A former Mississippi police chief was arrested and charged with capital murder last week more than four years after his resignation as chief The Yazoo County Sheriff's Office posted a news release via Facebook at 11:09 p.m stating deputies responded to a call around 6 p.m in reference to a man who had suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound The department identified the deceased man as Timothy Byrd. According to the department Byrd was found dead at his home off of Dover Road they quickly uncovered several discrepancies in the story that was being told by a male subject that was on scene at the time of the incident," the news release reads "Investigators continued to process the scene and uncovered more evidence that there was foul play involved." According to the news release, deputies arrested former Yazoo City Police Chief James "Jay" Durwood Winstead Winstead was charged with capital murder in connection to this case K-9 injured in traffic stop shooting: Capitol Police arrest man after traffic stop shooting on I-55 in Jackson left K-9 injured After receiving some criticism about the arrest as Winstead appears to be a widely known community figure "Evidence is evidence," the statement begins "I understand a lot of people are upset behind this and so are we We all worked with this guy at some point in our law enforcement career but these kinds of warrants don’t get signed without sufficient evidence to do so We have no reason to fabricate charges and once again there is evidence all over this case that none of you know about at this point My prayers go out to the families of both parties in this situation." The Clarion Ledger reached out to receive more information about the case but the sheriff was not immediately available Previous Clarion Ledger reporting states that Winstead first started in law enforcement in 1996. Winstead was appointed as police chief in August 2020 by the Board of Mayor and Aldermen in a 4–1 vote, according to board meeting minutes from the Aug. 3, 2020 According to Clarion Ledger reporting, Winstead resigned as the Yazoo City police chief before April 2021 citing ongoing issues with the city’s mayor at that time See details on Winstead's resignation: Yazoo City police chief cites ongoing frustrations with mayor as reason for resignation The Clarion Ledger reported Winstead and Jake Sheriff who was the Yazoo County sheriff at the time brought up the idea of the two law enforcement agencies working together during a meeting with the city's mayor on March 23 Winstead said the mayor didn’t agree to the Yazoo City police helping the sheriff’s department the department’s investigative captain and himself had taken on working 12-hour patrolling shifts alongside other officers due to a staffing shortage Winstead said the staffing shortage had been going on for years The Clarion Ledger also reported Winstead felt weighed down by the low bond set for the man accused of killing a 13-year-old in March The bond had been originally set at $250,000 and was reduced to $75,000 Pam Dankins is the breaking news reporter for The Clarion Ledger. Email her at pdankins@gannett.com Home » Sports » Trojans sweep Yazoo City in opening-round of playoffs NEW HOPE — The Trojans began their playoff campaign in dominant fashion on Friday sweeping Yazoo City in a doubleheader Round 1 matchup at Trojan Field The win puts New Hope one win shy of 20 on the season and surpassing that milestone in the next round will help the Trojans achieve their biggest goals one of which was to win the division and have home-field advantage,” head coach Lee Boyd said “That’s a big plus to have in the playoffs ‘You get 21 and you’re playing for North State,’ and that’s exactly where we want to be.” getting some playing time for younger players and seniors who don’t normally start “We saw their excitement in playing and getting their picture up on the video board It’s nice for kids like Gage Price and Juice Tate it’s nice to get them an opportunity to play.” The Trojans also saw one of the team’s aces reach a milestone in his senior year Pitcher Austin Minichino registered six strikeouts in Game 1 the most of any Trojan in a single season that Boyd can recall Minichino missed out on the team’s run to the state semifinals series last year but has been a force on the mound in his senior year His performances have helped the Trojans to believe that they can make it back this year “That was a big blow for us last year,” he said of Minichino’s injury “To be able to come back and give us a lift and 100 strikeouts in a 28-game season is pretty impressive I know there are a couple of guys in Coach Hester’s era that may have more but it’s truly impressive and hopefully we get him a few more starts to extend that.” The Class of 2025 features several players who have started for multiple seasons and who have put in the work for over a year to get the Trojans back within reach of the championship series New Hope fell to district rivals Lafayette one round short of the championship series the Trojans have worked on themselves with their final goal in mind for this year: getting to Pearl to play