Aug-Sept 2018

WIN A WEEKEND TO GULF HILLS RESORT IN OCEAN SPRINGS! SEE INSIDE!

AUG / SEPT 2018

Cowboy to the Bone The Legendary Rick Thaggard

Child oipfpi Mississ The music of Emily White

M I S S I S S I P P I ’ S A W A R D - W I N N I N G C O N S U M E R T R AV E L P U B L I C AT I O N W W W. R E A D L E G E N D S . C O M

7th Annual #BluesTweetUp Wednesday, October 3, 2018 featuring the Prince of the Delta Blues, Keith Johnson!

Begin your blues journey at Tunica’s Gateway to the Blues Museum located on Highway 61—the Blues Highway. See the story of the blues come to life in all its tormented and anguished glory. You’ll experience interactive exhibits, artwork and more— including a recording studio where you’ll learn the basics of blues music with a chance to record your very own blues song. So, before you trek through blues country, get in a blues state-of-mind at the Gateway to the Blues Museum.

VISIT tunicatravel.com/blues

CALL 888.4TUNICA

TWITTER @TunicaMS | @TunicaBlues

FACEBOOK facebook.com/Tunica MS

Wherever you’re headed, we’re going your way.

The Best Little Airport in the World Meridian to Dallas or Chicago to the World • MeridianAirport.com • Book your American Airlines flight today! • AA.com READLEGENDS.COM •

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It made Muddy wail+ Kermit talk+ Faulkner write.

What will it do for you?

Mississippi gives rise to more than our fair share of legends.

See what inspired them and spark the legend within you.

Meridian, Mississippi msarts.org 2•

AUGUST | SEPTEMBER 2018

CELEBRATE THE WIN,

then come home to Meridian Hilton Garden Inn

MISSISSIPPI STATE

2018

U.S. Hwy. 11 and 80 – Meridian • 601.485.3506 www.hgimeridian.com

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PUBLISHER AND PRESIDENT ��������������������Marianne Todd VP OF MARKETING AND SALES ����������������������������Chris Banks LEAD GRAPHIC DESIGNER ��������������������Shayne Garrett WEBSITE DESIGNER ������������������Kevin Chertkow

Win a Weekend for Two at Gulf Hills Resort!

Enter to win at ReadLegends.com.

Contact LEGENDS 601-604-2963 Editorial/Advertising - 601-604-2963 | Editor@ReadLegends.com Contributing writers: Meghan Holmes, Riley Manning and Julian Rankin Contributing photographer: Michael Barrett LEGENDS welcomes your calendar submissions.

Calendar submissions for consideration in LEGENDS’ print calendar may be sent to Editor@ReadLegends.com.

Copyright 2018. All rights reserved. No portion of this publication may be reproduced or reprinted without express permission from the publisher. The opinions and views expressed by our contributors, writers and editors are their own. Various views from other professionals may also be expressed. Neither LEGENDS nor Blue South Publishing Corporation is endorsing or guaranteeing the products or quality of services expressed in advertisements. All advertisers assume liability for all content (including text representation and illustration) of advertisements printed and assume responsibility for any resulting claims against LEGENDS or its affiliates. Materials, photographs and written pieces to be considered for inclusion in LEGENDS may be sent to P.O. Box 3663, Meridian, MS 39303. Unsolicited materials will not be returned. Blue South Publishing Corporation provides thousands of free copies in its coverage area to tourism offices, welcome centers, hotels, restaurants, theaters, museums, galleries, coffee shops, casinos and institutions of higher learning. If your business, agency or industry would like to be considered as a LEGENDS distribution point, please contact us at Editor@ReadLegends.com.

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CONTENTS AUGUST | SEPTEMBER 2018

MUSIC 12 Child of Mississippi

The Music of Emily White

CULTURE 20 COVER STORY: Cowboy to the Bone The Legendary Rick Thaggard

30 Saving the Company Store

Repurposing America, One Building at a Time

37 Second Chances

TAME and A Point of Splendor

42 Crystal Waters and Sugar White Beaches

SunDestin's Visitors Fall for the Panhandle's Best Season

WIN A WEEKEND TO GULF HILLS RESORT IN OCEAN SPRINGS! SEE INSIDE!

Rick Thaggard leads a posse of students to a neighbor's farm for cutting training. On his own farm in Madden, Mississippi, Thaggard breaks and trains horses. He offers classes in riding and horsemanship both in Madden and Meridian. (Photo by Marianne Todd).

AUG / SEPT 2018

Cowboy to the Bone The Legendary Rick Thaggard

Child of Mississippi The music of Emily White

M I S S I S S I P P I ’ S A W A R D - W I N N I N G C O N S U M E R T R AV E L P U B L I C AT I O N W W W. R E A D L E G E N D S . C O M

4•

ABOUT OUR COVER

AUGUST | SEPTEMBER 2018

CULINARY 8 Fresh from the Gulf

Toney's Grill and Seafood Market

EVENTS 47 What's Shakin' in the Cradle Calendar of Events

38

www.bcbsms.com Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi, A Mutual Insurance Company is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. ® Registered Marks of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, an Association of Independent Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plans.

303 N Farish St. Jackson, Mississippi

Kitchen open till 4am with superb drinks and great music! • www.fjonescorner.com READLEGENDS.COM •

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AUGUST | SEPTEMBER 2018

2018 Spring/Summer

Performing Arts Series

KC and the Sunshine Band Saturday, August 18 7:30 p.m.

Custom T-SHIRT Hot-Rodded &

CATALOG Guitars

Discoing right out of the 1970s, powered by a full horn section, a flashy stage show, and an irresistible beat, it’s KC and The Sunshine Band. Harry Wayne Casey, better known as KC, got millions of people to lace up their boogie shoes during the heyday of big hair and glitter balls. Sampling of his songs by rappers has introduced a whole new generation to such soundtrack-of-the-’70s hits as “Get Down Tonight,” “That’s the Way (I Like It),” “(Shake, Shake, Sponsored by: Shake) Shake Your Booty,” “I’m Your Boogie Man,” and “Keep It Comin’ Love.” Come join the party!

For Fans of: Kool & the Gang, Chic, Bee Gees

2220 8th St. • Downtown Meridian • 601-485-1363 www.meridianundergroundmusic.com

Black Shirts with Silkscreen Print Sizes available: Small - XL Price: $20.00

Assorted colored shirts with white ink.

Sizes available: Small - 4XL Price: $20.00

Visit www.msurileycenter.com to see upcoming shows for the

Silkscreen Print

Assorted colored shirts w/white ink.

Sizes available: Small - 4XL Price: $20.00 Assorted colored shirts Silkscreen Print w/black ink.

Sizes available: Small - 4XL Price: $20.00 Silkscreen Print

Monday - Wednesday 10:00 am - 9:00 pm Thursday - Saturday 10:00 am - 10:00 pm

FALL/WINTER

PerforminG ARTs series 2018-2019 2200 Fifth Street • Meridian, MS 39301 • 601.696.2200 www.msurileycenter.com

RileyCenter READLEGENDS.COM •

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AUGUST | SEPTEMBER 2018

STORY FROM VICKSBURG, MISS.

