Shoutouts

Shelter Show 2020

Local artists, with support from the City of Oxford, have taken their work to the streets. More specifically, the designs have been installed at Oxford University Transit bus shelters in the city to shine a bit of brightness.

Shelter Show 2020 features uplifting messages or murals that are indicative of the COVID-19 environment into which the world has settled. The first mural was installed at the OUT shelter on Bramlett

The Downtown Tupelo Main Street Association is the proud recipient of one of a trio of 2020 Great American Main Street Awards recognizing communities for their excellence in comprehensive preservationbased commercial district revitalization.

Selected by a national jury of community development professionals and leaders in the Boulevard near the city skate park across the street from the Lafayette County and Oxford Public Library.

Designed by artist Sarah Frances Hardy, the mural features four people wearing masks with the phrase “Mask Up” written across the top.

“Our goal with this pop-up installment was to bring a smile to our community during these tough times and to highlight the talents of some of our locals,” said Oxford

Great American Main Street

fields of economic development and historic preservation, Tupelo is being recognized for building a lively downtown with a thriving small business environment and inclusive community events.

Downtown Tupelo has built on its legacy as the home of Elvis Presley and transformed its Main Street from a buttoned-up corridor that shut down after 5 p.m. to a bustling district with live music, art galleries and farm-to-table restaurants thriving alongside legacy businesses. DTMSA has seen an entrepreneurship renaissance over the past decade, with 83 businesses opening, which has generated over 1,300 jobs. Today, 34 minority-owned and operated businesses are open, 29 of which are women-owned.

DTMSA has continued to support small Mayor Robyn Tannehill.

Local artist Earl Dismuke collaborated with the city and asked artists to submit works to be considered to be placed on an OUT bus stop shelter. Others whose work was selected include Anne Scott Barrett, Frank Estrada and Kara Giles.

Other locations of murals include University and McLarty Road, in front of the OUT facility on McElroy Drive and at 800 Park on College Hill Road.

business owners during the pandemic. The program launched a dedicated website to support local merchants and provide one-on-one assistance with services such as e-commerce support, social media training and web development. DTMSA has also helped coordinate the application process for the local Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), and worked with the city of Tupelo and business owners to allow parklets for outdoor dining and live entertainment.

“We are ecstatic to finally be chosen as a Great American Main Street Award winner after being a semifinalist three times,” said Debbie Brangenberg, longtime director of the DTMSA. “Ours is a unique story of transformation, where innovation, creativity and inclusion coincide.”

SHOUTOUTS continued

Congratulations, Miss USA!

Asya Branch, pictured on the cover of the October 2019 issue of Invitation Oxford.

Booneville’s Asya Branch was named Miss USA on Nov. 9, in a socially distanced gathering at Graceland in Memphis. The 22-year-old’s win, over 50 other contestants, made history as Branch became the first Black woman to represent Mississippi in the Miss USA competition. She is also the first Mississippian to win the title.

Branch also held the title of Miss Mississippi in 2018 and competed in the 2019 Miss America competition.

She is a staunch advocate for criminal justice reform — her father served a decade in prison. As a result, Branch began an initiative called “Finding Your Way: Empowering Children of Incarcerated Parents.” One of eight siblings, Branch entered Harvard University when she was 17 for summer school. She is a graduate of the University of Mississippi and has her own cosmetics line, Branch Beauty.

The competition, slated initially for the spring, was delayed due to COVID-19. The Miss Universe competition has not been scheduled, but will be likely take place between January and March 2021.