for a state title “I think they realized how close we were last year,” Boyd said of the seniors (662) 328-2424 cdispatch.com © 2025 – The Commerical Dispatch in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle but we need your help to continue our efforts Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community Share on FacebookShare on X (formerly Twitter)Share on PinterestShare on LinkedInHATTIESBURG (WLBT) - Yazoo City native JB Middleton’s historically good season on the mound is being amplified once again Off the back of being awarded the Sun Belt Pitcher of the Week honors the Southern Miss baseball ace topped his performance last week earning a second consecutive conference honor on Tuesday 𝐁𝐚𝐜𝐤-𝐭𝐨-𝐁𝐚𝐜𝓴𝓴𝓴𝓴𝓴𝓴𝓴𝓴JB’s compete game heroics on Friday earn’s him consecutive Pitcher of the Week honors! 📰: https://t.co/FYkB2B0WTl #EverythingMatters | #SMTTT pic.twitter.com/ZAaxihRryn Middleton pitched his first career complete game in a Friday night 10-1win against Appalachian State on the road allowing just four hits and one walk while striking out eight batters improving to an 8-1 record on the mound on the year The junior is slated to start a Friday night game against conference foe Arkansas State Want more WLBT news in your inbox? Click here to subscribe to our newsletter See a spelling or grammar error in our story? Please click here to report it and include the headline of the story in your email 𝐁𝐚𝐜𝐤-𝐭𝐨-𝐁𝐚𝐜𝓴𝓴𝓴𝓴𝓴𝓴𝓴𝓴JB’s compete game heroics on Friday earn’s him consecutive Pitcher of the Week honors! 📰: https://t.co/FYkB2B0WTl #EverythingMatters | #SMTTT pic.twitter.com/ZAaxihRryn Share on FacebookShare on X (formerly Twitter)Share on PinterestShare on LinkedInHATTIEBSURG (WLBT) - A rising star from Yazoo City continues to garner national attention in his breakout season at Southern Miss Southern Miss baseball pitcher and Friday night ace JB Middleton was named the Sun Belt Pitcher of the Week after a near-flawless performance against Georgia State this past weekend The Benton Academy grad has flourished in his junior season as a Golden Eagle and as a full-time starter for the first time in his career Middleton has a 7-1 record on the year and tied a career high for both innings (eight) and strikeouts (12) in an 8-1 win against the Panthers on Thursday The right-hander has the lowest ERA at 2.05 and the most strikeouts in the Sun Belt with 74 Middleton has fanned 34 in his last three home starts and will look to replicate that stat on the road against Appalachian State on April 25 22 Southern Miss will host Southeastern Louisiana at Pete Taylor Park on Wednesday Home » Sports » Green Wave rolls over Yazoo City in the first round of playoffs Register with us (no credit card required) to read 3 articles per month at no charge Yazoo City, Miss.-An argument between a male and female led to two arrests and drugs and cash being seized in Yazoo City. The Yazoo PD announced the details and arrest on Monday Press Release:Yesterday at approximately 3:15 pm Officers responded to a disturbance between a male and female in the area of 215 Magnolia It was reported that a weapon had been pointed at the female during the altercation Officers were advised that the male suspect had entered the house The Complainant provided a description of the firearm and allowed them to enter her home During the course of the search the Officers located seven firearms and $32,900 cash that was separated into multiple baggies Suspects Tony Brown and Maurice Daily were arrested and charged Miss.-The Vicksburg High School baseball team won a high-scoring 18-17 match against Yazoo City on Saturday and both teams were tied at 17-17 by the end of the seventh Peyton Calvin hit the walk-off RBI in the eighth inning for the win Nick Carson and Seven West hit doubles while Kaleb Doss finished with a triple Abel Gonzalez(2 RBIs) and Doss(3 RBIs) both went 2 for 4 at the plate while Ashton Harris Carson struck out eight batters and Kobe Cartwright struck out five Porter’s Chapel Academy took a 10-1 loss to Briarfield Academy and a 3-2 loss to Franklin Academy Cole Potter and Ethan Potter both had a hit in the FA game Coltin Hancock threw four strikeouts and Landon McCollough struck out two batters Chad Fuson threw two strikeouts and Hancock threw one WC finished Saturday with a 6-4 win over Germantown Port Gibson’s Ger’Kiya Flowers Surpassed 1,000 Career Points A carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) project is moving forward in Yazoo City That was the word Thursday from CF Industries Holdings The company announced that the project at its Delta facility is expected to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emitted to the atmosphere from the facility by up to 500,000 metric tons annually the CF Industrial Holdings signed a definitive commercial agreement with ExxonMobil for the transport and sequestration in permanent geologic storage of the CO2 with sequestration expected to start in 2028 “We are pleased to advance another significant decarbonization project that will keep CF Industries at the forefront of low-carbon ammonia production while also helping us achieve our 