Fresh the

Gulf

Toney's Grill and Seafood Market

By MEGHAN HOLMES Photography by MICHAEL BARRETT

I

t’s a busy day at Toney’s Grill and Seafood Market in Vicksburg, Mississippi. Owner Charles Toney stops at each table, greeting customers new and old. He radiates friendliness and boundless energy, with kind blue eyes and gray hair. He has a self-deprecating sense of humor and a creative bent that makes him instantly likeable, and that has kept him in the restaurant business for decades.

“We will be full tonight,” Toney says, scanning the dining room as he speaks. “We’ve got a biker group coming, and they’ve been eating here every year for the last ten years. I’ve also got someone coming in who is going to play some live music. When the bikers called to say they were coming back, I said we would be in our new building.”

OPPOSITE: The poboys at Toney's Grill and Seafood Market come pre-smashed, and the seafood is always fresh from the Gulf Coast. Customers have been flocking to this Vicksburg restaurant since 1986. The restaurant moved to its new location on U.S. Highway 61 this spring.

Toney's new location opened this spring on U.S. Highway 61, and now features a large back patio where musicians perform and a back dining room with an impressive wooden bar. Toney built the bar – and the light fixtures and the sinks and the plates. “We built that bar based off a picture of my old boat - Pure Pleasure One. We just sold her last month and I like to have cried. It was tough, but I do have Pure Pleasure Two,” Toney says, laughing.

The bar spans nearly the length of the back dining room, with giant rods and reels and taxidermied fish behind it. The floor is adorned with pictures of different species of brightly colored fish, and the tables feature photographs that Toney’s wife Christin arranged into collages. It tells the story of Toney and his family, and largely focuses on one of his favorite activities - fishing in the Gulf of Mexico.

“I’ve been fishing the Gulf for 30 years, and charter fishing for five,” he says. “I take people out from Grand Isle in South Louisiana, READLEGENDS.COM •

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where I have a camp. I’m just one of those people that can’t sit still.

I like to work. I also like being around people, and my father had a restaurant, so I wanted to follow in his footsteps.”

Charles Toney Sr. started his Vicksburg restaurant in the early 1970s. “Both Charles and his father have really made their mark on the Vicksburg restaurant scene,” says Laura Beth Strickland, deputy director of the Vicksburg Convention and Visitors Bureau.

“Combined, the two have been serving the city for around 50 years.”

The elder Toney’s restaurant was called Toney’s Sidewalk Cafe, located in a building he purchased behind the Old Battlefield Mall.

“He had a bakery and an ice cream parlor, and he decided to open up a restaurant in part because he had been a naval cook in WWII,” Toney says. “In the '80s, he opened up a seafood buffet. For years it was a buffet.”

Toney started out working with his father and eventually opened his own spot in 1986. In addition to the restaurant, there’s also a market featuring a large selection of fresh, raw seafood, located in a separate area adjacent to the main dining room. Customers browse shrimp, crawfish, crab legs, catfish, and redfish. After deciding what sort of seafood they want, they can take it home raw or the

restaurant will prepare it.

“I get shipments in two, sometimes three times a week all from suppliers based on the coast,” Toney says. “Our seafood is always fresh. Our biggest problem thus far has been lack of space. We have been so much busier than I anticipated, I’ve had to order two more walk in coolers.”

As the restaurant’s name suggests, Toney’s is known first and foremost for its seafood. There’s fried shrimp, boiled crawfish (in season), grilled red snapper or redfish, soft shell crab, and even alligator on the menu. They’re also known for their smashed poboys, an idea that came to Charles several years back.

“What’s the first thing you do when you get a poboy?” he says.

“You smash it down so you can eat it. We do that for you. The idea was floating around in my brain for a few years before we decided to start doing it last year, and it’s been wildly popular. I come up with all kinds of crazy things.”

He's partly alluding to his ability to make just about anything.

The restaurant’s plates are hand carved wood, and the sinks used to be bathtubs and pump handles before he drilled holes into the tubs and turned them into something else. When he isn’t at the restaurant

In addition to the restaurant, Toney's offers a market featuring a large selection of fresh, raw seafood. Customers can browse shrimp, crawfish, crab legs, catfish, and redfish and bring it home either raw or prepared.

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AUGUST | SEPTEMBER 2018

or building something he’s usually fishing off the Louisiana coast.

“Last year I was down there May to October, but this year I’m going to be in the restaurant more and have my captains running my charter fishing bookings, but I’ll still try to make it down there as often as possible,” he says.

Although Toney's creativity and attention to detail were key in building of his new restaurant, he is quick to credit his wife and dozens of community members who continuously add to the building’s decor. “I put probably $20,000 worth of fishing equipment in here, but it wasn’t just me. I had a guy the other day bring me an anchor that was a solid 60 pounds of aluminum. He could have sold it, but he brought it here for me to put on the wall.

I’ve got about a half a dozen old motors that people have dropped off that haven’t made it onto the walls yet either,” he says.

The contributions of long term regulars to the new space highlight the impact Toney has had on the Vicksburg community.

“It’s a good atmosphere to be in,” Toney says. “I always laugh and say that I like dogs more than people, but I like people, too.” L

AMERICAN HISTORY Visit the site of America’s defining war. Learn about the defense and siege of Vicksburg in our unique collection of museums and historic tour homes. Surrender yourself to the luxury of our bed and breakfast inns.

As the restaurant's name suggests, Toney's is known first and foremost for its seafood.

There's fried shrimp, boiled crawfish, grilled red snapper or redfish, soft shell crab, and even alligator on the menu.

~

Mississippi Music ~ Southern Charm

Scan this QR to visit our mobile site and get your keys to Vicksburg.

/VisitVicksburg

VisitVicksburg.com READLEGENDS.COM •

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AUGUST | SEPTEMBER 2018

f o d l i h C Mississippi The music of Emily White

By RILEY MANNING Photography by MARIANNE TODD

A

STORY FROM MERIDIAN, MISS.

healthy crowd has gathered at The Sports Page, a hideaway night spot favored by Meridian locals for its good food and great music.

Sporting the only cowboy hat in the room, Emily White steps onto the stage and underneath the blue spotlight, slinging her guitar over her shoulder. She begins to sing.

Sunburned noses and bare feet Hand me down clothes and a fort made out of sheets Splinters in our toes from climbing those pine trees

READLEGENDS.COM •

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Running from bumble bees looking up at blue bird skies Fishing with with cane poles, bottling up fireflies Roasting marshmallows, skinny dipping at midnight.

The crowd begins to clap and cheer. They all know the next lyric and sing along in adulation.

I am a child of Mississippi.

As a girl, Emily White didn’t keep a diary—she kept a guitar.

The newest buzz in Meridian’s music scene and beyond, White's voice has the syrupy soul of an old-school country singer, and she’s got the guitar picking skills and songwriting chops to match.

Like many musicians who got their start in a musical household, White's influence came from her mother, Angela White. “She used to play in Nashville all the time, and always has musicians and bands over at our house playing or practicing,” Emily says.

Like a lot of kids, she started out playing piano, but itched for a guitar. The family had moved from Quitman, Mississippi, to Georgia, when across the street from Emily’s house she got her first guitar for $30.

“It was beat up, and the label was all scratched off, but I loved it,” Emily says. “I wasn’t older than 13, maybe even 12. I started transposing piano music to guitar right away, and started writing my own songs pretty soon after that.”

