The Montgomery Institute

14/10/2026

Building Bridges, One Daycare at a Time

This month, ABC PreK stepped into its first classrooms. Our teaching artists spent two weeks at Barbara Henson's and Smith's Learning Center, and every lesson started from one idea: bridges connect us.

Here's how it worked. Four teaching artists, each with a different art form, visited the two centers in the first week. In the second week, they swap. Each artist teaches the same lesson at the center they didn't visit before, so it takes two weeks for every artist to reach both centers. That means the children at both places experience all four art forms, and each lesson is taught in the same way at each site. It's a small rotation, and it's changing how we see our own teaching.

Theatre. Terrence Dastoryweaver Roberts opened the series at Barbara Henson's with the story of The Bridge Builder. Children joined in the call-and-response and helped tell the story with their voices.

Movement. Alana Sparrow Broughton led children at Smith's Learning Center in building bridges with their bodies. They also traveled around the room as a train and crossed bridges along the way.

Visual art. Richelle Putnam also taught at Smith's. Children looked at pictures of many different bridges, then made their own. Each child tore construction paper to create their landscape/cityscapte and then drew their bridge. Each child named their bridge after themselves.

Music. Samm Jacquot brought music to Barbara Henson's. The children sang, played, and answered back to her original call-and-response song, "We Will Build a Bridge."

What we saw

Call-and-response worked in both the storytelling and the music, and the children jumped right in. They also love to move. Becoming a train and making a bridge with their own arms and legs are things I'm not sure we could have planned any better.

The torn-paper landscapes were a favorite. Tearing is real work for small hands, and the children took it seriously. Their cityscapes and landscapes were all different, and every one had its own bridge.

Movement and visual art both used the picture book "Here to There and Me to You." For children this young, a book of pictures of different bridges gave them something to see and to talk about before they made anything of their own.

**The teachers were part of it**

Classroom teachers observed and helped with the art project. One of ABC PreK's goals is to give teachers more tools to bring arts into their classrooms on their own, long after our visits are over. In classes of 12 to 15 children, an extra pair of hands made a real difference.

Next week: SHAPES!!

Beverly J. Knox Lacey Williams Cornelious D. Smith City of Meridian-Government Community Foundation of East Mississippi Bill Crawford Meridian Public School District Meridian Lauderdale County Public Library Meridian Museum of Art Stacy Nycole Vincent Vance Laura Carmichael Meridian, Mississippi Meridian Little Theatre Meridian Symphony Orchestra

12/10/2026

29/09/2026

Prevention Starts with Conversation—and Community!

TMI/CHIN’s Drug-Free Communities Coalition enjoyed Southeast Lauderdale Middle School’s Family Night and connected with students, parents, caregivers, and other community members.

Our CDC/DFC Director, Lacey Williams, shared information about the dangers of fentanyl, kratom, and 7-OH products, along with resources to help families better understand the substances affecting youth and communities today. We also distributed flyers with practical ideas for starting conversations with middle schoolers about drugs—because those conversations can be an important part of prevention.

And there was plenty happening throughout the evening! SEMS Family Night brought families together for games, free children's activity kits, food, haircuts and hair appointments, and information from community organizations offering resources available right here in our area.

Part of our mission is to reduce youth substance use by increasing awareness and strengthening prevention throughout our community. That means meeting families where they are, providing reliable information, answering questions, and helping parents and caregivers feel more prepared for sometimes difficult conversations with their children.

We appreciate Southeast Middle School for welcoming us and for creating an evening centered on students, families, connection, and community resources. And thank you to everyone who stopped by our table to talk with us!

Parents and caregivers: Have you talked with your middle schooler about drugs lately? You don't need to have all the answers to start the conversation. Start by asking what they already know—and listen.

Together, we can give our young people the knowledge, confidence, support, and relationships they need to make healthy choices and build bright futures.

Prevention starts with all of us.

East Central Community College East Mississippi Community College East Mississippi Business Development Corporation East Mississippi HUB for Volunteers and Nonprofits Northeast Lauderdale Middle School Meridian Public School District CHIN - Community Health Improvement Network City of Meridian-Government Mississippi State University - Meridian Campus Mississippi Department of Education Mississippi Department of Human Services Lacey Williams Beverly J. Knox Cornelious D. Smith

25/09/2026

On Wednesday, Richelle PutnamI, the Cultural Arts/Arts Education Director of The Montgomery Institute, had the joy of sharing ABC PreK with the Rotary Club of Meridian.