2030 emissions intensity reduction goal,” said Tony Will President and CEO of CF Industries Holdings said in a statement “This decarbonization project also will increase the availability of nitrogen products with a lower-carbon intensity for customers focused on reducing the carbon footprint of their businesses.” CF Industries Holdings said it is investing approximately $100 million into its Yazoo City Complex Once sequestration by ExxonMobil has commenced the company expects the project to qualify for tax credits under Section 45Q of the Internal Revenue Code which provides a credit per metric ton of CO2 sequestered The Yazoo City Complex is expected to be able to manufacture products with a substantially lower carbon intensity than conventional ammonia production sites most of the ammonia produced at the Yazoo City Complex is upgraded into nitrogen fertilizers such as urea ammonium nitrate (UAN) solutions and ammonium nitrate (AN) which is used to reduce NOx emissions from diesel trucks AN produced at Yazoo City is used as fertilizer and also by the mining industry as a component of explosives The company anticipates demand for these products manufactured with a lower carbon intensity to increase significantly as the agriculture and mining industries work to lower carbon emissions in their supply chains By joining our newsletter, you are confirming that you agree with the Privacy Policy Vicksburg High School took an 8-7 loss to Yazoo City on Friday night The game remained scoreless throughout the first quarter as neither team could get into the end zone The Gator defense made good plays including when Dennis Battle forced a fumble and Cameron Nailor recovered the ball Early in the second quarter Decorey Knight Jr broke out on a nice run inside the five-yard line Ced Blackmore would take it in from two-yard outs to go up 7-0 after Abel Gonzalez’s successful extra point the Gator defense continued to grab productive plays including a fumble recovery by Battle Yazoo caught a long pass on third down to get in Gator territory VHS went into the fourth quarter still up 7-0 the Indians caught another long pass and eventually scored from a short run They then went for a successful two-point conversion to go up 8-7 The Gators wouldn’t be able to regain the lead as they now sit with a 0-5 record VHS will be back on the field on October 11 when they host Neshoba Central for homecoming PCA blows out Tensas Academy 62-30 on Friday WC fell short in a close loss to Madison Central PONTOTOC COUNTY'S HOMETOWN NEWSPAPER SINCE 1929 Pontotoc's Emarie Boddie goes up for a basket ITTA BENA- The Pontotoc Lady Warriors will make another trip to Jackson after defeating Yazoo City 48-31 last Thursday in the Class 5A quarterfinals at Mississippi Valley State University Emarie Boddie started the game with a putback Yazoo City's Lakyra Bankhead knocked down a long jumper and Markarri Rucker drove and drained a pull-up jumper for the Lady Warriors Javascript is required for you to be able to read premium content Your browser is out of date and potentially vulnerable to security risks.We recommend switching to one of the following browsers: Account processing issue - the email address may already exist Get a free dose of heath care news and wellness tips delivered to your inbox each Tuesday morning Powered by North Mississippi Health Services Get our front page stories each morning as well as the latest updates each afternoon during the week + more in-depth weekend editions on Saturdays & Sundays Get the latest need-to-know information delivered to your inbox as it happens Get a weekly rundown of the top stories from the Monroe Journal dropped into your inbox each Thursday afternoon Get a weekly rundown of the top stories from the New 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Please upgrade your browser or activate Google Chrome Frame to improve your experience and all around on Saturday but somehow finished on top Peyton Calvin delivered a walk-off RBI single in the bottom of the eighth inning that gave the Gators a wild 18-17 baseball victory over Yazoo City Vicksburg (3-3) blew separate leads of seven and four runs then rallied to tie it in the bottom of the seventh inning and win it in the eighth Kaleb Doss was 2-for-4 with three RBIs for the Gators Abel Gonzalez was 2-for-4 with two RBIs and two runs scored Kolten Thomas reached base four times and scored three runs and Jacobie Simpson also scored three runs VHS pitcher Nick Carson had eight strikeouts in five innings Jeremarione Tate was 3-for-4 with two RBIs and three runs scored for Yazoo City and Melvin Robinson also scored three runs apiece Vicksburg jumped out to a 12-5 lead after two innings but Yazoo City tied scored in each of the first seven innings and tied it by the top of the fourth Vicksburg scored four more runs in the bottom of the fourth to go ahead 16-12 only to let Yazoo City come back again and eventually take a 17-16 lead Demond Collum was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded in the top of the seventh to put the Indians in front Vicksburg’s Ashton Harris singled and scored on a passed ball to tie it again in the bottom of the seventh and then the Gators finally held serve in the top of the eighth Two walks and a passed ball set up Calvin to deliver the game winning single to center field for the Gators Vicksburg will play three road games next week — Tuesday All three varsity games will begin at 7 p.m Two games on the Monday college basketball schedule feature a ranked team including the matchup between the Wake… The Tampa Bay Lightning versus the Florida Panthers is one of many solid options on today’s NHL slate.