My magnolia memories, guiding me back home I know I' ll always be, no matter where I roam I am a child of Mississippi

TOP to BOTTOM: (left to right) Chris Courtney, John Fera, Emily White, and Steve Wilkerson perform White's original tunes at The Sports Page in Meridian; White has been playing professional gigs since she was 16 and is anticipating a CD release at the end of the summer; the crowd at The Sports Page cheers White on as she sings "Child of Mississippi."

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AUGUST | SEPTEMBER 2018

“She had a keyboard in her bedroom and on that keyboard there were programmed songs that would light up and show her the keys,” says Angela. “She found an Elton John song and drove us nuts.

“But the guitar was like $30 or $40. And we got her some strings. It was my husband, Eddie, who said, 'She needs some lessons' and from then on it was bang, bang, bang … and within six months her teacher said he had taught her everything he could teach her.”

She advanced to her next guitar.

“They loved her voice, and she was cute as pie with the guitar, so we got her an Ibanez,” says Angela. Shortly after, Emily met and began studying under Wallace Reed, lead guitarist for The Marshall Tucker Band.

By the time she was 16, she was playing gigs every weekend.

Now that she’s back in Meridian, people are listening.

Go to heaven for the climate, Greenville for the festivals.

Leo “Bud” Welch performs on yearly occasions at the Mighty Mississippi Music Festival’s Main Stage and Highway 61 Blues Stage.

FERGUSON ON FIRE August 24-26 • Greenville • (901) 652.1390 Boat races, vendors, and live music at Schelben Park 41ST ANNUAL DELTA BLUES & HERITAGE FESTIVAL September 15 • Greenville • deltabluesms.org Oldest-running blues festival in the country 8TH ANNUAL SAM CHATMON BLUES FESTIVAL September 21-22 • Hollandale facebook.com/SamChatmonBlues Bikes, barbecue, and the blues in home of Sam Chatmon 8TH ANNUAL“JIM HENSON” FROG FEST & CHILI COOKOFF September 29 • Leland • lelandchamber.com Features professional story-tellers, magicians, live music, Delta cuisine and live puppet performances visitgreenville.org • (800) 467.3582

bridgingtheblues.com

6TH ANNUAL MIGHTY MISSISSIPPI MUSIC FESTIVAL October 11-13 • Greenville • mightymsmusic.com Live music festival held in Warfield Point Park featuring the Highway 61 Blues Stage, which is now in its 19th year 7TH ANNUAL DELTA HOT TAMALE FESTIVAL October 18-20 • Greenville facebook.com/DeltaHotTamaleFestival Celebrates the Hot and Soul of the Delta with local and regional artists, musicians, and tamale makers, as well as some of the South’s most influential chefs and writers 12TH ANNUAL NATIVE AMERICAN DAYS October 24-26 • Winterville • fb: wintervillemounds Features Native American dancing, chanting, games, arts and crafts, demonstrators, archery, food and more.

Convention & Visitors Bureau

READLEGENDS.COM •

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Sunday morning church pews, picnics on the ground The call of the whippoorwill, when the sun goes down Tire swings and sweet tea, southern treasures I have found Potholes and country roads, catching tadpoles in the stream Tangled hair and muddy toes, and patches on our jeans I hear that mockingbird, singing his song to me.

These days every experience feels like a song to her.

“The moment I came back home that's the song that flowed out of me,” Emily says, referencing her soon to be released “Child of Mississippi.” It connects me to everyone else in the South. They can grasp on to at least one of the verses in there.”

The song is one of eight to be featured on the CD that will bear the name of its title song. “We've done about four songs, and we're about half way through. Only one song, “Early Monday,” is a cover.

The rest were written by White, about “heartbreak, the heat in the South, coming back home, growing up, and gossip. It's everything about a small town,” she says.

Guitarist John Fera is featured on the album and says White's reputation preceded her.

“I finally caught one of her solo gigs. Being a young singersongwriter, I was hoping for good songs and a good voice – not

really expecting much on the guitar beyond basic chords to support the song,” he says. “But her guitar skills were killer, in addition to the writing and the singing. All that, and she’s totally relaxed, and has great rapport with the audience. The whole package.”

Since meeting her, Fera has become a family friend, performing with her often and now recording several original tunes in the studio.

“Not surprisingly, she’s a pro in there, too,” he says. “We do several takes of each song, and she usually nails every take. She’s also open to ideas from the band, which makes it even more fun. It’s been a blast to work with her.”

After living in Georgia for 11 years, she returned this year at the age of 23, to Meridian. Her family had moved back to Mississippi, just outside of Meridian, and she followed, hoping to break a spell of writer’s block. As soon as she set foot on her home turf, the block began to lift.

“You never stop writing,” she says. “A lot of people say this, but it’s true: the best songs flow out of you in 20 minutes, scrawled on napkins at bars. Some take years to perfect. Sometimes it takes breaking a bunch of things and smashing them together. You can’t be afraid of that, if you’re going to be a song writer.”

She was readily welcomed into Meridian's community of musicians.

“It’s like a little Nashville,” she says. “Meridian is booming with

Emily White performs with (left to right) fiddler Derrian Davis, bassist Johnny Miller and her mother, Angela White.

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AUGUST | SEPTEMBER 2018

talent.”

Emily said she hopes to release her CD by the end of summer. She’s an independent artist, and hasn’t released an album since she was 16.

“I want it to be perfect.”

Also appearing with her are Atlanta's Steve Wilkerson and Meridian's Bill Pippin of The Louisiana Hayride, both on keyboards; Meridian recording tech Clay Barnes on bass (who also did the mix) and Stone Senate drummer David Zettler.

“As a fellow child of Mississippi it does my heart good to hear someone of such immense talent able to convey both the richness of our culture along with the simple things that make it such a wonderful place to grow up,” Wilkerson said. “Emily White is everything that also makes Mississippi great … beautiful, talented, and has only the sky for a limit.”

For Zettler, transitioning from hard rock to a more stripped down feel is a natural move for him.

“I’m from Virginia, but I’ve lived in Mississippi since I was 5,” Zettler says. “I guess that makes me a Mississippi boy.”

Like Fera, Zettler had heard Emily’s name around Meridian.

When he finally saw her play live, it was at an event with a lot of other musicians playing, too. He could tell right away she was a total package musician, somehow reminiscent of traditional country music, but new at the same time.

“She puts rhythm and vocals together in a way that most people don’t, and it works for her,” he said. “There’s a lot of good players in this town, and a lot of big name people have come out of here. She’s got all the potential in the world. She doesn’t sound like the stuff on the radio, and she’s well-respected by the scene here.”

In 10 years? “It depends on where the road is going to take me,” she says. “When someone goes into the music industry, they don't do it for the money. They do it for the love of it. And if this road takes me into the limelight, that's great. But I'm not doing it for the fame, but because people identify with my music. That's the biggest goal.”

In the meantime, she has a CD to release.

“I’m excited to put this album out,” White says. “It's about coming home, about small towns and the heat, my God, the heat.”

L

I am child of Mississippi.

My magnolia memories, guiding me back home I know I' ll always be, no matter where I roam I am a child of Mississippi.

Want to know more?

