Local Cross City quilt guild holds Trunk Show
Book Review New book spins tall tales for kids
Ole Miss Grant to help improve student sucess
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Tuesday July 26,
2016
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Daily Corinthian
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Vol. 120, No. 179
• Corinth, Mississippi • 14 pages • One section
Supervisors hear plea urging ban BY JEBB JOHNSTON jjohnston@dailycorinthian.com
A grieving mother made a tearful plea to the Alcorn County Board of Supervisors to pass an ordinance banning the sale of caffeine pills and powders to children under 18. Jennifer Westmoreland of Water Valley lost her 17-yearold son, Noah Smith, in 2014.
She said his heart stopped after taking the caffeine pills. At her request, 14 other counties have adopted local ordinances. She said the reason for her campaign against the pills “is to try to stop this from happening to another family.” Westmoreland described her son as a talented young man who made the honor roll,
played football and played guitar in church. “There is nothing that I can do to bring my baby back,” said the mother, showing a picture of her son. “Nothing at all.” She said Smith took a product called “Stay Awake” that he purchased at a grocery store in Please see BAN | 2
“Could you imagine walking in your back yard and finding them laying there, unresponsive, and there’s nothing in this world that you can do to help them?” Jennifer Westmoreland
KHS asked to steer clear of Texas logo BY ZACK STEEN zsteen@daillycorinthian.com
Staff photo by Steve Beavers
The Alcorn County 4-H Horticulture Judging Team of Micah Posey (from left), Jonathan Pannell, Katie Pannell and Madison DeGraffenreid won the state championship in June. The team advances to the national event in October in Erie, Pennsylvania.
Green thumb brings gold medal BY STEVE BEAVERS sbeavers@dailycorinthian.com
A quartet of high school students know their fruits and vegetables. And everything else dealing with horticulture.
The Alcorn County Horticulture Judging Team proved their knowledge by winning the state title at the 4-H Congress in June. The state championship earns them a berth to the national convention on
Oct. 6-10 in Erie, Pennsylvania. “They were put through some pretty extensive study time,” said volunteer horti-
Board offers goodbye to street commissioner BY JEBB JOHNSTON jjohnston@dailycorinthian.com
The Corinth Board of Mayor and Aldermen gave a warm farewell to the city’s outgoing street commissioner, Philip Verdung. His final day on the job was the same day as the board’s regular meeting last week. Mayor Tommy Irwin said Verdung had a key role in working on the city’s infrastructure fixes. “He’s done a great job,” said Irwin. “We are proud of all his efforts. We’ve done a lot of projects in the last few years.” He said the city wants to “wish him the very best at his next assignment.”
Please see 4-H | 2
KOSSUTH — The longtime Kossuth Aggies steer logo will slowly start to change. The University of Texas sent the Alcorn School District a letter last week concerning the use of the logo. The trademark request gave Kossuth High School 15 days to contact the Texas school to discuss concerns involving the logo. The university then asked Kossuth to stop using the steer logo, which is extremely similar to the college’s longhorn logo. Kossuth has used the steer logo since the late 1990s, and although the local school replaced the burnt orange with maroon, it is still a very close depiction of University of Texas branding. “The university has offered to give Kossuth time to phase out the use of the longhorn logo,” said Alcorn School District Attorney Arch Bullard. “As of right now, those negotiations are still in progress.” Burnt Orange Nation, a University of Texas fan website, re-
“It will be a hard change, but one we will work out.” Travis Smith KHS principal ported in May that the Kossuth school was committing “sacrilege” stating the school’s logo combined the maroon of Texas A&M Aggies and the steer logo of the University of Texas Longhorns. “This is a big deal,” said KHS Principal Travis Smith. “But, it’s not anything Kossuth faculty, students, parents or fans should be upset about toward the university. The Texas Longhorns are protecting their logo and I understand why. It’s just something we are going to have overcome. It will be a hard change, but one we will work out.” According to Bullard, the current Kossuth logo will be transitioning from the UT longhorn logo to another steer silhouette logo.
People of the Crossroads Jay Jones, Corinth Photo by Mark Boehler
Jay Jones can usually be found wearing a coat and tie, but not at the Green Market. The 47-year-old is wearing Tshirt and shorts as owner of Jaybirds Shaved Ice, a business he operates with the help of his three sons, 8-yearold Cooper, 5-year-old John Henr y and 2-year-old Tripp. Jay has been married to Jamie for nine years. He also has a daughter, 22-year-old Sarah Grace Jones. He loves spending time with his family. Jay has worked in the Alcorn County Coroner’s Office for 20 years and is serving his second elected term as county coroner. He serves as manager for both Memorial Funeral Home and McPeters Funeral Home. “I enjoy helping people in time of need,” he said.
“We are proud of all his efforts. We’ve done a lot of projects in the last few years.” Tommy Irwin Mayor Verdung thanked the board for the opportunity to have served first as building inspector and then street commissioner. “They are very stressful jobs,” he said. “They are 24 hours a Please see VERDUNG | 2
25 years ago
10 years ago
Shiloh National Military Park becomes a test site for a new computer program making access easier for those researching relatives in the Civil War.
Alcorn Central High School graduate Lacey Driver wins a $1,000 scholarship in an essay contest sponsored by the Education Services Foundation.
Doug Ann Michael Rick Jumper Hardin McCreary Jones
Neil Paul
Marea John & Alexis Wilson Brenda Rudd Hayes
Roger Audrey Carl Clark McNair Jones
2782 S Harper Rd
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