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Commentary
Why Vicksburg?
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| Ralph Sowell |
After 39 years of inducting new members in the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame in the Magnolia State's Capital City, why move it out of Jackson?
It's not a short, one reason answer; but we believe it is a good answer, so here goes:
First, why move it at all?
The Induction Ceremony seemed to need a "boost"- a "new breath of air," a "kick in the seat"- if you will.
The Hall of Fame becomes possible each year through attendance and sponsors- in short, people and money. Both needed a boost.
And even if we could increase the number of people attending it, we had no place to go in Jackson for a sit-down banquet. The Crown Plaza had been filled for two out of the last three years, but approximately 200 of the seats had to fight a post obstruction throughout the ceremony. We were already usiing the biggest location in town, and no other location came close to fitting the bill.
But we couldn't move it without having a place to go. So ground research was begun. We readily saw places we could go: Hattiesburg, Philadelphia, Vicksburg, the Gulf Coast, and Tunica. All of these locations could give us more seats.
But Vicksburg could give us location-location--location. One could drive from the Coast, North Mississippi, and Jackson on a good 4-lane Interstate Highway, located in the center of the State.
And "the place" was sitting there, waiting for a group like ours. The Vicksburg Convention Center offered approximately 200 new seats, all in one room, with no obstructions, in a state-of-the-art facility- 50,000 square feet of amenities and an on-site caterer, plus a staff that aimed to please.
But we needed the help of a leader- we needed a "mover" like Jimmy Heidel to help us iron out the many details. Heidel had served the State of Mississippi from 1992-1998 as the Executive Director of the Mississippi Department of Economic and Community Development. He had returned to Vicksburg after Governor Kirk Fordice's two terms in office. He currently wears three hats: head of the Warren County-Vicksburg Chamber of Commerce; the Warren County Port Commission; and, the Economic Development Foundation.
And Heidel knows sports. He played college football at the University of Mississippi, and profesionally for the New York Jets, St. Louis Cardinals and New Orleans Saints.
Heidel was present for the first exploratory meeting with the Convention Center, and he quickly became our leader, advisor, mover and shaker in the Red Carpet City. Already a busy, busy man with his local leadership positions, he stepped up to the plate for the Sports Hall of Fame.
The next step was to identify potential funding sources. Two Vicksburg leaders- Ameristar Casino and River Region Health Systems- stepped up and said, "We'll help".
NOW, I had enough to go to the Jackson Touchdown Club and say "I want to take the Hall of Fame to Vicksburg for its 40th year. I have the location, the facility, some promise of funds, and a leader to help me put it together." The Board responded and we were on our way.
But I got off track in explaining more of the reasons for- "Why Vicksburg?"
Vicksburg is rich in history, tradition, places to go, and things to see.
It would be difficult to mention first things first. But how about the Mighty Mississippi River, the Vicksburg National Military Park and other Civil War historic landmarks, Gold in the Hills Theater, spring and fall pilgrimages, casinos for entertainment, the Waterways Experiment Station, many bed and breakfast locations, and plenty of lodging support- not to mention shopping aplenty.
And Vicksburg has a progressive city and county leadership, one of the best newspapers in the State in The Vicksburg Post, and a host of community leaders who support events in their city. Vicksburg became known as the Red Carpet City many years ago. I remember the slogan from the 60's when my good friend Johnny Holland was Mayor of Vicksburg (1957-1968).
As I began writing this article, I called Johnny who now lives in Jackson, to fill in what I couldn't remember on the how the slogan- "Red Carpet City of the South" came to be. The year was 1957, and Mayor Holland, on the way to the National League of Cities Convention in San Francisco, made an airplane stop in Dallas. As he boarded the plane there, they rolled out a "Red Carpet"; When Johnny got back to Vicksburg, he decided Vicksburg needed something unique and this was going to be it.
The same year, Holland was the prime mover in getting the Miss Mississippi Pageant moved to Vicksburg but that's another story.
And Vicksburg has been, and is today, a city whose people work together.
Will the move to Vicksburg be a good decision? I think history will prove that it is. We'll know for sure on April 19, 2002.
Ralph Sowell is the current president of the Jackson Touchdown Club.
© Copyright 2001-2002 by Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame Museum
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