Visit emilywhitemusic.com

READLEGENDS.COM •

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AUGUST | SEPTEMBER 2018

OPENS SEPTEMBER 8, 2018 at the MISSISSIPPI MUSEUM of ART ART CREDITS: Jeffrey Gibson (Mississippi Band Choctaw/Cherokee), Like A Hammer, 2014. Elk hide, glass beads, artificial sinew, wool blanket, metal studs, steel, found pinewood block, and fur; 56×24×11 in. Collection of Tracy Richelle High and Roman Johnson, courtesy of Marc Straus Gallery, New York. | AMERICAN HISTORY (JB), 2015. Wool, steel studs, glass beads, artificial sinew, metal jingles, acrylic yarn, nylon fringe, and canvas; 89×66×5 in. Lent by the Lewis Family. | I PUT A SPELL ON YOU, 2015. Repurposed punching bag, glass beads, artificial sinew, and steel; 40×14×14 in. Collection of the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University, Durham, North Carolina. Museum purchase, 2015.11.1. Images courtesy of Jeffrey Gibson Studio and Roberts Projects, Los Angeles, California. Photographs by Peter Mauney.

JEFFREY GIBSON: LIKE A HAMMER IS ORGANIZED BY THE DENVER ART MUSEUM.

T H I S E X H I B I T I O N I S G E N E RO U S LY S P O N S O R E D BY T H E

w it h su p por t f rom

380 SOUTH LAMAR STREET | JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI | MSMUSEUMART.ORG | FREE ADMISSION 19

The Mississippi Museum of Art and its programs are sponsored in part by the city of Jackson and Visit Jackson. Support is also provided in part by funding from the Mississippi Arts Commission, a state agency, and in part by the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency.

READLEGENDS.COM •

“Young horses and kids are so much alike to me.

I demand respect and they give it. But I respect them.

[They’re] like a blank canvas.

What you put on that – it’s going to stick." ~ Rick Thaggard

CLOCKWISE: Visitors enjoy Vicksburg's architectural details, like this column on the Old Courthouse Museum and the Civil War cannon on the front lawn; along the riverfront, a marker describes Vicksburg’s famed catfish row, an area once home to wharves where workers loaded and unloaded cargo. OPPOSITE: A mural along the river depicts Vicksburg's history; Christ Episcopal Church; barge traffic at sunset on the Mississippi River.

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AUGUST | SEPTEMBER 2018

STORY FROM MADDEN, MISS.

The Legendary Rick Thaggard

By JULIAN RANKIN Photography by MARIANNE TODD

T

ucked away among the quiet hills of Madden, Mississippi, two dozen children and teens on quarter horses line up to ford the waters of Alligator Pond. “Why is it called Alligator Pond?” one boy asks. “Because it’s got a gator in it” says their leader, a mustached, 57-year-old veteran horseman wearing a wide-brimmed, beige cowboy hat and a belt buckle as big as his forehead. The gator is about 6 feet long, the cowboy tells the young riders, “not big enough to eat you, but big enough to bite you.” The kids halt their horses at the water, uncertainly scanning the depths for the gator. The cowboy guides his horse into the pond, and the kids follow. The cowboy is Rick Thaggard. This is his Cowboy Camp.

“I think it’s a need,” Thaggard says of his camp, which trains boys and girls to handle horses, tie goats, rope calves, and much

more. “There are other camps but no one does it as cowboy as we do.”

After they cross Alligator Pond, they loop back and do it again.

And again. And again. By the end of the ride, Thaggard has pulled over to the side. He watches the kids, who have parked their horses in the middle. They’re doing cannonballs into the water from the backs of their horses.

“That gator isn’t going to bother anybody,” Thaggard says. “But it gets their eyes big. And once they see that I ain’t worried about it, they go, ‘Oh, okay. Heck, if Rick’s not worried, let’s go.’”

This brand of cowboy-leadership is key to Thaggard’s approach.

So is his decades-long experience of breaking colts. When he was a younger man, he and his little brothers would break 65 or 70 colts a year. “Young horses and kids are so much alike to me,” he says. “I READLEGENDS.COM •

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TOP to BOTTOM: Possum Moore watches fellow students run their horses through Alligator Pond; about 40 children and teens descend on Madden's Thaggard Farms each June for Cowboy Camp. OPPOSITE: Riders take a break at Madden's Quick Stop; Rob Reynolds was trained by Thaggard and now teaches others; Jace Clayton works as a junior executive; riders travel to a nearby farm for cutting classes.

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AUGUST | SEPTEMBER 2018

demand respect and they give it. But I respect them. [They’re] like a blank canvas. What you put on that – it’s going to stick.”

Which one is easier to break, horses or kids?

“Horses,” Thaggard says, without hesitation.

As many as 40 young people attend Thaggard’s Cowboy Camp each year, as young as eight years old and up through high school. The older kids, longtime students, and family members are deputized as junior executives. They help run the camp.

Thaggard’s niece, Olivia Thaggard, is one of these junior executives. A Meridian native, she’s been riding since she was small.

“You get on the horse and it’s always different,” she says. When the two are in sync, says Olivia, “it’s the most amazing feeling you’ll ever experience.”

The aspiring cowboys and cowgirls split up for sessions. One group ropes the legs of a dummy calf dragged behind a four-wheeler.

The other group weaves in and out of poles in an adjacent pen. Over the course of the four-day camp, they’ll practice barrels, too. A flag race. A trail ride. A big round up in one of the cattle pastures. At the end of the day, Thaggard pulls out a big Slip n’ Slide and turns on the water hose. The kids don swimsuits and hurl themselves down the hill. That’s the evening bath. They sleep on-site – the boys in the loft and the girls down below – in one of Thaggard’s dwellings.

During a break in the action, Micaela Beason practices tying goats. Thaggard calls her a roping demon. She squats down and lunges toward the animal, flips it onto it’s back, and pins it down with her knee. In a matter of tenths of a second, she’s pulled the rope from her teeth and cinched it around three of the goat’s legs.

It happens too fast to even follow the intricacies of her knot. The sound is like that of a zip-tie pulled tight. Beason is headed off to college soon on a rodeo scholarship.

Husband and wife team Teresa and Rob Reynolds are instructors at the camp. They met Thaggard years ago when he taught them to ride, and now they’re passing it down to the younger generations. For Teresa, the kids represent progress. “All of these probably started little bitty. Now look at them,” she says. Rob, an ex-marine and pilot, helps guide the boys. The instructors reiterate that this camp is about more than just riding a horse. It’s about working together. “You can’t do it yourself and a horse can’t do it by itself,” says Teresa. “It’s a team.”

Marley Jay is a pint-sized girl of about eight years old, riding atop a yellow horse. She’s quiet and will stare a hole through you.

She doesn’t speak much, but she listens well. She’s a crowd favorite.

“Don’t let her age fool you,” says Thaggard. “She’ll be famous one day. She’s got the best mechanics out here.” She and her horse weave through the poles as if they’re of one mind. “See, her feet and hands are always working together,” adds Thaggard. “It’s like a dance.”

Thaggard Farms is family land. Eight hundred acres of it.

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Rick Thaggard’s father was a doctor, like his daddy before him. He wasn’t a cowboy, but he loved horses. Thaggard’s brothers and sisters went into the medical profession, too, as doctors and psychologists.

Thaggard is the only one left on the farm, which he runs full-time.