ABC PreK is The Montgomery Institute's initiative to help our youngest learners build strong "A"cademic, "B"ehavioral, and "C"reative foundations through arts integration.

The next time you see a four-year-old painting, singing, or pretending — look a little closer. That child may be counting, listening, managing frustration, and creating something that didn't exist before. Those aren't just art skills. They're kindergarten-readiness skills, and ultimately life skills.

ABC PreK is an initiative of The Montgomery Institute made possible by a grant from The Phil Hardin Foundation.



Cornelious D. Smith Beverly J. Knox East Mississippi Business Development Corporation East Central Community College Meridian Public School District Meridian Community College East Central Community College Mississippi Department of Education City of Meridian-Government Al Brown

18/09/2026

What an incredible community effort at East Mississippi Gives and the Third Thursday celebration! For 24 hours, our region came together to support the local nonprofits that make a daily impact in Lauderdale, Kemper, Clarke, Newton, and Neshoba counties.

The energy downtown at Dumont Plaza was amazing during the in-person celebration. It was wonderful seeing everyone connecting with nonprofit leaders, enjoying live music, and checking out the Night Market, Canvases for Cancer, and the Merrehope Community Chain.

Thank you to the Community Foundation of East Mississippi and everyone who donated, volunteered, or came out to support our community. Together, we are building a stronger East Mississippi!

UpBuilding People and Places--Sonny's way!

Beverly J. Knox Lacey Williams Richelle Putnam Cornelious D. Smith East Mississippi Business Development Corporation Community Foundation of East Mississippi CHIN - Community Health Improvement Network Meridian Main Street

11/09/2026

September 11 — Remember

Today, The Montgomery Institute joins our nation in remembering the lives lost on September 11, 2001, and honoring the families whose lives were forever changed.

At TMI, the values of faith, patriotism, relationships, service, and perseverance are deeply rooted in the legacy we strive to carry forward. On this day, those values call us to remember not only what happened, but also how Americans came together—neighbor helping neighbor, stranger helping stranger, and communities standing as one.

May God continue to comfort the families who carry the loss of that day, bless our first responders and service members, and guide each of us to build communities marked by compassion, unity, and service.

We remember. We honor. We will never forget.



CHIN - Community Health Improvement Network East Central Community College East Mississippi Community College East Mississippi Business Development Corporation City of Meridian-Government Beverly J. Knox Lacey Williams Richelle Putnam Cornelious D. Smith

10/09/2026

Remembering Fannie Mae Johnson: A Life of Service

She fed people. She helped people. She taught others how to serve. And she made her community stronger.

The Community Health Improvement Network (CHIN) and The Montgomery Institute join our community in remembering and honoring Fannie Mae Johnson, a woman whose life demonstrated what it truly means to be a servant.

For decades, Fannie's work at L.O.V.E.'s Kitchen was rooted in a simple but powerful mission: feed the masses.

But Fannie understood that feeding people meant more than satisfying hunger. A nutritious meal could support someone's physical health. A welcoming table could provide connection and encouragement. Treating someone with dignity could help restore hope.

Her service often happened quietly, one person and one need at a time.

That is the Fannie that Beverly Knox, President of The Montgomery Institute and CHIN, remembers—not only the community leader everyone knew, but the woman working behind the scenes to make someone's life a little better.

“Fannie’s instructions about serving food with our Lunch & Learns at Community Health Improvement Network (CHIN) will never be forgotten. We will be forever grateful for her advice and guidance, which still stand today. That was Fannie just being Fannie—protecting us with her ServSafe knowledge. Not only did she teach, but she helped us serve at our Lunch & Learn events.”

And Fannie's definition of service didn't stop at the kitchen door.

Knox remembers working alongside her to meet needs that many people would never see.

“I’m thankful for working with Fannie behind the scenes—whether it was filling the need for a new pair of work boots or getting someone a shower for a job interview. She was a jewel in our community and is already missed.”

Those moments tell us something important about Fannie Mae Johnson.

She saw the person behind the need.

A pair of work boots wasn't simply a pair of boots. It might mean someone could go to work. A shower wasn't simply about getting clean. It could mean walking into a job interview with confidence and dignity. A meal wasn't simply food. It was nourishment, fellowship and the knowledge that someone cared.

That philosophy closely reflects what CHIN works to promote throughout our community: health is about the whole person. Physical health, mental well-being, nutrition, human connection and access to resources are intertwined.

Fannie lived those principles long before they became talking points.

