A program recognizes people who are quietly and anonymously helping make the Bay-Waveland area a lovelier place to live.
- story by Ana Balka, photos by Katharine Truett Ohman

“Wait,” she said, “we’re talking about — you were calling about another program.”
 
“Beautiful Deeds,” I said. She laughs, and I point out that Truett Ohman’s many causes seem to overlap. She agrees.
 
“They’re all about re-greening,” she says.
 
“Caught in the Act of a Beautiful Deed” is a program by the Hancock County Chamber Beautification Committee (which Truett Ohman co-chairs with Ellis Cuevas) that aims to “catch” Hancock County citizens in the act of environmental beautification. The committee feels that recognizing these citizens for their contributions is essential since they help improve the quality of life in our community. Recipients are sent a letter of recognition for their civic-minded beautification assistance.

“We’re always trying to acknowledge individuals out there who are working so hard,” Katharine says. Members of the Chamber’s Beautification Committee are always on the lookout for people doing good work around town, but this is a challenging and random effort.
 
“I’d love for it to be public so if someone sees something they can email me directly,” says Katharine.

She asks Hancock County residents to look out for people picking up trash, caring for trees, weeding public areas, or performing other voluntary beautification efforts around the county.
 
To nominate someone, email Katharine with the recipient’s name, location, activity, contact information, and any other pertinent information (the more info, the better to identify the person and the deed, she said).

The Bay's Poet Laureate, Keeper of the Mockingbird Garden and Decorator Extraordinaire, Lane Shaw brightens up the world.
- story by Pat Saik, photos by Cynthia Miller

The festival will bring holiday fun to the whole family with Dream Castle Bounce Village, H&H Express Train, Hollywood Casino Sugarplum Village, Christmas music and the return of Silver Slipper Casino Stage with live music from Roman Street. Special appearances by Santa Claus, Rudie the Reindeer, and Queen Elsa!
 
Festival-goers will notice the new Alice Moseley Pavilion on the grounds of the depot during the event.  Last month Hancock Tourism hosted a reception for honored guests and visitors who attended the dedication. The pavilion is part of an on-going effort by the Friends of Alice Moseley Museum to honor both Miss Alice and the city.

Get a bird's eye view of one of the largest natural river systems in the country at the new Pascagoula River Audubon Center!
- story by Rebecca Orfila, photos by William Colgin and Rebecca Orfila

Access to a riverine setting makes the Pascagoula River Audubon Center (PRAC) a unique experience for locals and visitors interested in a different kind of activity.  As mentioned on PRAC’s website, “The Center provides a gateway to what is widely recognized as one of the last, large unimpeded river systems in the contiguous United States.” 
 
In October, PRAC celebrated the opening of its visitor’s center, a grand, wooden tree house looking out onto the verdant space.  Expansive in size and construction, the center’s interpretive and informational displays include aquariums and terrariums of animals indigenous to the center. The updated facility offers programs and workshops for adults and children.

Topics addressed include the biology and ecology of coastal wetlands, habitat restoration, natural history, plant identification, and local geology.  On the outside, along walking trails, interpretive displays serve to guide and inform visitors.  Special fishing days and kayaking are also offered (check with PRAC for the current schedule of events).  Currently, there is no set fee for visiting PRAC, but donations are accepted.
 
Mark LaSalle, PRAC’s director, explained during a recent interview and tour, “The programs are habitat based . . . and the new center expands on-site capacities for visitors.”  LaSalle, a Mississippi State University (Ph.D) graduate, is tasked with the continued development of the center plus growing the educational and science programs in southern Mississippi.  When asked how PRAC benefits the local community and the larger Mississippi Gulf Coast, LaSalle explained that visitors leave with an enhanced awareness of the nature around them.   Mozart Dedeaux, curator and education coordinator, supports the hands-on experience for adults and children to learn about their environment.
 
Ecotourism on the Mississippi Coast is a growing industry and one that incorporates educational sites, such as PRAC.  For out-of-town travelers, including winter season visitors, the uniqueness of the Southern coastal environments makes for a new and special experience.