“They all got letters behind their names except for me, unless S.O.B. counts,” he laughs. “But this is what I love. Been trying to make a living the hard way my whole life. Wouldn’t have it any other way.”

What does it mean to be a cowboy in a modern world?

“I’d like to say freedom but you’re married to all these horses,” Thaggard explains. “You ain’t really free. You’re always doing more for others. It’s not a job. It’s a lifestyle. And it’s a lifestyle that I like.”

Thaggard pulls out a tin of Copenhagen and puts a fresh dip into his gums. He’s been dipping since he was 13 years old. If it was any better, he says, it’d be illegal. This rough-hewn cowboy, who has been tossed from broncos and who works all day on the land, is also a sweetheart. He’s polite, and thoughtful, and loving. A cowboy is that, too.

“ I would be perfectly happy

never to leave Madden again.”

~ Rick Thaggard

Thaggard gives a lecture to his students before directing them in cutting. The students take turms at separating specific cows from a small herd. The lesson is one of many provided by Thaggard who has trained countless children to ride throughout the years.

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AUGUST | SEPTEMBER 2018

Thaggard is a bachelor (“I never was good at answering to nobody, anyway”), but he’s also the caretaker of his granddaughters.

They’re also experts on horseback. “I’m like a single mom,” he says. He makes sure they’re fed, both physically and symbolically.

The lifestyle allows him to teach them about life, drive them to competitions across the country, and keep them close. “These rodeo kids. They’re out here practicing all the time. They’re not sitting in the house playing video games, or riding around getting into trouble.”

To say Thaggard is like a cowboy straight off the silver screen is to do him a disservice. Nothing about Rick Thaggard is contrived.

He doesn’t model himself after cowboy depictions in the Westerns.

“Them guys in movies, they’re just characters,” he says. If anything, they’re modeled after him. Thaggard has competed on the circuit himself, making long trips on the open road to rodeos. These days, he prefers the front end of the process: working with the horses and, during his camps, working with the kids. “I would be perfectly happy never to leave Madden again,” Thaggard admits. “If I could stay right here on this place, suits me just fine.”

Beginning each fall, Thaggard moves his training operation to Meridian each Tuesday, where he trains adults and children, hauling 15 or so horses, saddles, bridles, and tack in a single trailer for each trip. “I'm building skyscrapers,” he says of the kids he trains. “The adults are harder.” But Thaggard is up for the challenge, believing horse therapy can mend all kinds of ailments and bring people

Quality Goods, Mississippi Made 2120 B Front Street | Meridian, MS 39301 601-207-5072 | Monday - saturday 9 am - 6 pm www.crookedletter.shop

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Van Clayton and Colby Moore, top left, place numbers on cows while Briggs Eakes takes in the action. Students practice cutting techniques with Thaggard looking on.

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AUGUST | SEPTEMBER 2018

closer to nature.

Rick Thaggard has no hobbies. He doesn’t buy golf clubs or fishing poles. Everything revolves around the farm and the work.

It will always be that way for him. “I’ve been watching obituaries since I was 18 when I decided this was what I was going to do,” he says. “And I’ve never seen where a retired cowboy died. Well I know we ain’t living forever so I guess that means we work until we die.

I don’t worry about putting back for retirement because I know it’s never going to happen. Just rock on.”

When it’s all said and done, Thaggard knows he will have left his mark: on the horses he’s trained and on the kids he’s helped mold. He hopes his obituary will be short and sweet.

“I hope it says, this cat could ride a horse. He was fair to everybody he met.” L

Want to know more?

Rick Thaggard provides lessons for children and adults at his farm in Madden and Tuesdays in Meridian during fall, winter, and spring months. He is currently accepting new students for fall and on Tuesday. Horses, saddles, and tack are provided. Classes fill up quickly.

For more information, call Thaggard at (601) 562-3195.

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STORY FROM STONEWALL, YAZOO CITY AND TUPELO, MISS.

Saving the Company Store

Repurposing America, One Building at a Time

By RILEY MANNING Photography by MARIANNE TODD

I

one time. t's melting hot outside. Just under the tin roof of Stonewall's old mill, though, the fans are on. It's enough mixture of shade and “I love making this stuff,” she says, slipping a tiny rose into a air to make the visitors comfortable. They've braved the rising tiny silver vase she crafted from a silver utensil. She picks up a few temperatures on this July day to browse through key rings fashioned from old silver spoons. They an unusual assortment of antiques – everything chime like the clinking of forks and knives.

“I see things from 19th century refurbished iron cookware to

Inside the old mill, with its towering how they ought lace, soaps, books, and iron baby beds. On their rooftop, iron work from old farm equipment and way into the mill, they stopped for a snowball or fancy artistic pieces to anchors shaped like stars to be, not a lemonade. lie strewn about. There are iron beds for adults how they are.”

Jan Cade lays lace over vintage suitcases and babies alike, along with an array of wrought– Lin Carruth and arranges her wares carefully. They're spoons iron lighting fixtures. and old silver, chains, remnants of jewelry fused

Throughout the South, visionaries together as one of her own designs. The uniqueness is punctuated by breathe life into the desolate industrial buildings that dot the old photographs, people who might have used or worn the pieces at downtowns of so many southern cities.

TOP: Lin Carruth breathed new life into Stonewall's general store that serviced the mill across the street for years. The Company Store now specializes in antiques and hard to find unique items like this antique clock. OPPOSITE: At the Milltown Market across the street, held every second weekend of the month, visitors can find everything from vintage jewelry to iron work and old boat motors.

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AUGUST | SEPTEMBER 2018

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Olinda “Lin” Carruth is one herself. She began Creekside Mercantile and the Coffee Pot Café out of an old mechanic shop five years ago. It wasn’t much: a roof and a slab and four truck bays across the front.

“My husband said, ‘What in the world are you gonna do with that? No one is gonna want to come to Enterprise, Mississippi,’” Lin said. “I told him, ‘Oh yeah, they will. You just watch.’”

Lin won out. The store began as an antique shop, then morphed into a coffee shop, and today it’s a full service restaurant and bar, complete with a limousine that taxis people to and from the place.

About a year ago, Lin’s husband, Ed Carruth, attended an auction in the area and came away with a collection of what some might have called eye-sores—a bunch of properties associated with the old cotton mill in nearby Stonewall. Ed figured he’d just sell it, but Lin had other ideas.

“I’m a visionary,” she said, “I see things how they ought to be, not how they are.”

The Carruths partnered with a local man, Terry Plummer, to revitalize what they call “Milltown” and get the mill booming with business once again.

Milltown Five miles east, nestled in Stonewall's downtown, Milltown is made of a main mill structure, a two-story pump building, the former company store, a few storefronts, and the old company bank.

The mill itself hosts a monthly vintage market, where vendors rent booths and sell their crafts to shoppers. When Creekside Mercantile transitioned fully into a restaurant, Lin moved the store to the mill's old company store, and appropriately named it The Company Store.

Stonewall native Jessica Melton runs the store a two-story brick structure reminiscent of how it looked when the mill was hustling and bustling. She has become a near historian on the story of the mill and the area. Workers there wove cotton into thread, then that thread into denim.

“Ground broke on the mill in 1868 as Stonewall Manufacturing Co. Later, it was bought by Erwin Mills, and in 1962, Burlington bought it and closed it down in 2002,” she said. “Everything in this town used to be run by the mill. Without it, there wouldn’t be a Stonewall at all.”

