ESTABLISHED 1879 | COLUMBUS, MISSISSIPPI CDISPATCH.COM 50 ¢ NEWSSTAND | 40 ¢ HOME DELIVERY FRIDAY | DECEMBER 29, 2017 TAXSlAYER BOwl Hill ready to end standout freshman year on high note Columbus native leans on mom for moral support BY BRETT HUDSON That reputation only grew that day, as [email protected] the running back and Columbus native ripped off 62 yards against Charleston JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Before Kylin Southern at Davis Wade Stadium, mak- Mississippi Hill’s first game as a Mississippi State ing his mother proud and setting the State freshman football player on Sept. 2, his mother Kar- stage for a standout freshman season. running back Kylin Hill rips enda Hill was walking around campus Kylin will take EverBank Field on Sat- with other family members — all of whom off a big gain on urday when No. 24 MSU (8-4) meets Lou- Oct. 14 against were wearing custom T-shirts bearing isville (8-4) in the TaxSlayer Bowl as his BYU at Davis Kylin’s likeness. team’s No. 2 running back — playing be- Wade Stadi- Karenda quickly learned her son’s rep- hind starter and junior West Point native um. Hill, who utation had preceded him among the fans. Aeris Williams. has rushed for “When I said Kylin Hill, pretty much His 70 carries for 364 yards and two 364 yards this season, ranks everybody knew who he was. It was a touchdowns have him third among fresh- third among great feeling,” she said. “A lot of people man Southeastern Conference running freshman in the knew I was his mom and I didn’t even backs. The work he has put in has been Southeastern know half of those people, but they knew the first chapter of a dream realized, Conference. him.” See HILL, 6A Chris McDill/Special to The Dispatch BRISK WALK Supes poised for $1 million- plus withdrawal from trust fund Principal should elevate to $32.5 million BY SLIM SMITH [email protected] With a light agenda for its final meeting of 2017 on Thursday, the Lown- des County Board of Supervisors looked ahead, not to the new year but to today. Billingsley More specifically, the board looked for- ward to 4 p.m. today, which is when the stock market will close for the last time this year. At that point, the supervisors will know how much their Hospital Trust Fund has earned and, more important- ly, how much of those profits they can withdraw for capital improve- Luisa Porter/Dispatch Staff ments. Under the law governing Mary Beth Jeter and her husband, Holly Jeter, take a brisk walk together around the Baptist Memorial Hospital-Golden Tri- the county’s trust fund investment, angle walking track Thursday. When asked about their New Year’s plans, Mary Beth says she hopes to go to her neighbor’s any withdrawal of profits must be home and warm by their backyard fire. Low temperatures this weekend are expected to reach the low 20s and the teens by based on the portfolio’s value on early next week. the last day of the year. Going into the final hours, the outlook is very promising — poten- tially even record-breaking. “At the close of the market (Wednesday), that would be Unemployment rates continue to trend down $1,007,000 and some change,” Area unemployment County Administrator Ralph Bill- Oktibbeha County reaches ‘full ingsley reported to supervisors. “If employment’ for second straight month County Nov. 17 Oct. 17 Nov. 16 it finishes (today) at that, we’ll have Lowndes 4.7% 4.8% 5.3% more (profits) than we budgeted, BY SLIM SMITH which was 3-percent growth. I also state since January 1976. Oktibbeha 4.0% 4.0% 4.4% [email protected] Seasonally adjusted data point out that we can only take out removes the effects of events Clay 6.1% 6.1% 6.6% up to 3 percent of the total. What- For economists, 4 percent that follow a regular pattern Noxubee 6.8% 6.4% 7.2 % ever money is made over 3 percent is considered full employ- each year such as the influ- *MS 4.8% 4.9% 5.6% goes to the corpus.” ment. The corpus is the principal of ences of weather, holidays, *USA 4.1% 4.1% 4.6% This week, after October the opening and closing of the fund, originally established unemployment numbers schools, and other recurring * Seasonally adjusted from the roughly $30-million sale were revised, Oktibbeha seasonal events. Amounts Source: Mississippi Department of Employment Security of the county hospital to Baptist County has hit that magic are seasonally adjusted at Memorial Health Care Corpora- number for two consecutive the national and state levels unemployment report for strong downward trend in tion in 2006. By law, no withdrawal months while the state’s sea- only. the month of November unemployments continues from the fund can be made that re- sonally adjusted unemploy- The Mississippi Depart- and while the change in the throughout the Golden Tri- duces the corpus. ment rate came in at 4.8 per- ment of Employment Secu- jobless rates were minor angle, state and nation. If the market holds or increases cent, the lowest rate for the rity released its preliminary compared to October, the See UNEMPLOYMENT, 6A See TRUST FUND, 6A WEATHER FIVE QUESTIONS CALENDAR LOCAL FOLKS PUBLIC 1 What is a danseur? MEETINGS Today Jan. 2: 2 What popular personal communi- ■ Rockin at the Ritz: This New Year’s party from cations device shares its name with Columbus City a fruit? 