Perfect for giving children an interactive experience in nature, a play garden is situated near the entrance of the center.  Shade trees surround the play area where youngsters can participate in tactile activities and play on equipment highlighting the natural environment.  Observation benches for parents have been placed within the garden.  LaSalle noted that one of the favorite activities for kids was the slide constructed to look like a fallen log. 
 
Toddler Tuesdays are currently being held on Tuesdays (Nov. 17-Dec. 15) from 10-11:15 a.m. Adults are required to be present. The Toddler Tuesdays are free for members, $3 per child/per class for non-members, or $12 for five class series for non-members (for additional information or to pre-register, call 228-475-0825 or email [email protected]. 

In addition to educational and experiential programs, the center conducts the Audubon Master Naturalist Program, which trains adult volunteers on natural history.  A Junior Naturalist pilot program has been conducted in the past for teens between the ages of 14 and 16.
 
A small gift shop, a conference meeting place, and catering kitchen are also present in the new center.  The meeting room can be rented for special events or group meetings.  According to Dedeaux, the center will be the site for two future weddings.  For additional information on reserving the center for meetings or other events, call 228-475-0825 or email: [email protected]. 
 
By mid-afternoon, the sun moves from overhead, eventually dropping below the tree line across the bayou.  Falling tide and an afternoon shower signal the coming end of the day.  As the rain abates, the fauna wake and break the quiet with their calls and chirps. 

An artistic family calls on all their construction, real estate and design experience to transform a derelict historic house into a welcoming showplace.
- story and photography by Ellis Anderson

The Rosendahls’ appreciation of art and design spans the decades of their marriage.  The couple both grew up in Naples, Florida and met when Vicki took a job working at an exclusive designer apparel store owned by Ron’s parents.  The two college students found they shared a common interest in art and music and were caught up with the creative energies sweeping the country in the 1960s.  While Ron finished his degree in international business administration, Vicki focused on completing a commercial art degree.
 
 When the two began their family, Ron focused his business savvy on construction, which was booming in the ’70s and early ’80s.  Although his primary business eventually evolved into consulting on large-scale development projects in the Caribbean, Vicki and Ron worked on many upscale residential homes together.  Ron would design and build the house, while Vicki — who had studied further and obtained licenses as an interior designer and a real estate broker — would create a custom and complementary interior.  The team developed a reputation for “making space work.”
 
Vicki’s art background gave her a knack for discovering standout work by local artists — pieces that would become focal points in luxe Naples homes.  Ron, who’d followed his artistic muse despite his busy career, found that his own sculptures were in demand throughout South Florida.  Since he worked mostly in stone at the time, he also had opportunities to design and create award-winning stone altars and fonts for well-known churches.

The couple first visited the New Orleans area in the early ’90s, after son Matt moved there to pursue a Master’s at UNO.  The Rosendahls became regular visitors, even more so after Matt established himself as one of the city’s quality renovation contractors.  When their son purchased a weekend home in Bay St. Louis before Katrina, Vicki and Ron were enchanted from their first visit.  They made plans to build in the town and relocate eventually.
 
Katrina changed those plans, along with those of everyone else on the coast.  Afterward, nothing remained of Matt’s Bay St. Louis house except a single piling.  To complicate matters, Ron began battling a grave and extended illness.  In the coming years, Vicki often wondered if the active life they’d shared was coming to a close.  They downsized from their large Naples house into a small cottage near Cedar Key, Florida, waiting to see what the future would bring.  
 
In 2011, the future delivered, big time.  Matt, who’d continued building and renovating in both New Orleans and in Bay St. Louis, went to Bay St. Louis on the behest of Vicki to check out an abandoned house that she’d seen on the Internet.  Although the interior was wrecked and the structural integrity dubious, the team of three had the vision and experience to make the purchase.  They began the renovation with enthusiasm. 

The project took a year and a half.  Ron’s health began to stabilize and he was able to come to the Bay and work with Matt on occasion.  For instance, the two looked for weeks for a piece of granite large enough to cover the huge kitchen island without a seam.  It had to be big and have “just the right movement.”  Vicki says even though she wasn’t able to visit often, “every decision was a group decision.” But the parents trusted their son’s taste and instincts completely.
 
