Monday July 13
Mid-State distributing fruits, veggies
Mid-State Opportunity Inc. will begin Phase II of the Farm to Families Food Box Program with a distribution on Monday, July 13, beginning at 9 a.m., at the National Charleston Day Organization building located at 43 Oak Grove Road near Charleston.
The program provides a 22-pound box of fresh fruits and vegetables to residents of Tallahatchie County. Proof of residency is required.
The food is provided by the Mississippi Food Network and distributed by Mid-State Opportunity Inc. through its partnership with The National Charleston Day Organization and the Tallahatchie County Sheriff’s Office.
Tuesday July 14
Drive-thru food distribution slated
Mid-State Opportunity Inc. continues to provide food boxes for participants through the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP), which targets Tallahatchie residents age 60 and older with income no more than 130% of the federal poverty level. Boxes are distributed the second Tuesday of each month utilizing the drive-thru method.
The next distribution will be held at the National Charleston Day Organization (NCDO) building, 43 Oak Grove Road near Charleston, on Tuesday, July 14, from 8:30 until 11 a.m. for all clients of the program.
If you are picking up boxes for several clients, to expedite the process, provide a list of the names of the clients. Due to COVID-19, boxes will not be available at any other time or any other location.
The food is provided by the Mississippi Food Network and distributed by Mid-State Opportunity Inc. through its partnership with the NCDO and the Tallahatchie County Sheriff’s Office.
Saturday July 18
Robert Neal Food Pantry to be open
The Robert Neal Food Pantry at Calvary Chapel of Parchman will distribute food on Saturday, July 18, and each third Saturday thereafter. The pantry, serving western Tallahatchie County and northern Sunflower County, has installed changes due to COVID-19.
The food pantry will begin at 9 a.m., and only those whose last names begin with A-H will be served at this time.
Last names starting with I-P will be served from 10-11 a.m.
Q-Z, anyone who missed earlier and all new sign-ups, will be served from 11 a.m. to noon. There will be no exceptions.
Distribution will be held in the church parking lot. Clients will drive in the one-way entrance off Ward-Riddick Road and will pull up beside the front door. Food boxes will be placed on a table beside the sign-in book. Clients will leave their car, sign a notebook, get their box and leave immediately through the one-way exit. No client will enter the building for any reason.
Faith Food Pantry to distribute
Faith Food Pantry at Faith Baptist Church near Charleston will distribute food on Saturday, July 18, and each third Saturday thereafter. However, due to the national coronavirus emergency, the pantry’s food distribution has been modified. All persons are asked to notify friends and other clients about the changes.
Food pantry will begin at 11 a.m.
The schedule will be strictly followed. For those whose last name begins with ...
• A-H, 11 a.m. to 12 noon
• I-Q: Noon to 1 p.m.
• R-Z, 1-2 p.m.
Clients will drive in and pull alongside (not toward) the building and sidewalk. A table will be outside the front porch with the food boxes and a sign-in book. Clients must get out and sign the book. They will then pull around the other side of the parking lot next to the highway and depart. Nobody will congregate or have contact with those not in their car.
Saturday July 25
Exquisite Pearls set virtual seminar
Exquisite Pearls of Excellence, a mentoring group for teen girls in grades 9-12, will host a virtual informational seminar through Zoom on Saturday, July 25, at 2 p.m. Interested applicants must live in Tallahatchie, Coahoma, Panola or Quitman counties. Mentors aged 18 and older are also wanted. For more information, call 662-645-1560 or email exquisitepearlsofexcellence@gmail.com.
Miscellany
Mid-State tax site open through July 15
To accommodate tax filers, Mid-State Opportunity Inc. in Charleston will keep its Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) site open through July 15, the deadline for filing federal and state income tax returns.
Tax returns are completed and e-filed at no cost to the taxpayer. Returns are completed by appointment only. For more information or an appointment, call 647-2463.
Charleston Day Reunion canceled
Alvin Johnson, president of the National Charleston Day Organization, released a statement Thursday saying that the organization’s 2020 annual Charleston Day Reunion is being canceled due to COVID-19.
“With great regret, we announce the cancellation of the Charleston Day Reunion scheduled to be held in Chicago on the Labor Day weekend in September of 2020. The 45-year-old reunion has been rescheduled for 2021 in Chicago. The room prices and other details of the contract with the hotel will remain the same,” Johnson noted.
Visit www.charlestondayclub.com.
Small businesses can get up to $25,000
If you own a small business that has 50 or fewer employees and were affected by COVID-19, you could be eligible for grants of up to $25,000. Back to Business Mississippi is a grant program designed to help such businesses in Mississippi recover from the economic impact.
For more information and to see if your business qualifies, visit the website, www.backtobusinessms.org.
Resource families sought for children
The Tallahatchie County Department of Human Services is seeking local residents willing to become resource parents to care for foster children under DHS care.
Resource parents accept foster children into their homes, providing them with a nurturing and structured environment, love and discipline.
For more information, call Gwendolyn D. Shannon, resource specialist with the Mississippi Department of Human Services, at 647-2202.
Free civil legal assistance available
North Mississippi Rural Legal Services provides free legal assistance to low-income residents of North Mississippi needing representation on civil legal matters such as bankruptcy, housing, education, taxes, family law, public benefits and domestic violence issues.
Application for services can be made by calling 1-800-498-1804 Monday through Thursday, from 9:30 a.m. until 3:30 p.m.
Application can also be made online at www.nmrls.com or www.mslegalservices.org.
Intervention, addiction info offered
Families are looking for ways to help those they love who need treatment for drug abuse. Getting them into treatment becomes even harder if their loved one is not willing. This is where intervention can become key. To learn more about interventions or free screenings, visit www.narcononnewliferetreat.org or call Narconon at 1-800-431-1754.
Tallahatchie Notes free to the public
Items for “Tallahatchie Notes” may be hand-delivered to The Sun-Sentinel office at 149 Court Square in Charleston; mailed to P.O. Box 250, Charleston, MS 38921; faxed to 647-3830; or emailed to clay@charlestonsun.net.
Report local littering, vandalism
Eyewitness accounts of littering and road sign vandalism/theft in Tallahatchie County may be reported to 647-7711 between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m., seven days per week. If there is no answer, leave a message as to the exact location of the dump site or sign vandalism or theft, the date and time called and your name and telephone number. Someone will contact you.
Correction or clarification
None.
To report the need for the correction or clarification of any item that appears in print in The Sun-Sentinel and/or on the online sites at www.facebook.com/TheSunSentinel, Twitter or on the newspaper’s website at www.tallahatchienews.ms, call the newspaper office at 662-647-8462 and ask for the editor, stop by the office at 149 Court Square in Charleston or email clay@charlestonsun.net.