Most anyone who is of age and resides in Clarke County knows someone who worked at the mill.

The buildings are still beautiful. The old bank even retained its tin roof sculpted in the 1800's. Plummer and the Carruths plan TOP to BOTTOM: Yazoo City's Downtown Marketplace is the perfect example of how America's old buildings are being repurposed for a shopping experience; Jan Cade arranges her display at Milltown Market in Enterprise; antique cast iron shoe molds are part of the collectibles to be found at Milltown Market.

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AUGUST | SEPTEMBER 2018

Coffee Pot Café at Creekside

Creole Cuisine

Limosine Service Available

Serving Lunch 11-2 Tuesday-Saturday 120 West Bridge Street • Enterprise • Mississippi • 601.659.0500 • Creekside120@att.net READLEGENDS.COM • 33

for a wedding venue, a holiday store, and a consignment shop for hunters and fishermen. They even plan to bring back the swimming pool at the company hotel.

“People kept asking us to do something—anything—with it,” Plummer said. “They really didn’t want to see these historical buildings go to waste.”

Melton agreed, saying her great grandfather and uncles worked there.

“A lot of people around here have some sort of tie to it,” she said. “That’s the thing that makes small towns so great, the hidden history behind everything. I’m excited to be part of this next chapter of its history.”

Downtown Marketplace and Relics both occupy a piece of history.

Yazoo City burned in 1904, and was rebuilt all at once over the next year or so. Consequently, the buildings downtown are all still connected and consist of similar architecture. Most are brick, but some are marble. The hit Cohen brothers film “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” was shot largely in Yazoo City.

Now, though, Yazoo City has a downtown of a different color.

“Another couple here started the trend of painting the buildings funky, wild colors—green and purple, things like that—and it really brightened up our downtown and made it unique,” Vernette said. “Everybody went along with it. It’s made downtown fun just to The Mystery of History walk through, and we’re so glad to be a Yazoo City and Tupelo part of it.”

Relics resides in the former Vernette and Jet Griffin own Tupelo Garment Company cotton mill, Downtown Marketplace in Yazoo City, built in 1904. Elvis’s mother used to a vendor mall hosting more than 80 work there when she was pregnant with vendors selling everything from antiques him, working long hours for low wages. to modern clothing, refurbished

“Those ladies worked all day in furniture to war memorabilia. Of this Mississippi heat with windows open course, Downtown Marketplace also and no air conditioning, sometimes serves locally made cheese straws, toffee, 50 and 60 hours a week for little to and other goodies. nothing,” Tony said.

The Griffins opened Downtown

Antiques are popular in the Marketplace in 2011, after selling their South. Southerners have an appreciation chain of rent-to-own stores, which left for history, a nostalgia and a respect for them with a huge spare building. As tradition. For antiques, that history is a stop on the Blues Trail, Yazoo City personal. brings in a steady traffic from foreign

“We remember our grandparents visitors. and the things they used to have, and “We have repeat customers from that nostalgia means a lot to us, and it Austria, France, and Australia who Relics resides in the former Tupelo Garment Company cotton mill, built means a lot to our vendors and customers, come every year,” Vernette said. “Last in 1904. Elvis’s mother used to work there when she was pregnant with Tony said. "Everything in Relics has a week we had a couple from West Palm him, working long hours for low wages. Below, a tag dates cast iron story behind it.”

Beach, Florida, who were vacationing up cookware to late 19th and early 20th centuries at Milltown Market

It can juice the economy of the here to get away from all the tourists in Florida. They loved Yazoo town, as well. Dawn Davis works with Yazoo City’s Convention and City.”

Visitor Bureau. She said the revitalization like the kind exemplified

Heather and Tony Palmer opened Relics Antique Marketplace

by Downtown Marketplace can make the difference for a small in Tupelo back in January. It was a leap of faith for the couple, who town. have always held an interest in antiques. Heather even left her job “It’s hard to find a parking spot downtown during the week,” to get Relics off the ground.

Davis said. "A whole different story from even just 10 years ago.

“We saw a need for a true upscale antique mall, not a flea People who come to Yazoo City leave and spread the word about market,” Tony said. “From the beginning, we said we’d rather have what a great place it is, and that brings more tourism dollars that 10 booths that are true to our vision than to have a full building of goes into everything else.” L vendors we weren’t really jazzed about.”

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AUGUST | SEPTEMBER 2018

Experience y t i l a t i p s o H n Souther at it’s best!

Play on our 18-hole Championship Golf Course, or enjoy a game of tennis on our outdoor Rubico courts, Watch beautiful sunsets over Old Ft. Bayou from our Arbor; Whether you are here on business or pleasure – you’ll enjoy a good night’s rest.

Want to go?

The next scheduled Milltown Market, at 400 Erwin Road, Stonewall, Miss., is for August 10th-12th, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m on Sunday. For more information, visit facebook.com/ milltownmarketstonewallms or call (601) 659-4444.

The Company Store is located in downtown Stonewall across from the mill. Hours are Tuesdays through Fridays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m,. and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. For more information, visit facebook. com/thecompanystore337 or phone (601) 659-4444.

Downtown Marketplace, at 231 South Main Street, Yazoo City, Miss., is open Mondays through Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Visit facebook.com/downtown. marketplace or phone (662) 746-5031 for more information.

Visit Relics Antique Marketplace in Tupelo at 248 South Green Street or visit them at facebook.com/ relicsmarketplace or phone (662) 260-5228 for more information. Hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays and noon to 6 p.m. Sundays.

13701 Paso Road, Ocean Springs, MS 39564 | 228.875.4211 | Toll Free 866.875.4211

www.GULFHILLSHOTEL.com READLEGENDS.COM •

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“I spent years in prison, and I had committed serious crimes.

I thought I was a hopeless and helpless case.”

STORY FROM MERIDIAN, MISS.

~ Adele Williamson Graham

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AUGUST | SEPTEMBER 2018

Second Chances TAME and A Point of Splendor

By MEGHAN HOLMES Photography by MARIANNE TODD

A

Meridian city and Lauderdale county courts both send offenders to TAME. “The judges that I used to be so afraid of are now the ones that contact me and ask me for help,” says Graham, pictured at right.

dele Williamson Graham remembers vividly the first day she left prison on work release, during the third year of a five year sentence for various felonies.

She had found a flower, and it was the first time in years she had seen one. She picked it, tucked it into her shirt pocket, snuck it through security and back to her cell. When she took it out of her pocket the flower was crushed and wilted, but once she put it in water it revived.

She looked at the flower, now standing upright. “I realized I could be whole again, too. My past was my past, but I could move forward,” she says.

Ten years after her release from prison, Graham opened a small business in Meridian to help alcohol and drug offenders complete court-certified rehabilitation programs. Her work expanded rapidly, growing to include a holistic counseling center and a health and wellness center. Together, TAME and A Point of Splendor offer a variety of services, including cutting edge therapies not widely available in Mississippi, like reiki healing and mindfulness meditation. Graham’s mission is to offer customized treatment to READLEGENDS.COM •

37

each client, often grounded in her own experiences struggling with addiction and anxiety.

“I spent years in prison, and I had committed serious crimes. I thought I was a hopeless and helpless case,” Graham says. “I was able to turn that around though, and make it through because of my recovery.”

