense in this changing of the guard. From the moment Hainsey announced he was stepping down in February, it was clear Dowell was the obvious choice, having served under Hainey’s tutelage for the past nine years as the airports assistant director. Like Hainsey before him, Dowell comes to the job with a lifelong passion for flying and his experience at GTRA makes him particularly well-suited for the job. During his time at GTRA Dowell worked closely with Hainsey as the airport saw millions of dollars in improvements and expansions. GTRA is of vital importance to our community, so it’s comforting to know that the choice of our new airport director will ensure a seamless transition. Congratulations and best wishes, Matt!
A rose to the Mississippi State University Television Center, which brought home eight Southeastern Emmy Awards for their productions over the last year. The center was nominated for 15 awards This is the second consecutive year of regional Emmy wins for the center. The University Television Center provides production services to the MSU community as well as clients across the country. The documentary work they have produced and received multiple awards for in recent years is part of a creative storytelling initiative called MSU Films. Since 2019, the center has produced a variety of compelling content ranging from a 10-minute film about the burning of Old Main Dormitory to pieces on natural resource conservation in coastal Mississippi. This year, they received awards in a variety of categories, including two awards for their flagship documentary series “The Hungriest State.” We applaud their work in helping document important parts of our state.
A rose to all those who answered a call for volunteers by the Golden Triangle Homeless Coalition. Earlier this week, the GTHC had to postpone plans to open a cooling station at Main Street Presbyterian Church in Columbus for lack of volunteer staffing and someone to coordinate volunteer schedules. After a story in Wednesday’s Dispatch on the situation, GTHA co-director Sandra DePriest said the calls came in almost immediately. “We’ve got a good crop of volunteers now,” DePriest said. “So now we’re watching the forecast to see when the cooling station will be needed. Whenever that is, we’ll be ready.” A big thanks to Mary Thrash, who will serve as volunteer coordinator as well as all those who have stepped up to serve the community in this effort.
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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You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 37 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
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