Mississippi Society of Georgia Sixth Annual Picnic in the Park
10:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. today
Chastain Park, 4469 Stella Dr., Atlanta
Free
Information: 404-550-3619, www.mssocietyofga.org
The distinctive aroma of frying catfish wafting from Chastain Park today will do more than whet the appetite. It’s a call to anyone who hails from Mississippi to sit a spell and visit with the family.
Members of the Mississippi Society of Georgia spend most of the year planning the annual Picnic in the Park to reconnect the thousands of Atlanta residents who once called the Magnolia State home. The group estimates that around 25,000 Mississippi natives now live in the metro area, and there are more with college connections.
“The University of Mississippi, Mississippi State and Southern Miss are just a few of the schools that have alumni in the area,” said organizer and picnic founder James Donald of Decatur. “But we consider Georgians our cousins, since part of Mississippi was formed from land ceded from Georgia in 1802. We have all been transplanted for some reason, but our goal is to bring some of the Mississippi culture to Atlanta, our adopted home.”
The picnic brings some of the state’s favorite flavors and music to the Buckhead park. Picnickers will find the aforementioned catfish, imported from the Mississippi delta and prepared on-site by experts from Penn’s restaurant in Jacksonville. Two blues bands will entertain while the crowd munches on cakes from the state-favorite Sugaree Bakery and sip sweet tea from the classic recipe of McAllister’s Deli in Oxford.
But having a Mississippi connection isn’t a requirement for enjoying the day.
“Our goal is to accentuate the positive things about Mississippi,” said Donald. “One way we do that is to bring together representatives from the various Mississippi schools. They pass out information for anyone who interested in going to Ole Miss or any of those schools. We also have Mississippi authors on hand to sign copies of their books.”
The society raises money for a scholarship program specifically for metro area students who attend Mississippi colleges. Last year, the award was $5,000, funded largely through a Friday afternoon golf tournament. The organization has also held special events throughout the year to raise money for disaster relief in areas of the state hard-hit by floods or hurricanes.
Donald expects about 400 folks to show up for the picnic that kicks off at 10:30 a.m.
“We really want to emphasize that it’s free and open to anybody,” he said. “If they happen to drive by and hear great music and smell catfish cooking, they’re welcome to join us.”
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