“Matt’s always got great ideas,” says his mother.  “Most of the time, if he suggested something, we said, ‘just do it.’”  
 
“The three of us brought all the knowledge we’d learned from decades of building to this project,” says Ron.  As an example, he points to a hidden steel beam that added strength to the back structure.  A distinctive feature they collaborated on is the bead-board wainscoting throughout the house:  it’s made from wood salvaged from the original ceilings that had been collapsing when they made the purchase.  Vicki insisted on leaving the original paint colors of taupe, turquoise and ivory, with lots of natural wood showing through the layers.
 
At 2000 square feet, the house is smaller than the Rosendahls are accustomed to, but they say it fits them “just right.”  Their experience with designing well-thought-out spaces shows throughout.  Although it’s three bedrooms and three-and-a-half baths, no space feels cramped.  The high ceilings contribute to the sense of spaciousness.  Comparing them to the lower ceilings common in Florida, Vicki says “it’s opened us up.”  Her studio, outfitted with built-in cabinetry, gives her both room to create and ample storage.  Ron, whose work requires a larger studio, may eventually build one on the home’s large lot, but for now, he’s content with a small cottage in the neighborhood that gives him room to work large.

The couple chose soft beige-grey neutrals for most of the walls to better showcase the artwork.  The colors gives the master suite a restful, spa-like feel.  There’s one exception to the softer wall colors, however:  the Haitian Room.  The couple have an exceptional collection of originals, purchased long ago from Haitian artists who lived in the island’s highlands.  Vicki chose a dark blue for the wall color of the guest room where the collection resides, then used lime green as an accent color.  The effect is somehow a combination of energizing and restful.  
 
The couple have settled happily into their new home, often sitting on the front porch to listen to music coming from Depot Row or watching events unfold on the Depot park lawn.  The entertainment features of the house come in handy.  Matt and his wife, Lauren, divide their time between Bay St. Louis and New Orleans.  Daughter Kerry, who lives in the Bay, along her rescued black Lab Louie (short for Bay St. Louis) comes over often.  Oldest son Chris (who, no surprise to anyone, sculpts as well) and grandson Rider still live in Naples, but they visit several times a year.
 
Even with a revolving roster of family and guests, the Rosendahls admit that their home is a still work in progress.
 
“Come over next time,” says Vicki, “and we’ll have everything all changed around.”  
 
With two such talented artists in the same household, who makes the final decisions on décor? Vicki begins to laugh.  “We don’t always have the same opinions,” she says.  “But in the end, I get my way.”
 
Ron smiles in response and then winks.  “We work it out,” he says.

Artists are unique people.  I can say that with confidence - because I am an artist.  And so is my wife.  As well as one of our daughters. We are familiar with the artist "raison d'etre,' which means we have to do art and be around art to fulfill our sense of purpose and meaning. That's why I have always loved to enter or peek into the private world of other artists' homes.  They construct, paint, spray, and stage everything as if their homes were just another canvas or another gallery to display their work.

The other thing that artists do in their homes is collect or acquire things that energize them and help them to find inspiration and new influences for their own art. Artists' homes can also be fascinating self-portraits about the art they wish they could have done or are hoping to involve in their own art. The secrets and revelations to discover in artists' homes are limitless - just like the unending expressions artists may depict. Artists' homes are their safe place set apart from a world that may not understand them.

Our good fortune is that some artists let us in to walk around and share their personal space. And we are allowed to discover the fascinating and different way others live and embellish their nests. Or how an artist uses their home to find meaning and refuge.. Perhaps it is as the author Pierce Brown says, “Home isn't where you're from, it's where you find light when all grows dark.”

Martha Whitney Butler's comprehensive guide will have you laughing and hunting your local antiques shop for fun finds!
 - story and photos by Martha Whitney Butler

Aluminum Tree Ornaments
Plastic ornaments produced for mid-century aluminum Christmas trees.  Makers: Jewel Brite and Bradford.  These babies can be found in a variety of shapes, sizes, and colors.

