Delta Heritage Hosts May BBA Breakfast

Brownsville business people love to share  with fellow business associates and that has become even more evident during the three months since the BBA Breakfast event has been happening. Starting in March 2011, this event just keeps growing. The Delta Heritage Center was proud to host the May event, along with Williams Insurance Agency. Lots of BBA fun was had by all ... and a great breakfast, too. Someone pass the Elvis biscuits!

Kenny Ellington, Brownsville Bells Funeral Home, and Michael Harrison, Haywood Harbinger 

Paulette Campbell, Lock, Stock and Barrel, Becky Booth, Moore Insurance Agency, and Pat Bailey, Pat's Fabrics

Charles Elrod, NewWave Communications, and Albert Campbell, Lock, Stock and Barrel

Carolyn Reid, Brownsville Family Restaurant, Vice Mayor Carolyn Flagg, and Daniel Thornton, Richards-Cummins Real Estate/Southwest TN Electric Co.

Joe Ing, Brownsville-Haywood County Chamber , Diane Hooper, Sugar Creek Retirement Center, and Nancy Cates, B-HC Parks and Recreation 

Vicki Cooper, All That's Victoria, Sonia Outlaw-Clark, West TN Delta Heritage Center, and Keith Kirkpatrick, NewWave Communications

Blues Fest revived in Brownsville

Blind Red Rooster will perform live at the Exit 56 Blues Fest Saturday, May 28, beginning at 7 p.m. Members of the group from Northwest Tennessee are Smokin' Joe Watts, Rick Casey, Coby Watts and Rob Kingrey.

Brownsville will once again celebrate its blues heritage during the Exit 56 Blues Fest Saturday, May 28, at the West Tennessee Delta Heritage Center. Festivities will include an arts and crafts show, quilt exhibit, book signing, cruise-in and live music. The day long event will run from 9 a.m. until 9 p.m.

Artisans will showcase their wares from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. Items for sale will include sunglasses, handmade ribbons and bows, aprons, boutique dresses, flower arrangements, jewelry, handbags, wood products, quilts and more.

Heirloom and more modern quilts will be on display inside the Center as part of the “Heritage Quilts of West Tennessee” special exhibit sponsored by Pat’s Fabrics of Brownsville. Also on exhibit will be the winning art projects of the Haywood County School children for the recent Cinco de Mayo Celebration.

Author Pamela Whinnery will be present from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m., to sign copies of her latest cookbook “Country Goodness Recipes of Tennessee Celebrities.” The recipe collection includes recipes from Elvis, Trace Adkins, President Andrew Jackson and more.

Beginning at 5 p.m., local and area artist will perform from the porch of the Sleepy John Estes home, located on the grounds of the Center. Memphis musicians Graham Perry and Kevin Kilgore, members of the group Tucson Simpson will perform at 5 p.m. Brownsville’s own Clifton Smith will take the stage at 6:30; and Union City Blues band Blind Red Rooster will perform at 7 p.m.

Car and motorcycle enthusiasts are invited to cruise-in for any or all of the festivities.

Festival admission and concerts are free and everyone is invited to attend and enjoy a day celebrating the Brownsville blues. The West Tennessee Delta Heritage Center is located off of Interstate 40 at Exit 56, behind McDonald’s. For more information, contact the Center at 731-779-9000 or visit www.westtnheritage.com.

Mickey Utley to kick-off summer concert series

This Sunday, May 22, Brownsville’s own Mickey Utley will kick-off a summer of live performances from the porch of the Sleepy John Estes home at the West Tennessee Delta Heritage Center. The summer concert series, called “Concert on the Porch,” will feature local and regional talents each month leading up to the Hatchie Fall Fest in October.

Utley will take the stage (porch) at 3:30 p.m., Sunday, when he will introduce his newest release, “I’m Feelin’ You.” The concerts are free and everyone is invited. Utley will be signing autographs and posing for pictures immediately following the concert. A special exhibit will also be on display inside the Center showcasing items donated by Utley.

Other performers scheduled to make an appearance on “The Porch” this summer are: Hannah Company, Jupiter Stone, David Smith, His Voice, Diverse Five, Wildwood Express, David Evans, Elmo Lee Thomas and more.

For a complete schedule and more information, contact the Center at 731-779-9000, or visit the website: www.westtnheritage.com.

Hopson to sign new book at Delta Heritage Center

The West Tennessee Delta Heritage Center, in Brownsville, Tenn., will host authors and book signing for I Do…Every Day, Words of Wisdom for Newlyweds and Not so Newlyweds, Saturday May 14, from 2 - 4 p.m.

I Do…Every Day, Words of Wisdom for Newlyweds and Not so Newlyweds, is the newest book of devotions from Haywood County native Dr. Cynthia Bond Hopson. This time she has teamed up with her husband, Roger, and they’re on a mission to help newlyweds and couples revitalize marriage as the treasure God intended.

In the 31 reflections released May 1 from Abingdon Press, the Hopsons offer straight talk, ask tough questions that may cause a little blushing (don’t worry, nothing X-rated), and tell stories that will touch readers where they live, inspiring them to be equal partners, friends and lovers. It is for anyone who has ever said “I do,” “I will,” or “I messed up” and even those who are getting ready to walk down the aisle.

This is Hopson’s fifth book and it joins her popular titles, Wiggle Tales, a collection of her columns from the Brownsville States Graphic, an account of media coverage of voter registration in Haywood County, Times of Challenge and Controversy, and her two books of devotions for women, Bad Hair Days, Rainy Days and Mondays, and Too Many Irons in the Fire and They’re All Smoking!