… The Southern Jaguars versus the Florida A&M Rattlers is one of many compelling options on Monday in SWAC… Ranked squads will be on Monday’s college basketball schedule in two games including the Kansas Jayhawks taking on… Austin Lumberjacks square off in one of many compelling matchups on the… Has the Mississippi River's high waters affected you View Results the Yazoo City Police Department responded to an active shooting called in by an SO Deputy in the area of West 1st Street near Maynie Street Officers responding were directed to a residence where a Deputy saw a possible suspect enter into the residence Yazoo City Officers along with Yazoo County Deputies secured the scene while Police Dept Investigator obtained a search warrant for the home and vehicle on the property and other paraphernalia were taken from the vehicle and home Several individuals were arrested and charged for the shooting in the area and everything found during the search Several hours later Yazoo City Police Officers responded to a call for service at Willow Wood Apartments where several subjects ran upon officers’ arrival Officers were still able to find and seize 2 handguns One Injured in Shooting Near 3rd North and Grove Street Shooting at Superior Crab leaves one injured; two in custody Vikings advance to North State for the second year in a row thunderstorms expected midweek in Vicksburg Belhaven clinch CCS Title with shutout win over Huntingdon Co-Lin names Randy Bolden Head Basketball Coach The Vicksburg Gators’ season of struggle continued Friday Yazoo City running back Desmond Johnson scored on a short run with 1:28 remaining and then again for the go-ahead two-point conversion to hand Vicksburg an 8-7 loss Vicksburg (0-5) remained winless going into next week’s open date and the start of Region 2-6A play after that Three of its five losses have been by one score and two of those came after giving up go-ahead touchdowns late in the fourth quarter especially winnable games,” Vicksburg coach Christopher Lacey said We made too many mistakes and it led to us ultimately losing.” The Gators took a 7-0 lead on a short touchdown run by Cedrick Blackmore in the first half and held it until the final moments of the game The Gators committed three penalties that extended Yazoo City’s final drive and then couldn’t move the football when they got it for their own chance to pull out the victory “In clutch situations we made absolutely too many mistakes — false starts It led to their success and ripped away a lot of our positives Was the decision by DOGE to cut AmeriCorps NCCC the right move View Results YAZOO CITY, MS. – Yazoo City police arrested a Belzoni Police Officer after finding him passed out with a meth pipe in his patrol car According to Yazoo City Police Chief Terry Gann officers found Belzoni Police officer James Jackson passed out in a patrol car The passed out officer was found with a meth pipe in his hand Yazoo City police said they also found marijuana in the glove box of the vehicle Gann said that Jackson refused a sobriety test and was charged with possession of paraphernalia and DUI refusal He has since been released on bond. Authorities did not release any further immediate information. The Vicksburg Daily News will update this story if any additional information is made available ‘Desperate times’: Independent pharmacies fear closure MS Blood Services Stays Ahead of the Storm: Supporting Hurricane Milton Relief with Blood Donation How to watch Mississippi high school playoff boys basketball: New Hope vs 15Data SkriveWe have an intriguing high school clash in Columbus with New Hope High School hosting Yazoo City High School How to watch Yazoo City vs. New Hope playoff high school boys basketballYazoo City and New Hope will face off on Saturday, Feb. 15 at 3 p.m. CT. Don't miss out on any of the action with NFHS Network The NFHS Network gives you access to live high school sports around the country Follow your favorite team and never miss a game Watch New Hope vs. Yazoo City on NFHS! All NFHS Network events are available to watch online at www.NFHSnetwork.com and through the NFHS Network Mobile Apps for iOS and Android and TV Apps for ROKU Falling tree limbs in Birmingham kills one person JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A Mississippi Valley State University football player who was a passenger in a car involved in a police chase was killed in a crash that left the driver injured was killed Friday as the car he was in was fleeing the Mississippi Highway Patrol Yazoo County Coroner Ricky Shivers said Monday The chase started in Flora and continued into Yazoo