Faith, Family and Football Keep Oakland Humming
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Oakland News
By Linda Aldy
Oakland Baptist Church has a revival coming up at the end of September. They invite you to join them at 6 p.m. Sept. 29-Oct. 1. Rev. Craig Baker of Coffeeville will be preaching.
Mary Sue and Wayne Jackson are rightly proud of their daughter, Kathy, who was recently elected mayor of Flowood. Flowood is a fast-growing city outside Jackson. Kathy Jackson Smith was sworn in as the third mayor in Flowood’s history on June 30, 2025. Kathy served Flowood for 16 years as a member of the Board of Aldermen. One of Kathy’s grandfathers served as mayor of Water Valley.
The Oakland Public Works Department just got new shirts identifying them as OPW employees. They are proudly wearing these. Our Public Works employees are Daniel Jenkins and Keontavious Clinton.
The Mississippi Delta Community College football program has had a rough start to its 2025 season, but we are cheering them on. Oakland Mayor Stephanie Patterson Andrews and her husband, Kel, have their son, Cam, proudly wearing No. 22 on the squad.
We are also cheering Qua Bland, son of Alisia Bland, who is leading the Coffeeville Pirates as quarterback this year. He also plays on defense.
Sports are such an important part of a community and have changed many young lives. Most don’t play ball at college or beyond, but the life lessons they gain while participating are invaluable. A few that come immediately to mind are self-discipline and the ability to work with others. Those are considered very valuable to those making hiring decisions.
The thing that most impresses me is that in athletics you have to keep going even when you are losing. When you make a mistake, it’s right out in public, and you have to learn to shake that off and keep going. So, keep cheering these young people and their dedicated parents!
Happy birthday to my cousin, Tommy Ross. He was born on his mother’s birthday. My Aunt Fae Priddy Ross certainly doted on him and, as kids, we were just fascinated that they shared a birthday!
My mom, Margaret Ross, enjoyed a long visit with Mike Robinson last week. Mother and Mike both love stories and the history of Oakland, so I can only imagine the topics they covered. Mike and Angela, his wife, have shared produce from their garden with Mother, and she loves the variety and the unusual vegetables she has gotten. I believe Chinese beans were a recent one. Mike shared some of the interesting work his son, David, is doing. After listening to Mike, Mother is convinced that David can do anything!
We are excited to welcome Suzan Irby Freibert along with her husband and other family members for a visit to Oakland. Suzan grew up in Oakland and now lives in Tucson, Arizona. She has an art degree from USM and has helped with some of our Chamber projects. Thank goodness for the internet, email and Facebook—and people who still love their hometown! Suzan has returned every few years for a visit with her Mississippi and Mid-South siblings and classmates.
We are all dancing with excitement as our new granddaughter, at 7 weeks old, will be visiting soon and meeting her great-grandmother, her aunt and uncle, and a multitude of cousins and great-aunts and great-uncles. Margaret Ross has a big birthday (93rd) coming up and will be sharing a party with great-granddaughter Mae Whitley, so with baby Huckleberry Margaret attending, Mother may have all of her grands and great-grands in attendance. We have two more babies on the way, one in September and one in October. It’s getting hard to keep up with how many there are and definitely a challenge to keep up with everyone’s birthdays! Mother is going to have to get a bigger calendar!
We have numerous families grieving this week, and I know I don’t know about everybody, but friends and family of Dale Waller, Dr. Rachel Ellis Coleman and Jean Craven are ones that I do know about. Heartfelt sympathy to all who grieve.
The Town of Oakland has put together its request for legislative funding for the upcoming session. Last year, no funds were appropriated for any special municipal requests, so here’s hoping the legislative leadership sees their way to funding some of these badly needed projects. Small towns especially need this kind of help to keep infrastructure up to date. As the town’s lobbyist, I will be working with our local delegation to get these items considered.
My mom provides me with a lot of news, but so can you! Just email me at oaklandareachamber@gmail.com