Hopson is the daughter of Mrs. Alvis M. Bond of Stanton and the late John A. Bond Jr., Emma and Carey Bowles. She is assistant general secretary for the United Methodist Church’s General Board of Higher Education and Ministry’s Black College Fund. This is her first writing venture with her husband, a United Methodist minister who serves as executive assistant to the Nashville Area bishop. They live in Lebanon, Tenn.

Authors Cynthia Bond Hopson & Roger Hopson

JACKSON: SPORTS CAPITAL OF THE MID SOUTH AGAIN THIS WEEKEND

More than 137 sports teams and 1,000 runners and walkers will travel to Jackson to compete and participate in sporting events over the upcoming weekend. The Mid America Youth Basketball Tournament, Little General’s 5K Run/Fun Walk, Jumpstart Jackson’s Community Wellness Walk as well as baseball and softball games at the West Tennessee Healthcare Sportsplex are expected to attract about 7,000 people to Jackson.

Mid America Basketball Youth will host the first of a series of three basketball tournaments over the spring and summer in Jackson at Northside High School, Jackson Central Merry, Rose Hill Middle School and Tigrett Middle School where over 60 teams will compete.  West Tennessee Healthcare Sportsplex will host 77 teams with the USSSA “Baseball Blast” and the USGF “Fastpitch Fever” games.

At Union University runners will compete in the Little General’s 5K Run and 1 mile Fun Walk benefitting the Pediatric Unit at Jackson Madison County General Hospital.  Across town at the Carl Perkins Civic Center, Jumpstart Jackson kicks off their Annual Community Wellness Walk through downtown.

“We are fortunate to have sports destinations and venues like West Tennessee Healthcare Sportsplex and the Jackson Madison County School System,” said Lori Nunnery, Executive Director of the Jackson Convention and Visitors Bureau.  “Sports Tourism plays an integral part in raising the profile of our community and is increasingly seen as part of a broader tourism strategy.  The sporting events, along with the Casey Jones Day and Celebrate Art Festival in the Casey Jones Village, help to make this a great weekend of fun. ”

“Besides the benefits of increased media exposure that will have long-term effects on tourism, these events bring people and a substantial financial impact.  No matter who walks away with the trophy at the end of the tournament, the Jackson-Madison County economy is set to be the big winner.”                            

NASA Traveling Exhibit to Visit Casey Jones Village

 A little bit of Mission Control will have lift-off in Jackson, Tenn., the weekend of May 14 - 15, as the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, brings  NASA’s Driven to Explore mobile exhibit to Casey Jones Home & Railroad Museum and Casey Jones Village  from 9 am to 7 pm each day.  Driven to Explore has no admission charge and is designed for all ages to enjoy. 

Driven to Explore is a mobile, multimedia experience showcasing NASA’s future plans for space exploration, including information on next-generation vehicles and the challenges associated with long term space travel. It immerses visitors in the story of NASA. The walking tour includes breathtaking imagery and audio and visual technology to connect guests with the space program.  

The Museum was chosen as the only site in West Tennessee due to the unique transportation connection of the railroads to space travel and amount of visitors Casey Jones Village enjoys each year.  NASA will be touring the exhibit through Tennessee during the month of May. 

Visitors will have the rare opportunity to touch a moon rock brought back by Apollo 17, the last manned mission to the moon in 1972. The moon rock is the centerpiece of the traveling exhibit and is one of the only seven lunar samples in the world made available for the public to touch and feel.

Casey Jones Home & Railroad Museum is located in Casey Jones Village in Jackson, Tennessee at 30 Casey Jones Lane.  It is dedicated to the life and legend of Casey Jones and Jackson railroading history.  For more information visit www.caseyjones.com. 

The Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center (JSC) is the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's center for human space flight  training, research and flight control. The Center consists of a complex of 100 buildings constructed on 1,620 acres in Houston, Texas.  Johnson Space Center is home to the United States astronaut  corps and is responsible for training astronauts from both the U.S. and its international partners. It is often popularly referred to by its central function, "Mission Control".  For more information visit www.nasa.gov.  

Mickey Utley to perform “On the Porch”

After two months performing on the Royal Caribbean cruise ship “Voyager of the Sea," Brownsville’s own Mickey Utley will return to his hometown Sunday, May 22, to perform on the porch of the Sleepy John Estes home at the West Tennessee Delta Heritage Center. The concert is free to the public and will begin at 3:30 p.m.

Utley is set to release a new single this summer titled “I’m Feelin’ You.” His last single “Cry like Memphis” is getting worldwide play and has made it on to the Music Row Charts.

“I’m looking forward to coming back home to play,” says Utley of his upcoming concert. “There’s nothing like coming home to perform where it all started.”

Called a soul-billy rocker, Utley says playing music is second nature to him. He also spends time writing and perfecting his rock-n-roll infused country sound.

The May 22 concert is part of the 2011 Summer Concert Series “Concert on the Porch.” Utley CDs will be available for sale and he will also be signing autographs and posing for photos immediately following the concert.

To learn more about Mickey Utley, visit www.mickeyutleymusic.com.

The West Tennessee Delta Heritage Center is a tourism information center with three regional museums located at Exit 56, behind McDonald's, in Brownsville, Tenn. The "Concert on the Porch" series is presented once a month May through September and features performances by local and area artists. To learn more about the Center and for a complete schedule of concerts, visit the website at www.westtnheritage.com.