Bottlebrush
This refers to the material and shape used to produce Christmas trees, wreaths, etc. These items really do look like they're made of bottlebrushes! Rare colors such as red, pink, and white are highly coveted.

Candy Containers
These come in all shapes and sizes. They range from empty sleighs with reindeer to small elves whose heads can be removed. If it opens or can be stuffed, it was most likely a candy container. Empty sleighs were often filled with decorations and placed around every year as decorations after the candy was all gone.

Color wheel
This rotating wheel of filtered lights is traditionally plugged in and place by an aluminum tree to give it a glittering, glowing effect.

Diorama
A Christmas diorama can consist of many elements, but most commonly they are adorned with Santas and reindeer placed around a cardboard chimney nucleus. Most of these are stamped “Made in Japan”. Not to be confused with indents (below).

"Fancy" Shapes
Classified as members of the figural family (below). This term is used in reference to Shiny Brites ONLY. The Shiny Brite Co. marketed some of their ornaments under the name “fancy shapes”. Shiny Brites vary in shape and size, often taking on a mid-century design.

Feather Tree Ornaments
Similar to miniatures in size, this is another term that is used to describe ornaments less than 1 inch in diameter. Most were figural and produced pre-1920s.

Figurals
Ornaments that are found in odd shapes. Figural ornaments come in many shapes and sizes. These include swans, fruit, trumpets, houses, animals, flowers, tops, Christmas trees, pinecones, baskets, acorns, etc.


Indent
This term refers to a concave feature in the design of the ornament. Indents are decorative cavities in the body of an ornament that are shaped to reflect light and come in a variety of styles. Some are very shallow, while others are so deep that they can hold an entire Christmas scene. A lot of the indents I see come through the store are filled with miniature reindeers and Santas.


Made in Poland/Poland Ornaments
Polish ornaments are fairly common and they are also among the most coveted. A lot of these ornaments were hand blown and hand painted, thus, no two ornaments are exactly the same. These are mostly found in the normal ball and teardrop shapes and many have indents and glitter. If you find an original box of these, snatch them up!

Mercury Glass
Not a planet, but a term alluding to the silvering of an ornament (similar to how mirrors are made). Many sellers call any type of silvered glass mercury glass- WRONG! TRUE mercury glass ornaments have two walls of glass with the silvering poured in between them. Seasoned vintage Christmas dealers will know the difference. Don't be afraid to ask or do some research if you're looking for true mercury glass.

Mica  
This one refers to sandy or sparkly flakes used to adorn ornaments. Most of the ornaments you'll come across will actually be flocked with glitter, not mica. You will find mica on Christmas village houses and vintage dioramas more than ornaments. It usually wants to shed, so be careful!

Mini's or Miniatures
Ornaments smaller than 1 inch diameter. Maker: Shiny Brites (mostly) Make sure not to confuse these with feather tree ornaments.

Pontil/Pontil Mark
The trademark sign that a glass ornament has been hand blown. A small bump is formed on the bottom or top of the piece when the process is complete. This is an indication of good quality.

Premier  
A name brand ornament. They are often mixed up with Shiny Brites because of like shapes and colors. These ornaments were also popular during the mid-century era, but they are difficult to find.

Putz
The small Christmas village houses that often served as light covers. The colored cellophane in the windows is often broken out, but if it is perfect condition, you've got a real gem. These houses are often convered in mica that sheds easily.

Shiny Brite  
Another famous brand of ornaments. These were very popular during the 1950s and 60s, and could be found by thousands in every five and dime across the country. These come in all shapes, sizes, and colors.

Stencils
Ornaments with a solid color background and decorated with a white stenciled design.

West German/West Germany Ornaments produced in West Germany. These ornaments are not found in the same numbers as Poland and Shiny Brite ornaments, but are still fairly common. Most of the W. German ornaments I’ve seen are shaped as balls and bells, but also come in the form of a candy container. Theses are typically coated in black glitter and white mica snowflakes. The West German ornaments were the OG’s of Christmas ornaments. If you see an ornament marked W. Germany, grab it!