She took a job working in the court system and could see an immediate need for addiction counseling. “There was a gap there, and people weren’t getting the help they needed. And, as part of the process of my recovery, I felt a need to help other people struggling with addiction,” Graham says. “When I looked at the curriculum that was available at that time, I found it to be somewhat shaming in nature, and those struggling with addiction are already drenched in guilt and shame. Adding more shame to that increases the likelihood that someone will re-offend.”

When she started teaching classes in 2012, TAME consisted of Graham, a security guard, and an answering machine. “I started looking at other therapists and practitioners and their work and thinking about how to integrate that into TAME,” she says. “I eventually realized that I wanted to make a holistic health and wellness center that served anyone wanting to optimize their physical and mental health, and that’s how TAME and A Point of Splendor were born.”

There are now eight facilitators, two office managers, a court monitor, and security personnel. Meridian city and Lauderdale county courts both send offenders to TAME. “The judges that I used to be so afraid of are now the ones that contact me and ask me for help,” Graham says.

Graham purchased a large property in Meridian with trees and a garden and a large open barn, all meant to encourage mental and physical well being. She also hired several new therapists to bring their work to the center, including Jenna Ward, a licensed massage therapist who does energy work and weekly mindfulness meditation classes.

“I can’t say enough good things about TAME,” Ward says. “People talk about it like it’s their oasis, with the woods around you and a garden in the back. That just creates a new path to heal.”

Part of what’s unique about TAME is a focus on nontraditional approaches to therapy and healing, utilizing the link between mental and physical well being. “Science has shown that anxiety is linked to high blood pressure,” Ward says. “So, if you practice mindful meditation, and learn to quiet your monkey mind, that lessens your anxiety and can alleviate the physical manifestation of that anxiety.

That thinking also wears out your physical body in general. There are lots of new psychotherapies that work with raising mental awareness to promote physical healing. When you combine that with tools like massage and reiki, there can be a huge impact on someone’s well being.”

TOP to BOTTOM: Yoga classes are offered as part of TAME's holistic approach; Christi Webb Vanderpoorten is a licensed marriage and family counseler, a personal trainer, and a nutrition and life coach; the grounds at TAME offer a vegetable garden and barn used for meditation; clients relax in one of several waiting areas.

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AUGUST | SEPTEMBER 2018

Debi Lynn Juhl began practicing reiki at the center in 2015 after meeting Ward through a mutual friend during an Orange Beach vacation. During a reiki session, the practitioner directs energy at different areas of the body to promote healing and well being, sort of like a massage without touching. “Every living thing has a life force, a life energy,” Juhl says. “So with reiki that energy is directed at a physical person as they relax to release toxins and promote healing. Once a person feels better, that makes other types of recovery, like addiction recovery, easier.”

In addition to meditation, massage, and reiki, A Point of Splendor also offers yoga, gardening, cooking and nutrition classes, essential oil healing sessions, and retreats. TAME’s services include outpatient addiction and substance abuse treatment, as well as treatment for anxiety, depression, trauma, grief, and eating disorders. Christi Webb Vanderpoorten is a licensed marriage and family counseler, a personal trainer, and a nutrition and life coach who works with TAME. Like Adele, it was overcoming her past struggles that inspired her to become a counselor and help others.

“I’m in recovery from an eating disorder, so that being part of my personal story definitely led to where I am now,” Vanderpoorten

says. “I do a lot of dialectical behavioral therapy … working on changing negative thoughts and dealing with anxiety and moving beyond just the 12-step program. We want to put people back in control of their own thoughts and their own mind.”

Vanderpoorten emphasizes that at TAME it’s about patients learning ways to feel in control, through healing their mind, body, and spirit. “We don’t just take a clinical view, because that ignores emotional and spiritual health. Sometimes it can be as simple as asking someone what they’re eating, and also offering a cooking class,” she says.

Ultimately, Graham also sees TAME as an effort to improve the community overall by reducing recidivism and raising awareness of substance abuse and addiction. “My goal is to help others and through that to also help the community,” she says. “I’m a mother of three, a grandmother, and Meridian is my hometown, so I work hard to make this community to be the best that it can be.” L

Want to know more?

For more information, or to make an appointment, visit TAME and A Point of Splendor at tamellc.net.

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AUGUST | SEPTEMBER 2018

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STORY FROM DESTIN, FLA.

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AUGUST | SEPTEMBER 2018

Crystal Clear

Waters and

Sugar White

Beaches

SunDestin's visitors fall for the panhandle's best season

By MEGHAN HOLMES

D

estin, Florida, has a well-deserved reputation for beautiful beaches with turquoise waters and sparkling white sand. SunDestin resort, located in the heart of the city, boasts incredible views of this part of the Gulf and easy access to ample on and off site amenities. The recently renovated resort has two restaurants, a tiki bar, and dozens of other attractions and restaurants surround it.

With Destin hosting an annual 4 million visitors, fall may be the best season for a weekend retreat. With most tourists returning home there is ample space on the beach, little traffic, no waiting in lines and best of all – the water is still warm enough for swimming.

SunDestin has 276 units and was built in the 1980s, although recent renovations to two restaurant spaces, the lobby and front desk areas give the resort a contemporary appearance. It’s age means that some guests have been visiting the resort every year for decades, something the resorts chef, Shane Rexroad, appreciates.

“We have winter guests who have been coming for 30 years, and this will be the first year they can have elevated cuisine served fresh on site,” he says. “I’m really looking forward to learning about their READLEGENDS.COM •

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AUGUST | SEPTEMBER 2018

Resort amenities include large indoor and outdoor pools, a hot tub, sauna, and beach service staff. There are one, two, and three bedroom units which include a full kitchen and private balcony.

favorite menu items.”

Chef Rexroad oversees the kitchen at Rosada, a coastal Mexican restaurant opened this year. The menu uses fresh, simple ingredients, like homemade tortillas and locally sourced seafood and vegetables, to create authentic Mexican dishes including tacos, burritos, and rice bowls. “We also have a few beach items because the restaurant is on the beach, and there is an adjacent tiki bar,” Rexroad says.

“We just had our soft opening, so a lot of menu items are still being finalized. Right now we are getting feedback from guests.”

The resort's Birdie’s Coffee and Stuff in the lobby functions as a general store for guests and also offers high end coffee drinks and pre-made breakfast items and sandwiches. “Taylor Rohrberger owns Rosada and Birdie’s, and he also owns Two Birds Coffee in Seascape, so he was the one who picked out the gourmet espresso machine that we have in Birdie’s and who selected the decor in Rosada,” Rexroad says.

The restaurant’s walls are millennial pink and adorned with pop art, giving the space a bright and beach-appropriate vibe that’s balanced with high end elements like a marble bar. Rosada offers variety of margaritas as well as other craft cocktails and draft beer. “We also cater when the hotel has events like weddings and conferences,” Rexroad says. “It’s a great opportunity for me because I am getting to cook high end food and I can also walk out of the restaurant and be standing on the beach.”

SunDestin has several spaces for events, including a ballroom with a patio area that can accommodate 100 guests and a smaller reception room with accommodations for 30. “For weddings, people exchange vows on the beach and then come inside to continue celebrating,” says Rachel Velasquez, Northwest Florida marketing manager with Wyndham properties. “With more than 3,000 squarefeet of space, we can host all types of events, like family reunions or business meetings, with accommodations on site for everyone and plenty of nearby activities available.”