Knox perhaps summarizes her legacy best:

“We thank God for the life of Fannie Johnson, a servant who touched so many lives in our community. Fannie’s exemplary example of servanthood and her legacy will live on through the mission to serve at L.O.V.E.’s Kitchen and through all of us who were blessed to be called a friend of Fannie Johnson.”

Fannie's legacy challenges all of us to look around, notice what another person might need, and do what we can to help.

Feed someone. Encourage someone. Teach someone. Help someone take the next step. Serve without needing recognition.

That is how a community becomes healthier.

And that is how we can continue the work of a woman who spent so much of her life caring for Meridian.

Thank you, Fannie Mae Johnson. You didn't simply feed a community. You showed a community how to serve.

— The Montgomery Institute & Community Health Improvement Network (CHIN)



Beverly J. Knox Lacey Williams Cornelious D. Smith Richelle Putnam Community Foundation of East Mississippi East Central Community College East Mississippi Community College Mississippi State University - Meridian Campus Meridian Community College Meridian, Mississippi Meridian Public School District Lauderdale County School District Foundation

01/09/2026

Almost a Quarter of a Century Upbuilding Communities!

For more than two decades, The Montgomery Institute (TMI) has proudly served East Mississippi—bringing people, organizations, and resources together to strengthen our communities.

From economic and community development to healthcare, education, youth empowerment, prevention, and the arts, TMI’s work has evolved to meet changing community needs while remaining grounded in the same purpose: upbuilding people and upbuilding places.

Inspired by the legacy of Congressman G.V. “Sonny” Montgomery and the vision of our founder, Bill Crawford, we believe lasting progress happens when communities work together.

And there is much more ahead! We invite you to be part of the next chapter.

Follow and like The Montgomery Institute on social media.

Visit tmi.ms and join our website community for news, programs, events, and opportunities to get involved.

Thank you, East Mississippi, for more than 20 years of partnership, trust, and community.

Together, we keep upbuilding.



Beverly J. Knox Lacey Williams Cornelious D. Smith Bill Crawford East Mississippi Community College East Mississippi Business Development Corporation East Central Community College Community Foundation of East Mississippi East Mississippi Community College City of Meridian-Government Richelle Putnam

29/08/2026

What does arts integration actually look like in ABC PreK?

It means learning doesn’t stop when one lesson ends. Our teaching artists work together so that what children discover in one experience becomes the foundation for the next, helping young learners make connections, revisit ideas in new ways, and deepen their understanding.

This is where the magic of scaffolding happens. Take a look at how one simple concept can travel through four different art forms and become a much richer learning experience along the way.

ABC PreK believes every child deserves the opportunity to build strong Academic, Behavioral, and Creative foundations through the arts.

Please support us by "liking" and "following" our page. To receive updates, please sign up on our website: www.tmi.ms

We look forward to you being a part of this endeavor!



Beverly J. Knox Lacey Williams Richelle Putnam Jimmie Rodgers Festival and Museum East Mississippi Business Development Corporation East Central Community College East Mississippi Community College Meridian Public School District City of Meridian-Government Beverly Henson Samm Jacquot Alana Sparrow Broughton Terrence Dastoryweaver Roberts

21/08/2026

National Fentanyl Awareness Day: Awareness Can Save a Life

Fentanyl has changed the conversation about substance use—and prevention has never been more important. For our young people, knowing the risks, understanding what they may encounter, and feeling confident enough to make safe choices can make a life-changing difference.

The Montgomery Institute/ - Community Health Improvement Network Drug-Free Communities Coalition (CDC) is working with schools, families, community organizations, and local leaders to make prevention part of the conversation throughout Meridian and Lauderdale County.

Our goal IS to give them knowledge, confidence, support, and healthy connections so they can make informed decisions and protect the futures they are building.

On National Fentanyl Awareness Day, we encourage parents, caregivers, educators, mentors, and community members to talk with the young people in their lives. Ask what they know. Listen to their questions. Help them understand that taking a pill or substance from an unknown or untrusted source can carry serious risks.

Start the conversation: What do you think young people most need to know about fentanyl?

Share this post and help us spread awareness. One informed conversation can reach a family, a classroom, a group of friends—and potentially save a life.

Awareness. Prevention. Partnership. Together, we can protect our youth.

Lacey Williams Beverly J. Knox East Mississippi Business Development Corporation Lauderdale County School District Foundation Southeast Lauderdale High School Southeast Lauderdale High School Southeast Lauderdale Middle School Meridian Public School District