WWII
Ornaments that were produced during WWII. All of these ornaments had NO silvering (transparent) and were produced with paper caps because of the metal shortage during the war. I rarely see these, as they are highly collectible because of their limited production. I struggle with determining the authenticity of these if they are missing their paper tops. Sometimes the caps were replaced later. Watch out for ornaments that have simply just lost their mercury coating. A good indication is a transparent ornament with no top at all. I have a handful at the shop. One is made of beautiful cobalt blue glass.

Of course, I've barely scratched the surface of vintage Christmas collecting, but please feel free to contact me, pop into the shop,  or take me out for a drink to discuss the vast world of vintage Christmas!

​An iconic travel writer treads some old roads.
- by Carole McKellar

His latest nonfiction book, “Deep South,” was sent to me in October by Parnassus Books in Nashville, Tennessee. As a member of their First Editions Club, I receive a signed first edition twelve times a year. I almost always love the selections, but I was skeptical of a travel book about the south written by a curmudgeon like Theroux. I was pleasantly surprised by his appreciation of the landscape’s beauty and southerners' warmth.

Theroux writes, “After having seen the rest of the world, I had planned to take one long trip through the South in the autumn, before the presidential election of 2012, and write about it. But when that trip was over I wanted to go back, and I did so, leisurely in the winter, renewing acquaintances. That was not enough. I returned in the spring, and again in the summer, and by then I knew that the South had me, sometimes in a comforting embrace, occasionally in its frenzied and unrelenting grip.”

In “Deep South,” Theroux drove through some of the poorest sections of the rural South — the Low Country of South Carolina, Alabama’s Black Belt, the Mississippi Delta, and the Arkansas Ozarks. He intentionally avoided the most prosperous areas, usually the cities where there is “wealth and stylishness and ease.”  He instead favored small towns, most of which seemed like ghost towns with abandoned houses and boarded up stores. Jobs in these areas are hard to come by due to mechanization, lack of quality education, or industrial shut-downs.

While the main reason for the journey was a curiosity about the Southern poor, Theroux found that the good will of southerners “was like an embrace.” People he encountered were kind and generous. Lucille, a woman in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, told Theroux, “Ain’t no strangers here, baby,” before driving miles out of her way to show him the way to a local church. In the Mississippi Delta, Theroux found the people “not just approachable but unpretentious and friendly to strangers, glad to talk, and especially to talk about the past because they were uncertain about the future.”

Churches are important to the story because they are the social center of community life. Theroux felt that “poverty is well dressed in churches” and everyone welcomes strangers. He has an ear for dialogue and seemed to relish chance encounters. Conversations in churches, on street corners, in convenience stores, and in small cafes with names like “O Taste and See” are the heart of the book. He found southerners to be talkers who enjoy telling their stories.

Theroux visited several gun shows during the course of the year. A sign on an Alabama shop that said JESUS IS LORD — WE BUY AND SELL GUNS connected two of the book's recurring themes. Theroux felt that the gun shows were less about shooting guns and more about the self-esteem of white males who feel defeated and persecuted.

Theroux has a novelist’s eye for setting. His descriptive powers are displayed frequently in such passages as, “The cold mist and the gray sky seemed to flatten the Delta and make the road bleaker, the muddy fields beside the long straight road, raised like a levee, the chilly wind from the river that tore leaves from the trees. In its nakedness the Delta had a stark beauty and simplicity.”

The book is divided into four parts depicting seasonal visits. Theroux included chapters he called "Interludes" between the seasons. The first is a treatise on the history and use of the N-word. Later, he analyzes Faulkner and other Southern writers. I enjoyed reading about Southern fiction, but felt the interludes were an interruption of the narrative.

The relationship between races, both past and present, is a major theme of this book. Theroux was drawn more to the stories of African Americans than rural whites. The characters he met in black churches, cafes, and barber shops were engaging and remarkable. The poverty of both races stunned Theroux, who compared the American South to the poorest areas of Africa and Asia.

Theroux spices the book with humorous anecdotes. Describing Southern eateries, he wrote of “a deep tray of okra, as viscous as frog spawn, next to a kettle of sodden collard greens looking like stewed dollar bills.” His experience in Tuscaloosa during a University of Alabama football weekend was of a stranger in a strange land.

