MS Baptist Youth Choir in concert

- First Baptist Church of Houston will have the joy of hosting the Mississippi Baptist All-State Youth Choir and Orchestra on June 14. The concert will begin at 6:30 p.m. This is a great opportunity to hear one of the premier youth choirs in the country. Everyone is invited.

The Mississippi Baptist All-State Youth Choir and Orchestra began in 1991 with a God-given vision in the hearts of Graham Smith, director, and Susan Clark Luttrell, youth music/drama consultant for the Church Music Department of the Mississippi Baptist Convention Board. The choir has grown from 45 members in 1993 to over 110 singers. Ninth through twelfth grade students audition and interview each fall for positions with the choir and orchestra. Those who are selected attend a three-day rehearsal camp on the campus of William Carey University, Hattiesburg, Mississippi, and a seven-day concert tour the following summer.

The Mississippi Baptist All-State Youth Choir and Orchestra has been privileged to be featured in concert at the Southern Baptist Church Music Conference in Nashville, Tennessee (1999) and New Orleans, Louisiana (2008).

Day of Dialog open to the Okolona community

- At 8 a.m. on June 13, Mission Mississippi will host its Day of Dialog in Okolona. The event will provide the citizens of Okolona and the surrounding communities the chance to openly and unapologetically discuss the issues hindering racial reconciliation. The goal of this event is to encourage people to get involved in hopes that the topics discussed on that day will broaden their outlook and end involvement in racial diversity through a day of open discussion.

Mission Mississippi, a Christian-based non-profit organization, is in its sixteenth year of striving to end racial discrimination and differences one relationship at a time. Its efforts are expanding throughout the state with a free event open to the public entitled Mission Mississippi's "Days of Dialog".

A Day of Dialog will be held at Rockwell City Auditorium in Okolona, Miss., with registration beginning sharply at 8 a.m. Diversified discussion groups will break off into their respectable group locations and guests will break off into groups to discuss "sensitive topics" in hopes that each person leaves with a newfound perspective.