Welcome to the first Oakland News column in quite awhile. Thanks to Krista McFerrin for the invitation to write about things going on in Oakland. She did promise that this column will be welcomed on a random basis if there are times that I can’t get it done.
The family and friends of Mr. James Allen celebrated his 95th birthday earlier this month at the Timothy Booker Sr. Senior Citizen Center. By the time my mom, Margaret Ross, and I stopped by, there had been quite a crowd. In addition to celebrating his birthday, I was so happy to reconnect with his daughter Earnestine Allen Tolbert, who is now a retired nurse and past president of the Grand Rapids, Michigan, Black Nurses Association.
The Allens were our neighbors growing up. Earnestine was one of three brave young women who integrated the school system. I was a senior and she was a junior when she and her friends made history. We rode the same school bus. I had no idea what courage they were displaying. I had lost touch after I graduated and left the area. Facebook reconnected us.
The next morning, we received the news we were hoping wouldn’t come. My Aunt Audrey Ross had left this world. My sister Carol said that only Aunt Audrey could pass away at nearly 102 years old and somehow manage to leave us surprised. That’s because, despite her age, she was fully active. She worked many years at the bank in Oakland, retiring just before her 90th birthday. She was still living on her own, making her Thursday trips to Charleston for her weekly hair appointment and her bits of shopping. She had groups she met with on Mondays and Wednesdays for card games.
Her funeral service was definitely a celebration of life. The floral spray on her casket included 101 roses plus orchids, lilies, hydrangeas, snap dragons, peonies and more in shades of pink. It was a masterpiece and designed by JG Henderson at Bloomin’ Hills Farm and Flowers in Tillatoba. The Methodist ladies and other friends made sure the family had plenty of desserts and Sue Donohue Smith catered a late lunch after the service and interment.
Small towns are at their best during times like these. Aunt Audrey was blessed to have friends and family all around her. She had the sweetest neighbors in Michael and Velisha Walls, who for 30 years kept an eye out for her. The staff at TGH Inpatient Rehabilitation were amazing and endeared themselves to the Ross family during the days that Aunt Audrey spent there.
Y’all don’t forget that Oakland has its own grocery store now! We want to be sure it is successful, so look first at the Oakland Farmacy Marketplace, right on the corner of Highway 51 and Hickory Street. Their prices will make you ask the clerks if they rang up everything. I think they are now offering watermelon and cantaloupe from Cypress Creek Farming Co., between Oakland and Coffeeville. There could be more local produce, as well.
We received news at the Oakland Area Chamber of Commerce this past week that Ajinomoto Foods North America (AFNA), a specialty frozen food manufacturer with a plant facility in Oakland, has been named by Inspiring Workplaces Group as a 2025 Inspiring Workplace, earning “Best in Class” in the Culture and Purpose category. Ajinomoto has been a wonderful community leader and partner as we have worked on promoting Oakland for the past few years. Congratulations!
I know we have several recent high school graduates from the Oakland area who are launching their next chapters. Micayah Walls, daughter of Michael and Velisha Walls, has a list of honors and recognitions that would take a whole edition of this paper to list! A graduate of Coffeeville High School, she had nearly $500,000 in scholarship offers and has chosen LSU. Her dream is to become a medical doctor. I have no doubt she will achieve that goal. Praying she will return to Mississippi to practice. We need our young people coming back home!
The other graduate of which I am aware is Kam Andrews, son of Mayor Stephanie Patterson Andrews and Kel Andrews. Kam, a Charleston High School graduate, is headed to Mississippi Delta Community College at Moorhead where he will be playing on the football team. I saw Kam last weekend as he was headed back to the school and he was fired up about the upcoming season! We’ll be cheering for you, Kam.
Y’all let me know if you have graduates and where they are for the fall.
Come to Oakland Public Library on Saturday, August 2, for Super Saturday Family Day. The library will be open from 10 a.m. until 1 p.m., and all ages are invited to come use your library!
We will celebrate back to school on Saturday, Aug. 9, with Kids in the Park Day. The Chamber, Friends of the Library, the Lions Club and a host of sponsors are offering this back-to-school celebration at the James Riley Swearengen Walking Track and Park. There will be lots of games, school supplies, hot dogs, sno-cones, and watermelon offered from 10 a.m. until noon.
The Oakland Area Lions Club is doing an eyeglass recycling drive. If you have old frames and/or lenses, you can drop them off at Cadence Bank in Oakland, Oakland Town Hall, or the Coffeeville courthouse. If you are looking for a good civic organization, you can’t beat the Lions Club. Contact Oakland Lions Club President LaTonya Richardson Sayles at 662-417-6760 for more information. They (I should say “we,” as I am now officially a member as of July 1) are also doing a drive for school supplies through Aug. 8. Drop-off locations for school supplies are Cadence Bank, Oakland Town Hall, Terry’s Barbershop or the Oakland Library.
Between the chamber and the town, we are looking at getting an overlay with some “grit” to it on our pickleball court. Players have said that’s all that is missing. The court, next to the Senior Citizens Center, is open for play daily until sundown.
Closing out with this historical tidbit about Oakland: Oakland was first settled around 1836 and was located 1.5 miles east of its present location. It was incorporated in 1848 and named for the oak trees the settlers found in the area.
The best way to reach me if you have news to share is to email oaklandareachamber@ gmail.com.