“Deep South” was an enjoyable road trip through my native land. I learned things about my home state — some embarrassing, but some a source of pride. The South’s greatest strength is the resilience and warmth of its people. I’m not surprised that Paul Theroux felt the pull to return to the South again and again.

December seminars for small businesses and homeowners aim to provide locals with the know-how to build better lives and a better community.  Includes complete list of workshop offerings!

Winter sessions will move to the recently opened Bay-Waveland Habitat for Humanity / Hancock Chamber Training Center in Bay St. Louis (103 Central Ave., BSL) in a series of workshops geared toward homeowners as well as small business owners (see complete list of workshop offerings below).

“We had the space and computers, and the Chamber had the training furniture,” said Wendy McDonald, executive director of Habitat. “Put these resources together with the educational expertise of PRCC and MSU, and you have a winning partnership,” she said.
 
“Partnerships work,” said Tish Williams, executive director of the Hancock Chamber of Commerce.  “When we work together to achieve community goals, we can make sure that our residents and businesses have the resources they need to connect, grow their customer base and enhance their skills.” Through these sessions, Williams says these partners want to empower people to achieve at their highest levels.

December’s workshops — which are free to attend — focus not only on technology like Excel basics and Microsoft PowerPoint, but include sessions on women’s empowerment, with speakers like Dorothy Wilson, publisher of Gulf Coast Woman magazine and co-founder of SUCCESS Women’s Conference. Upcoming workshop topics the group has considered for 2016 include a seminar on writing wills, and another on how to locate affordable homeowner’s insurance.
 
“We will find out what is important to homeowners and business owners and custom design these seminars to meet their needs,” said Williams.
 
For seminar registration, contact Brenda Wells at 601-403-1379 or [email protected]. To participate, you must know your email address, social media logins, Apple ID and passwords. Attendance is limited to the first 12 to register. Habitat for Humanity will provide computers to use during the session. You may register for one or all of the seminars offered. Seminars take place at the Bay-Waveland Habitat for Humanity / Hancock Chamber Training Center, 103 Central Avenue, Bay St. Louis.
 
For further business resources contact the Hancock County Chamber of Commerce at 228-467-9048 or [email protected].

Monday, December 14th

9:00am-12:00noon: Excel 1 – Learn the basics of Excel, a spreadsheet program frequently used in today’s workplace or to keep track of your personal finances.  John Giesemann, Mississippi State University Extension Service.

1:00pm-4:00pm: Microsoft Word – This session is designed to familiarize you with terminology, screen components and the most commonly used functions offered by Microsoft Word. Emphasis will be placed on proper document formatting techniques and file naming and file management.   John Giesemann, Mississippi State University Extension Service.

4:30pm-5:30pm: Women Empowerment – Learn from some of the most successful business leaders in the region on how you can reach your potential to achieve your personal, financial and career goals.  Presented by Angelyn Treutel Zeringue, South Group Gulf Coast Insurance and Chairman, Women’s Leadership Roundtable of the Hancock Chamber of Commerce.

Angelyn Treutel Zeringue, CPA, PWCAM, is a Trusted Choice independent insurance agent and President of SouthGroup Insurance Gulf Coast and AST Solutions, Inc. in Bay St. Louis.  She has served on numerous community and corporate boards and has chaired the National Insurance - Agents Council for Technology.  Treutel-Zeringue is a prolific public speaker on technology, insurance and business issues, includingn Internet Marketing, Workflow Efficiency, and Finance and Insurance.  She has been honored as OneCoast Top Community Leader, Hancock County Citizen of the Year, National Top Women in Insurance, and America’s Elite Women in Insurance.

Tuesday, December 15th

9 a.m. to 12 noon: Excel 2. It is not enough to know various features of Excel. A user needs to know how to use Excel productively. This includes knowing important keyboard shortcuts, mouse shortcuts, work-arounds, Excel customizations, and how to make everything look slick.