7-11 p.m. at The Ritz in downtown West Point Council, 5 3 What city is synonymous with the features the Friday Night Jams Band plus “surprise p.m., Municipal architecture of Antoni Gaudi? legends” entertainment. Cash bar. Tickets are $25 Complex at the Growth Alliance, 746 E. Broad St., West Point, 4 What TV show’s heroine often hallu- Jan. 8: Fiona Rose cinated a dancing baby? or call 662-494-5121. 5 Who was the first U.S. president to Columbus Caledonia have been divorced? Municipal School Thursday, Jan. 4 District Board of High Low Answers, 8B ■ Exhibit reception: The Columbus Arts Council Trustees, 6 p.m., 47 23 hosts a reception from 5:30-7 p.m. opening an Sunny Brandon Central exhibition of 2D and 3D expressive experiments by Full forecast on Services Joe MacGown of Starkville at the Rosenzweig Arts page 2A. Jan. 12: Center, 501 Main St. Free to the public. For more Lowndes INSIDE information, contact the CAC, 662-328-2787. County School District Board Classifieds7B Obituaries 5A Saturday, Jan. 6 of Trustees, Comics 5B Opinions 4A ■ Art showing: A showing of original artwork by 11 a.m., 1053 Crossword 8B Religion 6B Andre Ray begins at 6 p.m. at Beans & Cream, 60 Lucious Chandler enjoys Highway 45 138TH YEAR, NO. 248 Dear Abby 5B Brickerton St., Columbus. Open to the public. cooking and fishing. South DISPATCH CUSTOMER SERVICE 328-2424 | NEWSROOM 328-2471 2A FRIDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2017 THE DISPATCH • www.cdispatch.com SAY WHAT? DID YOU HEAR? “You talk about a turnaround, a guy that really struggled last year, came to fall camp and has been a totally different guy.” Tightest security ever for New MSU interim football coach Greg Knox, who also is the team’s special Year’s after deadly attacks Friday teams coordinator, talking about kicker Jace Christmann. Story, 1B. ‘This is going to be one of the most well- policed, best-protected events at one of A THOUSAND WORDS the safest venues in the entire world’ BY COLLEEN LONG in October, when a gunman The Associated Press firing from a casino hotel killed dozens of people at NEW YORK — Police an outdoor concert below. are promising a bigger se- Police wouldn’t discuss curity detail than ever be- whether guests at area ho- fore in Times Square for this year’s New Year’s Eve tels would be screened in celebration, which will cap advance of the celebration, off a year that saw a num- but Police Commissioner ber of deadly attacks on in- James O’Neill said officers nocent crowds, including a already are working with vehicle rampage at the very hotel security. spot where revelers will “This is going to be one ring in 2018. of the most well-policed, In addition to its usual best-protected events at one army of snipers, bag-in- of the safest venues in the specting officers and metal entire world,” O’Neill said. detectors, the department The extra precautions this year is relying on help follow two recent terror- from a growing corps of ist attacks in the city. A “vapor wake” dogs, which man detonated a bomb in are trained to sniff out trace the city’s subway system amounts of explosive parti- on Dec. 11, injuring only cles that trail behind some- himself. On Halloween, an one carrying a bomb. Islamic State-inspired at- All 125 parking garag- tacker drove down a bicycle es in the vicinity of Times path, killing eight people be- Square will be emptied in fore he wrecked his truck advance of the celebration Deanna Robinson/Dispatch Staff and sealed off, so no one and was shot by police. Times Square itself was Police Chief Oscar Lewis, left, is presented a gift by Community Benefit Committee members Rhonda Sand- has a chance to sneak in a ers, Janie Shields and Dennis Tedford during Lewis’ retirement party at the Courtyard by Marriott in Columbus car bomb, police said. targeted in May by a man, Thursday. Lewis is retiring after roughly 24 years in law enforcement, including 20 with CPD.