Other resort amenities include large indoor and outdoor pools,

heated seasonally, a hot tub, sauna, and full beach service staff.

There are one, two, and three bedroom units which all include a full kitchen and private balcony. The decor varies as units have different owners and rentals are arranged through Wyndham. All units feature large, floor-to-ceiling windows with panoramic views of the Gulf Coast.

The white sands and water visibility in this part of the panhandle mean snorkeling, kayaking, and scuba diving are all popular activities. Nearby companies also offer paddle boarding, charter fishing, and parasailing. Kayaks and paddleboards are available for rent on site from La Dolce Vita, the same company that rents beach chairs. For the less adventurous,nearby state parks offer opportunities for birding and exploring dunes and coastal lakes, and some guests prefer to take in ocean views privately from their balcony.

“Through our Key to the Beach program, our guests also receive discounts to a variety of attractions and restaurants, including Big Kahuna’s Water and Adventure Park and Tailfin’s Seafood Ale House and Oyster Bar. The location of SunDestin makes everything convenient,” Velasquez says. Guests will receive a Key to the Beach card with their check-in packet, giving them exclusive discounts around Northwest Florida.

Other popular nearby attractions with discounts include the Destin History and Fishing Museum, Rock Out climbing gym, Fat Daddy’s Arcade, Rent Gear Here bike rentals, and more than a dozen area restaurants (including Rosada). Many guests also enjoy nearby opportunities for shopping, including Silver Sands Outlets, The Grand Boulevard, and The Market Shops.

Most of all, visitors to SunDestin enjoy the beach. With private access to keep out the crowds, families build sandcastles while fisherman relax near poles pushed into the sand and small groups idle near the surf. The views of this coast, along with amenities and a friendly staff, have kept the same visitors coming back for decades, and will continue to for years in the future. L READLEGENDS.COM •

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Clarksdale, Miss.

Aug 9-12 … Sunflower River Blues and Gospel Festival in downtown Clarksdale at the Clarksdale Civic Auditorium.

Featuring local blues musicians like O.B. Buchana, Christone “Kingfish” Ingram, James “Super Chikan” Johnson and many more.

Event is free to the public. For more information, visit sunflowerfest.org.

Sep 24-30 … The first Clarksdale international street-art event, Paint the Town at Delta Ave., Downtown Clarksdale. Mural Dedication Party is the 29th at 2 p.m. Stay tuned for a full list of artists visiting from Bogota, Colombia. For more information, visit visitclarksdale.com.

Greenville, Miss.

Sep 15 ...The 41st Annual Delta Blues & Heritage Festival. The festival ,which began in 1977, is now the largest blues festival in the Delta and the oldest in the United States and features blues artists from near and far. Tickets are $30 for general admission.

Children under 12 get in free. Gates open at 10 a.m. For more information, visit deltabluesms.org.

Jackson, Miss.

Aug 9-11 … The Mississippi Zydeco Jamboree at the Mississippi State Fairgrounds. The event brings trail riding, campouts, rodeo, and a racking horse show. The schedule also extends to live zydeco, blues, hip hop and R&B performances. Horses, campers, RVs, tents and golf carts are all welcome at the Mississippi State Fairgrounds. For more information, call (769) 798-9412 or (601) 918-2333.

Sep 29 … 35th Annual WellsFest at Jamie Fowler Boyll Park. Featuring music, a children’s fair, silent auction, food & drink vendors, arts and crafts, a pet parade, and more with all proceeds going to a non-profit charity organization. Event starts at 9:30 a.m. For more information, visit wellschurch.org.

Leland, Miss.

Sep 29 … 8th Annual Leland Frog Fest & Chili Cook Off in downtown Leland. A celebration of the arts in honor of Jim Henson, who spent his boyhood in Leland – where he was inspired to create the Muppets. The event features hands-on art activities, live music, a chili cook-off and a 5k and fun run. Event is free to the public. 5k begins at 8:30 a.m. For more information, visit lelandchamber.com.

Meridian, Miss.

Aug 4, Sep 1 … Earth’s Bounty at Singing Brakemen Park. Featuring fresh fruits, vegetables, honey, jams, jellies, breads, soaps, shrubs, flowers, local artists and more! Come out and bring your family and friends! For more information, visit visitmeridian.com or call (601) 485-1944.

Aug 18 … KC and The Sunshine Band at the MSU Riley Center. Discoing right out of the 1970s, powered by a full horn section, a flashy stage show, and an irresistible beat, it's KC and The Sunshine Band. Event starts at 7:30 p.m. Tickets start at $58. For more information, call (601) 696-2200 or visit MSURileyCenter.com.

Morgan City, La. Aug 31-Sep 3 … Louisiana Shrimp & Petroleum Festival in downtown Morgan City. A home town festival celebrating the seafood and petroleum industries which are the backbone of the areas economic development. Featuring shrimp boats, arts & crafts show, POP Ride Bracelet, Carnival rides, Festival Music Stage, 5K Fun Run/Walk, Festival Car Show, Field Games, Races and Children Contest, Blessing of the Fleet and Water parade, Street parade, Fireworks on the River, Fellowship of Love Gospel Stage and many more. Event starts at 9 a.m. and is free to the public. For more information, visit shrimpandpetroleum.org or call (958) 385-0703.

Vicksburg, Miss.

Aug 17 … Billy Bob Thornton & the Boxmasters at Waterview Casino. Tickets are $15 and you must be 21 years or older to attend. Event starts at 8 p.m. For more information, visit visitvicksburg.com or call (601) 636-5700.

Sep 22 … Vicksburg National Military Park - National Public Lands Day. In honor of National Public Lands Day, visitors can enjoy free admission at the Vicksburg National Military Park. To Confederate President Jefferson Davis, Vicksburg was the "nailhead that holds the South's two halves together." President Abraham Lincoln remarked "Vicksburg is the key" to victory, and could be the north's lifeline into the south. As the federals closed in on the Fortress City, they were met by a ring of forts with over 170 cannon. The resulting battle would determine the war's outcome. Come experience the history of the Civil War. For more information, visit nps.gov or call (601) 636-0583.

Yazoo City, Miss.

Sep 2 … 9th Annual Holly Bluff Friends & Family Day at Miller’s Place in Holly Bluff, MS. This family-friendly event, held annually on the Sunday before Labor Day, includes free food, door prizes, dance battles, live music, karaoke, many games and activities for children, arts & crafts, horse rides, and more. For more information, visit visityazoo.org or call (214) 680-7753.

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WEEKENDS ARE FUN on the

CAJUN COAST!

FALL FESTIVALS La. Shrimp & Petroleum Festival | Aug. 31– Sept. 3 | Morgan City Berwick Lighthouse Festival | Oct. 6–7 | Berwick Patterson Historic Walking Tour & Fall Fest | Oct. 13 | Patterson Chitimacha Pow Wow | Oct. 20 | The Pavilion at Cypress Bayou Casino, Charenton Harvest Moon Festival | Oct. 27 | Downtown Franklin

#cajuncoast (800) 256-2931 | www.cajuncoast.com | Only 90 minutes from New Orleans, Baton Rouge or Lafayette

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