1-4 p.m.: Microsoft PowerPoint. Find out how to use this popular presentation software. It is one of the most useful, accessible, and popular ways to create and present visual aids to an audience.

4:30-5:30 p.m.:  Women’s Empowerment. Some of the most successful business leaders in the region talk about how to reach your potential and achieve personal, financial, and career goals.

  Leading this session will be Gulf Coast Woman magazine publisher and editor Dorothy Wilson.  Gulf Coast Woman magazine, the voice of women on the Coast, aims to engage and inform South Mississippi’s women.  Wilson also owns DWilson & Associates, a creative circle of editors, web designers, social media consultants, photographer and designers providing services to businesses and organizations.

Wednesday, December 16th:

9:00am-10:00am: Google Basics – What is Google and why do I need it?  Andy Collins, Mississippi State University Extension Service. 

10:30am-12:00noon: Facebook Basics – Join us to learn about the settings and insights on your Facebook Page.  We will demonstrate different features to help you manage your Facebook page better.  You must have access to a Facebook Page and have a minimum of 40 likes on the page you are accessing.  Andy Collins, Mississippi State University Extension Service.

1:00pm-2:00pm: Internet & Social Media Safety to Protect Teenagers (for parents) - When it comes to online safety, social media has its own unique set of problems for teenagers.  Find out how you can be involved in your teens’ use of social media.  Find out how you can protect your children.  Ryan Giles, AGJ Systems & Networks.
 
3:30pm-4:30pm:  Avoid Banking Fraud - You will also learn how Cyber criminals compromise accounts and complete fraudulent transactions in many different ways through online banking fraud. Find out how you can protect your assets.

A world-class medical partner, a vital community foundation, a state-of-the-art facility and hometown heart make this hospital a vital resource. 

In 1987, the current Drinkwater Boulevard acute care facility opened and the hospital became fully accredited by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations.

Although the hospital suffered $26 million in damages during Hurricane Katrina, a heroic group of employees and physicians remained and helped put lives, homes, and the hospital back together. Like any fine hospital, expansion and programs to update procedures and equipment are ongoing, with each technological advance in health care.
 
For instance, consider the new Telestroke System.  When a patient arrives at the emergency department at Hancock Medical with the symptoms of a stroke, a computer with an advanced webcam will be brought to the bedside where the clinical team will connect with a vascular neurologist on call at Ochsner’s mother-ship hospital in New Orleans.  The neurologist, patient and clinical team at Hancock Medical can see and speak to each other throughout the consult.  The physician examines the patient and reviews the CT scan of the patient’s head, providing guidance on advanced treatments within minutes.
 
Bay St. Louis resident Roy Herron was the beneficiary of the new system. One morning Mr. Herron could not hold a cup of coffee in his right hand and started feeling a numbness on his right side. Concerned, he drove himself to the hospital.

After quickly being assessed on screen by the neurologist back at Ochsner Medical Center in New Orleans through the Telestroke system at Hancock Medical, Mr. Herron was assessed as having a stroke. ER Physician Dr. Laurie Patterson was instructed to administer Activase, the clot-busting drug used to treat a stroke in its early stages. Activase is used for improving neurological recovery and reducing the incidence of disability. It needs to be administered with three hours after the onset of stroke symptoms.  
 
In many cases, Telestroke consultation will allow patients to stay at Hancock Medical. In more complicated cases, like this one involving Mr. Herron, the patient is transferred to Ochsner in New Orleans for more specialized treatment. Telestroke helps save more lives even with advanced cases because the neurologist will have already met and started treating the patient. 
 
Herron believes that the new system – and the staff – saved his life.  “I wouldn’t be here today if not for the efficiency of Hancock Medical and the coordination with Ochsner,” he said.
 
His emergency room physician at Hancock Medical that day, Dr. Laurie Patterson, believes that this case is one of many each week that prove how local hospitals help save lives.  “In the case of Mr. Herron,” she said, “he got here quickly, got the meds he needed here in our Emergency Department and then was transferred to Ochsner in a timely manner.” 

