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Oakland News
By Linda Aldy
Congratulations to our students from Oakland who are graduating high school this year! Marquavius “Qua” Bland, Malaysia Harden, and Timmarion Booker are the names I have so far. Let me know if you have names of others. Feel free to include all professional school, college and community college grads or trade schools. We are proud of our young people. Oakland has a slightly higher percentage of high school graduates than both county and state rates.
I’m sorry I was not able to get a column turned in last week. Life throws a curveball every once in a while and that was the case last week. All is well now, I’m happy to report. My mother, Margaret Ross, ended up in the hospital and was extremely sick. After determining it was a gallbladder/bile duct issue, doctors in Tupelo did a procedure and placed a stent in the bile duct. That made an amazing transformation in my energetic mother. I had never seen her so weak before and it was scary.
After almost six days in the hospital, she was released. She decided to take advantage of physical therapy to regain the strength she lost during that time, so she will be at Tallahatchie General rehabbing. She is already making a list of the people, patients and staff, she knows there or has made connections with. She said the food is fabulous and the people are the best. She said, “it is the Rolls Royce.” I believe she is running for TGH Mayor or maybe Miss Hospitality. In political speak, she is working the room! She has made all of us want to check in for a bit! As my siblings, great-niece and I were texting back and forth, autocorrect was convinced that bile duct should be “bald duck” so we had some humor even as we were anxious.
If you missed National Picnic Day as I did on April 23, go on and create your own Picnic Day! I think we’ve lost the fine art of picnicking, spreading a blanket on the ground and enjoying the great outdoors. The concept has roots in mid-18th-century French dining, associated with gathering in nature and sharing food. It just also happens to share the day with National Cherry Cheesecake Day, so dessert should be an easy choice! Don’t despair if you are lagging behind, July is National Picnic Month!
It was wonderful to speak to the Yalobusha County Historical Society last week at their building in Coffeeville about the things going on in Oakland and to see so many people I have not seen in quite a few years.
I have been on the road since I chatted with you last. From Madison to Oakland several times, to Coffeeville, to Columbus, to Tupelo. I love my trips to Columbus and The W and this trip was for homecoming. We don’t do things the way many schools do since we don’t have a football team. Our homecomings are in the spring and the campus is so beautiful. We have one of the oldest campuses in Mississippi, full of beautiful old buildings.
I am really happy to report that the Legislature this year gave The W enough funds to restore one of our old buildings, Old Pohl Gymnasium, which will be incorporated into our nationally ranked nursing school. This building was constructed in 1927. Ole Miss is the oldest school, founded in 1848, The W came 36 years later in 1884, and then Alcorn in 1871. These three campuses have the oldest buildings which I love.
The W was the first state supported college for women in the United States and some say in the world. A very famous Supreme Court case in 1982 opened the doors for men to attend as well. My son attended Northwestern School of Law in Chicago. He was the only one in his class who raised his hand when asked if they had heard of the case or of The W when they studied it! Not only that, his mother attended there!
Alcorn has Oakland Memorial Chapel on its campus. I’ve always liked knowing that, even though it is not named for our town. Oakland Memorial Chapel predates Alcorn and was built in 1838 as part of Oakland College, founded in 1828 as part of a Presbyterian mission. Alcorn took over that defunct school’s campus after the Civil War. Alcorn State was the first land grant university established specifically for the education of African Americans. The chapel was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1976, and a Mississippi Landmark in 1985.
The Enid Depot has racked up another major recognition as it was named by Business Insider on April 16 as The Most Iconic Steakhouse in Mississippi. “The Enid Depot is an out-of-the-box steakhouse set inside a historic train depot in the Mississippi Delta,” Business Insider said. The Mississippi Beef Council and Mississippi Cattlemen’s Association named it the best steakhouse in the state in 2025, according to the Clarion Ledger. Pretty tall cotton! Congratulations to Chef Brent Tippitt and his team.
It is now even easier to get to Enid Depot from the Oakland side of the world since the bridge on Hwy. 51 is finally open again. They have been working on it for years. Our friends at Ajinomoto are happy about it, too. It created years of trucking issues for them on deliveries and shipments.
I am reliably informed that Meg Daves, tennis player extraordinaire and granddaughter of Oakland’s Joy Mullen, is closing out her Northwest Community College days being named All-Conference. Congratulations, Meg. I know Joy and Meg’s aunts have followed her across the state and beyond as she has enjoyed a wonderful tennis career.
I was showing Mother some pictures of my newest grandchild this week and she spotted an old family trunk in the photo. I reminded her that it had been made by her step-father’s father. As we discussed it, she started telling us that “Mama Brown,” her step-father’s mother, had found her husband by placing an ad on the radio. Many of the “match-making shows” back in the 1930s and 40s were called “Lonely Hearts Clubs” or sometimes the announcers would just read the letters during a community news broadcast segment. Our ancestors had on-line dating, it was just via radio waves. I had no idea!
Oakland’s Yalo-Ribbon Festival is this Saturday, May 2! It starts at 2 p.m. We look forward to seeing you!
Let me know if you have news to include. Contact me via email at oaklandareachamber@gmail.com or text or leave a message at 601-853-3942.