City, where the driver lost control of the car, WAPT-TV reported Shivers told the television station that the car left the road went through a ditch and hit a parked vehicle before going airborne It then took out a light pole and flipped several times before coming to rest in a yard Authorities used a Jaws of Life tool to rescue the driver The driver was airlifted to the University of Mississippi Medical Center Their condition was not immediately available the school sent its condolences to the player’s family and friends The Mississippi Highway Patrol did not immediately return an email or telephone call Monday seeking details on what sparked the chase Yazoo City is about 50 miles north of Jackson “better late than never,” certainly applies to the Yazoo Backwater Pump Project in Mississippi’s southern Delta It required 80-plus years of wrangling with agencies of the federal government but an agreement appears to be in place to “Finish the Pumps.” That go-to phrase has been used in recent times to push for completion of a pump project to control flooding in an area of 1,440 square miles covering more than a million acres from Hollandale and Belzoni southward toward Vicksburg within the Yazoo Basin I am most familiar with the dreams for such a project of folks associated with the Delta Council a regional economic development group based in Stoneville just west of Leland where we operated the local weekly newspaper for 13 years from 1978-1990 Holly Bluff farmer and former Delta Council President John Phillips said “The completion of the Yazoo Backwater Pump Project promises significant benefits for the South Delta … Farmers will finally be able to plant their crops on time free from the constant fear of spring and summer flooding They can sell their crops when prices are favorable without the fear of coming up empty-handed in the fall because their crops were lost to flooding.” Just as significant to agriculture interests is the protection for homeowners and properties that have been horribly subject to floods through the many years “Many residents will also experience an improved quality of life — roads will remain passable year-round ensuring children can safely travel to school and emergency services can reach those in need without delays,” Phillips said levee commissioner and past council President Paul Hollis of Rolling Fork added: “For a project that was promised to the South Delta eighty-four years ago we can all look forward to the day construction begins and the South Delta can finally find relief.” commander of the Mississippi Valley Division of the U.S signed the “Record of Decision” for the Yazoo Backwater Study Area water management plan Jan The decision comes after years of study and community input to improve water management while supporting local communities and habitats Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S created a unified approach to water management that resulted in an implementable and environmentally safe project Flooding hasn’t always occurred in the 80-odd years since this project was introduced in 1941 61 in the Mississippi Delta has often witnessed enormous devastation to property The last major backwater event in 2019 tragically flooded 548,000 acres “We are all looking forward to the day that the South Delta will finally have adequate flood protection to protect our people chief engineer of the Mississippi Levee Board Floodwaters will be pumped over the Yazoo River Backwater Levee into the Mississippi River High-volume pumps at the Steele Bayou Water Control Structure will manage water levels to the 90-foot elevation mark during crop season and the 93-foot elevation mark during non-crop season Certainly an oddity connected to the project is the fact that an official cost estimate hasn’t been finalized by the Corps of Engineers The various groups touting the deal have been gracious in thanking 2nd District U.S — Mac Gordon, a native of McComb, is a retired newspaperman. He can be reached at macmarygordon@gmail.com (WLBT) - A Yazoo City native continues to climb the ranks in the Southern Miss baseball bullpen earning the first start of the season for any Golden Eagles pitcher ahead of the college baseball opening weekend Benton Academy graduate JB Middleton was announced as the Friday night pitcher for a four-game series against Lafayette and Grayden Harris being announced as the starters for the following games 𝐎𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐖𝐞𝐞𝐤𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐀𝐫𝐦𝐬 ⚾️💨Middleton, Sivley, Adams and Harris get the nod for this weekends 4 game series! #EverythingMatters | #SMTTT pic.twitter.com/G57958OxMR whose freshman season in 2023 was cut short due to a foot injury played a crucial role as one of the man arms last season in yet another postseason run for Southern Miss The hard-throwing right-hander made 24 appearances on the mound for head coach Christian Ostrander’s Golden Eagles He posted a 4.34 earned runs average last year while pitching a career-high 37.1 innings and strikeouts with 45 along with two wins and two saves The first pitch for Middleton and the Golen