The Foundation

The Telestroke Program is made possible by a grant obtained by Ochsner and operating expenses paid by the Hancock Medical Foundation. The Hancock Medical Foundation, a 501(c)3, raises money to help purchase needed medical equipment for the hospital. Foundation funds also can help with services like Telestroke or mammography assistance.
 
The very active foundation makes many things like these possible for Hancock Medical:

• Telestroke Program in the Emergency Department 
• Fetal Monitoring System for health of mom and baby
• Mobile Ultrasound in ER
• Mammography Assistance for uninsured in Hancock County 
• Endoscope Reprocessor for the Surgery Department
• Baby Isolette for OB Department
• Healthstream Employee Education
• Patient Room Televisions
• Joseph R. Lee, M.D. Operating Room Suite

 
The Hancock Medical Foundation Board includes Myron Labat (President), Ellis Cuevas, Theresa Bourgeois, Herb Dubuisson Sr., Suzi Lee, Bob McBee, Hank Wheeler, Jeanie Moran, Marilyn Sefton and Ron Hyman.

They work closely with the Board of Trustees and hospital administration members – like Virginia Kenny.  Currently Chief Nursing Officer, she’s served in many nursing roles in the hospital since 1982.

The CEO

The foundation also works closely with Hancock Medical CEO Alan Hodges.  Hodges brings more than 28 years of healthcare experience to the table, most recently serving as the Chief Operating Officer for Ochsner Health System’s North Shore Region.
 
Hodges says that he’s excited to help lead Hancock Medical into the future as it delivers quality health care to the residents of Hancock County.
 
 “Our core mission is to be the health resource for Hancock County and it speaks well of our facility that 80 percent of all of our inpatients and outpatients live right here in Hancock County,” Hodges says. 
 
“I’m proud of how friendly and dedicated our staff is to our patients and our community, and I’m proud of the quality health care that we’re providing.” 
 
That quality has been most recently recognized with Hancock Medical named one of eight hospitals in the state to be rewarded with an increase in Medicare reimbursement, a direct correlation to the quality of health care services it is providing patients.  
 
And in 2015, County Health Rankings by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Program rank Hancock County 7th for health outcomes among the 82 counties in the state. This study reflects the success of Hancock Medical and Hancock County in providing resources toward the overall health of its citizens. 

According to Hodges, the Hancock Medical and Oschner team add up to two things:  Hometown heart and world-class care.

A forgotten Hancock County historic treasure has a chance at a new beginning, thanks to a dynamic young leader and the Mississippi Heritage Trust's "Most Endangered" program.
- by Rebecca Orfila, photos courtesy MHT

On October 22, 2015, the Jourdan River School was added to the Mississippi Heritage Trust’s 2015 Top Ten Most Endangered Historic Sites in Mississippi, a program that serves to identify and champion the protection and restoration of important historical sites. In a recent press release, the Mississippi Heritage Trust (MHT) reported, “The Jourdan River School is one of few remaining African American schools in south Mississippi.”
 
As noted by MHT Executive Director Lolly Barnes, “The goal of the ‘10 Most Endangered Historic Places in Mississippi’ program is to raise awareness about the many threats facing our rich architectural heritage.  By educating the public about the history of the Jourdan River School, we hope to find the resources to save this special place.”

Danin Benoit ([email protected]), a representative of  Community Wakeup and Men and Women of God Ministry, the nominators of the school to the Most Endangered list, explained that school alumni Earllean Thompson Washington contacted him to advocate saving the old structure. The next step for the Jourdan River School is fundraising.

Community Wakeup and the Men and Women of God Ministry groups intend to raise funds to facilitate the renewal of the Jourdan River School, in addition to potential grant opportunities.  Supporters hope to meet with school alumni in February of 2016 to hear their stories of the old school in the trees.
 
Backed by the enthusiasm of former students, Ruby V. Patterson and Velma Frederick, plus several local groups and individuals, Benoit hopes the school will be brought “back to light” and serve as a community center for the Kiln area.

The folks in "the Bay" have always known how to celebrate life.  Join this party from the past in the latest installment of Pat Murphy's book-in-progress about historic Bay St. Louis, and you'll get an in-depth look into our community's festive past!