Christmas Challenge: Donate now to keep Boys and Girls Club doors open.

BY: B. Keith Plunkett

Want to show your kids what the Christmas Season really means? Then here's an opportunity, and a challenge.

Boys and Girls Club of Central Mississippi President and CEO Billy Redd said yesterday that the organization will likely be closing three area facilities after December 31. Lack of funding has left the facilities in Bolton, Magnolia and Canton without the money to keep the doors open affecting more than 1,000 kids.

Billy tells me that one time donations are welcome, but what is really need to sustain the programs are long-term committments.

"We need folks to sign up for our monthly check draft program," he said. "We have people who are having a monthly check draft from as low as $5 per month to several hundred dollars per month."

So here is the challenge part. Sharon, Isaac, Rickey and I are pledging $20 per month. Surely your family can give that much to help out kids in need in our own community. Write "The Flora Harvester" at the top of the form before mailing it in, and the Boys and Girls Club will keep a running tally of how much we all give.

The Boys and Girls Club mission statement is “To enable all young people, especially those who need us the most, to realize their full potential as productive, caring, responsible citizens”. The group is a God centered organization that teaches the important of dedication to Faith, country, honesty and fair play. Who can deny these truths to be needed in our communities today.

Here's a few more stats Billy shared with me:

• 95% of Boys and Girls Clubs members graduate from High School
• 0% Pregnancy rate of Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Mississippi members
• 95% of our members are on free or reduced-cost lunch programs at their schools.
• The Boys and Girls Club in Central Mississippi serves over 3,200 youth in six clubs (4-Jackson, Bolton, and Canton) each year and they spend over 750,000 hours a year in the Clubs.
• The membership fee for a child to attend the club is only $25.00 per year. However, the actual cost to serve a child is over $500.00 per year.

A poll of the Boys and Girls Clubs alumni in Mississippi show:

 • 57% said the Club literally “saved their lives;”
 • 95% said the Club was one of the best things available in their community;
 • 79% said the Club had a positive impact on their self-esteem; and
 • 70% said the Club had a positive impact on their ability to avoid difficulty with the law.

The education aspect can't be overstated. The stat I find to be incredibly important is that of the latest report card info. As of last week, the overall grade average of kids particpating in the Boys and Girls Club ranges from 81.41 to 88.24. Our future is pretty bleak if we can't find a way to instill learning in all children in every community, and the Boys and Girls Club is doing that.

Matthew 25:45 tells us that Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me."

We can argue all day long about geopolitics, race, personal responsibility and a number of other reasons these kids fall through the cracks. We can also argue about all the problems in other parts of the world. But, the simple truth is the Lord didn't put us in a different place, He put us here. It is here where we must work out in the real world our beliefs and attempt to do the most good.

To do your part to help, print and fill out the Pledge Form below and mail it to the address on the form. Remember to write The Flora Harvester at the top. Billy will give us regular reports on the tally.

Pledge Form

Congress To Abandon Washington Every Three Weeks

House Republicans have released their schedule for next year's session: One week off for every two weeks on.

They'll be working five-day weeks instead of the typical three, and cutting down the honorary votes that happen about every 15 minutes now. This will leave plenty of time to cut the capital gains tax several times next year.

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Major motion picture filming in Canton

A local company, Eyevox which is based in Ridgeland, is behind a big production in the City of Lights.

It has the look and feel of a Hollywood set, but this movie is based in Mississippi, written by three people who live here and is now being filmed by a Mississippi company. Opie Cooper is the director.

"We can shoot a city scene here, we can shoot a country scene here, we can shoot just about anything here. We can do winter scenes if we have to, we can do summer scenes if we want to, its just, Mississippi is just a great place to make movies", said Cooper.

The movies is called "Big Bad".

It's a throw back to the 80's thrillers like "The Goonies".

The crew has been working in Canton for about a week.

"There's a monster in it so there's the misconception that we're making a horror film. We're making an action adventure film about 3 kids. A young boy and two girls", Cooper said.

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Lawmakers celebrate decision to place training mission at Key Field Air Guard Station in Meridian

New Aircraft, Personnel Help Ensure Future for Meridian Military Facility

WASHINGTON, D. C. – U.S. Senators Thad Cochran and Roger Wicker, with Congressman Gregg Harper, today celebrated the U.S. Air Force decision to locate a new formal training unit at Key Field Air National Guard Base at Meridian.

The Mississippi lawmakers, as well as Governor Haley Barbour and Meridian Mayor Cheri M. Barry, were informed early Wednesday that Key Field had been selected as the Air Force’s “preferred alternative” to host a C-27J formal training unit (FTU) mission.

The decision will bring two additional C-27J aircraft to Meridian, increasing the planned total to six. An estimated 37 full-time employees and 85 trainees annually will be associated with the FTU, bringing the total personnel associated with the C-27J platform to 142 by 2015 when the mission is fully operational.

“I am convinced that the qualities represented in Key Field, the Mississippi Air National Guard and the people of Meridian were instrumental in leading the Defense Department to this decision. This new training mission is a solid indication that Key Field will be a long-term asset to the Air National Guard and the U.S Air Force as Mississippi continues to contribute to our nation’s security,” Cochran said.

“The Air Force’s decision to base this training mission at Key Field is another strong reminder of the importance of Meridian to our military,” said Wicker. “Mississippi’s long history of supporting our Armed Forces proudly continues through the MC-12 and C-27J operations.”

“Gaining the C-27J training mission is a tribute to the men and women of Key Field and their ability to adapt and succeed at any task or mission they are given,” said Harper. “Key Field was evaluated alongside several impressive bases during the Air Force’s site survey process, and I am confident that the base’s past successes and the friendly nature of the people of Meridian influenced the Department of Defense’s decision.”

“Gaining this additional mission has been a long-standing goal for the state,” Governor Barbour said. “Having the C-27J training mission at Key Field is important to Mississippi, as the state continues to play a crucial role in our national defense.”

“We are thrilled that the 186th Air Refueling Wing has been selected as the location for the Air National Guard’s C-27J Flying Training Unit. The city of Meridian is truly grateful for the diligent effort of Senator Cochran, Senator Wicker and Congressman Harper that went into this project,” Mayor Barry said.

In being named the preferred alternative site, Key Field edged out five other sites considered for the tactical transport aircraft training mission, which involves preparing pilots, loadmasters and maintenance crews for C-27J operations. The decision will be finalized pending an environmental impact analysis.

The decision to land the C-27J training mission at Key Field will build on the number of those aircraft located in Meridian. The training mission will add two C-27J aircraft at Key Field, where the Air Force had already decided to base four other C-27Js starting in early FY2012. The Air Force indicated that the two additional C-27J aircraft will be transferred in the third quarter of FY2014, with initial operational capability achieved in late 2014. The new FTU would be fully operational by the third quarter of FY2015.

The Air Force based its decision on criteria that considered airspace, facilities and infrastructure, as well as mission and training requirements.

The Key Field Air National Guard Station is currently home to the 186th Air Refueling Wing. In its 2005 BRAC Recommendations, the Department of Defense decided that by 2012, it would move the 186th Air Refueling Wing’s KC-135R aircraft to Wisconsin, Tennessee and Maine, leaving Key Field without a clear mission. This decision changes that, giving Meridian responsibility for a crucial mission well into the future.

The C-27J is a twin turbo-prop engine aircraft that provides short take-off and landing capabilities that are best suited for the transport of cargo among intra-theater locales.