March 6 was a night of recognition for people who have made significant contributions to the Magee community.
The Magee Chamber of Commerce held their 62nd annual banquet and, as always, recognized individuals for major achievements as well as listened to some comedy from two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist Marshall Ramsey.
Out of the shute, the crowd heard recognition for retiring Chamber directors in their final term including Joey Adcock, Kannan Stubbs, Jacob Blakeney, Jonathan Cole and Brian Barnard.
Joining the Chamber board for new terms are Christian Carrico, Skip Russell, Dr. Rusty Slover, Nona Cook and Dr. Jasper Adcock.
LauraLyn Barr will assume the role of president of the Magee Chamber of Commerce for the upcoming term. She, along with her sister, former Chamber president Whitney Baker, are third generation Chamber presidents following in the footsteps of their father, Robbie Barnes, and grandfather, Joe Barnes.
Other board members are Ian Cowart, Dianne McPhail, Brien Hubbard, Erica Smith, Layce Evans and Scott Barnes. Doris Adcox serves as executive director.
Ian Cowart, who completed his term as Chamber president the night of the banquet, recounted the many accomplishments of the Chamber over the previous year. He made it clear that the reason for such success over the year was the fact that the board had worked tirelessly.
He discussed many of the programs, which included the new audio system in town as well as the downtown mural.
He talked about the Chamber’s involvement in activities and how programs grew including Tea in the Gardens, Crazy Day and the co-sponsorship with Magee General to provide charity healthcare, as well as the increase in events like the annual Christmas parade.
In addition, the Chamber welcomed a host of new businesses to town. Ribbon cuttings are one of the many services the Chamber offers to its members and prospective members.
Magee Mayor Dale Berry discussed the highlights of the year from the city of Magee. These included the opening of Love’s Truck Stop, the new ownership of Real Pure Bottling, as well as a host of other businesses that opened over the course of the year.
Berry also discussed families who played major roles in entrepreneurship and the growth of the city. He recounted how the Pace family took a business which grew from seven employees to nearly 300. He discussed the investment of people like Manly Magee, who did not wait for subsidies to build the community. They invested their own money and helped make Magee what it is today, Berry said
He also predicted a bright future for the community with upcoming projects like the Head Start Center that he and Alderman Patrick Brown negotiated with the county school system, which will create over 40 new jobs as well as other economic benefits.
Guest speaker Marshall Ramsey related his experiences with Magee over the years as he presented a humorous look at his relationship with his chosen home state of Mississippi.
Ramsey said he received the top award for cartooning in college, only to land a job as a janitor upon graduation. Hard work and perseverance, however, got him a job drawing editorial cartoons for a Georgia newspaper and eventually led to his being nominated for two Pulitzer awards.
Ramsey told the story of learning to water ski. He had tried over a series of years with his dad pulling him in the boat. Finally one summer day he rose out of the water. Off he went. His dad soon got bored with plain old water skiing and started turning the boat in circles. Those who have ever skied know that the skier picks up a great rate of speed when the boat circles, which Marshall did before he finally tumbled--and tumbled and tumbled.
Marshall assumed this was “the end,” but his dad told him to grab the rope. Marshall did and skied the rest of the afternoon.
His dad told him, “I don’t want your first experience to be defined by a huge fall but by getting back up and finishing the day skiing.”
Ramsey also discussed another way in which he was related to this community through his friendship with the late Jimmy Riley of Magee. After Ramsey fought melanoma, he and Riley became close friends as Riley was going through treatment for the same type of cancer several years ago.
Ramsey also discussed all the positive things that are occurring in Magee, specifically how nice the people of Magee are, which he said is part of the reason for the success of the community.
The first awards presented for the evening were for STAR Student and STAR Teacher. Representing Magee is Mac Anderson, the son of Jimmy and Stacey Anderson. Mac scored a 33 on his ACT and plans to attend Mississippi State University to study aerospace engineering. Mac was also accepted in the Shackouls Honors College at State. He selected Dick Wendt as his STAR Teacher. Wendt is a teacher and coach who is currently in his 24th year at Magee High School, where he teaches chemistry, physics and physical science. Wendt is a two-time recipient of the STAR Teacher Award.
Cameron Lea is this year’s Simpson County Academy STAR Student. Cameron scored 28 on his ACT. He is the son of James Lea and Melinda Dykes of Mt. Olive. Cameron plans to attend Co-Lin and then Mississippi State, where he hopes to study chemical engineering. He selected Chris Murphy as his STAR Teacher. Murphy is in his first year at SCA but brings 26 years of teaching experience to SCA. In addition to teaching math, he serves as tennis coach.
The Spirit of Magee Award and the Outstanding Citizen Award are two of the top awards presented each year.
Former Magee Mayor Jimmy Clyde presented the Spirit of Magee Award to city employee Nelvis Rankin. Clyde said Rankin put Magee above self and family when it came to getting the job done. He recounted how Rankin would sacrifice his personal holidays to help others in need. He said in all of the years of their association he never heard a coarse word come from his mouth. Clyde joked about Rankin’s ability to do all jobs in the city that at one point earned him the nickname of “Captain Pothole.” An employee of the city since 1973, Rankin received the award for his untiring service to the city.
The Citizen of the Year Award was presented to a couple this year, Skip and Tracy Russell. Tracy’s father, Thomas McCoy, presented the award. The Russels started as managers of the local Sonic Drive-In, then moved into ownership of their own franchise, Backyard Burgers, which they later sold to position themselves into the ownership of the Magee Popeye’s Chicken Restaurant. Over a short period of time, they became the owners of Popeye’s franchises in seven different towns.
Diane McPhail made the final presentation of the evening to Sue Honea, who was featured in last week’s newspaper as the newest member of the Magee Chamber of Commerce
