JACKSON, Miss. (WLBT) – If you missed a few of the most important headlines and need to play catch up, no worries. WLBT has gathered some of the top stories from our website to get you up to speed.
1. ‘I am thankful to be alive:’ Hinds County election commissioner carjacked in Jackson
A Hinds County election commissioner was carjacked Saturday night in Jackson. According to Commander Abraham Thompson with the Jackson Police Department, the incident happened along Porter Street. The four suspects involved remain on the loose and were last seen driving District 5 Election Commissioner Shirley Varnado’s 2016 white Honda Accord. Varnado claimed she was getting into her car when a gray car pulled up beside her. That’s when a teenager wearing a white hoodie got out with a gun cocked and told her not to move, Varnado said. The Hinds County official said the teen jumped in her car and drove off, and the other teens drove away in the gray vehicle. “Of course, I ran because I was not going to stand there and be shot,” Varnado said. “He was going to have to shoot at a moving target.” According to Varnado, officers informed her that JPD was pursuing the suspect driving her Honda, but the teen nearly hit a JPD cruiser head-on and got away. “I’m just trying to warn everybody to be extra careful. This is a dangerous world,” she said.
2. Mississippi company makes paint to be used on field at Super Bowl LVII
In 7 days, the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles will hit the field to compete in Super Bowl 57, and when they do, they’ll be walking on a piece of Mississippi. Everything from the white lines marking the sidelines to the logo on the 50-yard line was made right here in the Magnolia State. “No one knows that this magic is occurring in the Mississippi Delta,” Pat Dickens said. In the small city of Leland, Mississippi, lies the eco-friendly paint and custom stencils company World Class Athletic Surfaces. It is a company likely known to few but seen by millions. The company started nearly four decades ago after a former Belhaven tennis player began making paint for tennis courts. Then, transitioned from courts to painting fields, beginning with the one right inside Davis Wade Stadium at Mississippi State. Shortly after, other college teams like Auburn and Alabama took notice of their work, and it wasn’t long before that same work was displayed on the Super Bowl Stage.
Imagine working all your life and saving hundreds of thousands of dollars. Instead of keeping the money all to yourself, you give it away in the hopes of helping people you may never even get the chance to see or know. Well, that’s exactly what Oseola McCarty decided to do. She’s known for being a cheerful giver, and her story captures the hearts of everyone who hears it. McCarty only had a sixth-grade education and had dreams of going to college to become a nurse. However, those plans changed once she had to take care of her sick aunt. She earned a living by ironing and washing other people’s clothes, which she did for 75 years. “Beginning at the age of eight, she began helping her family in the family laundry business and did that for her entire life,” said Stace Mercier, Executive Director of the University of Southern Mississippi Foundation. McCarty was a very frugal woman. In fact, she never even owned a car, and the home she stayed in was given to her by her uncle. “She started saving money by putting a little bit in her doll buggy, and as an adult, she began taking it to the bank and slowly amassed a small fortune,” said Mercier. Her savings had grown to roughly $250,000.
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