Eagles against Lafayette is set for 4 p.m The two-time defending Sun Belt Tournament champions Southern Miss were picked to win the league again in the upcoming season and own the longest streak of 40-win seasons in the nation with eight 𝐎𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐖𝐞𝐞𝐤𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐀𝐫𝐦𝐬 ⚾️💨Middleton, Sivley, Adams and Harris get the nod for this weekends 4 game series! #EverythingMatters | #SMTTT pic.twitter.com/G57958OxMR YAZOO CITY, Miss. – On Tuesday, August 6th at approximately 11:14 p.m. deputies were dispatched to The Yazoo County Regional Correctional Facility in references to a inmate that was housed in a single cell and appeared to be unresponsive deputies and paramedics entered the cell and found Darryl Brown unresponsive The Mississippi Bureau of Investigations has been contacted to conduct this death investigation There are no more details that can be released at this time Law Enforcement Officers Reunion Held at Levee Street EPA Issues Emergency Order to Stop Use of Pesticide DCPA Mississippi layman Owen Cooper was traveling to every state and numerous mission fields during his two years as SBC president relaying various reports at the 1973 annual meeting in Portland Photo courtesy of the Southern Baptist Library and Historical Archives Editor’s note: See related story about laymen’s importance in the SBC here – Owen Cooper wasn’t a Baptist when he left for college intending to be a Presbyterian as was his mother But he happened to “get hold of a Baptist Bible,” leading the young Mississippian into a faith journey that helped shape Southern Baptists during the latter half of the 20th century He did so as a layman who founded a large-scale fertilizer plant Cooper ended two terms as president of the Southern Baptist Convention – among only a few laymen ever elected to the office His legacy includes casting a vision for the SBC-wide Bold Mission Thrust initiative that aimed to share the Gospel with every person in the world by the year 2000 Owen Cooper regularly underscored the importance of laymen as he visited every state in the union during his SBC presidency The “greatest apostasy of the last 100 years,” he asserted in his presidential address to the 1974 annual meeting in Dallas “has been the perpetuation of the non-biblical concept that the burden for evangelism and missions lies only with the full-time Christian worker and that the ‘layman’ has little responsibility “Lay people are expected to occupy the church pew to attend Church Training [the former Sunday evening discipleship hour] but otherwise are seldom challenged by the church program.” In his 1974 book “The Future Is Before Us” published by the convention’s Broadman Press you will never find fulfillment in your church membership and you will never know the peace that passeth understanding until you minister even as you are ministered unto.” Cooper brought a layman’s demeanor to his presidency as noted by the SBC Executive Committee’s lead administrative assistant “The other presidents and their wives I called ‘Dr So and So.’ From the very beginning the Coopers said Don’t call us anything else,’” she recounted in a 1992 book about Cooper “The Thought Occurred to Me” by the late Don McGregor editor emeritus of the Baptist Record in Mississippi Cooper’s identity as a layman – from a farm-boy upbringing near Vicksburg chopping cotton and milking cows – began to take shape at Mississippi State University While studying to teach high school vocational agriculture and paying his way by beekeeping and delivering newspapers he was elected as president of the statewide Baptist Student Union As a vo-ag teacher in his early 20s in the Mississippi Delta town of Leland Cooper became the Sunday School superintendent at First Baptist Church and served on its pastor search committee After earning a master’s degree in economics and political science at the University of Mississippi he pursued a law degree from the Jackson School of Law (now part of Mississippi College As a member of Jackson’s First Baptist Church he became the Baptist Student Union director at two colleges in the state capital while working to establish the nation’s first farmer-owned nitrogen fertilizer plant in a cooperative venture involving the Farm Bureau farmers and their banks throughout the South and federal loan officials He joined First Baptist Church in Yazoo City taking on the role of Sunday School superintendent and knocking on doors in weekly home visitation and revival campaigns He was moderator of the Yazoo Baptist Association before becoming president of the Mississippi Baptist Convention As a longtime member of the SBC Executive Committee he was elected as president of the Southern Baptist Convention in 1972 Cooper’s advocacy for Baptist laymen typically was voiced alongside an insistent call for evangelistic fervor throughout the SBC In his 1973 presidential address on the “Share the Word” theme at the SBC annual meeting in Portland Cooper said Baptists must witness “in our kitchen in our den and in our living room … in our front yard and across the fence in our backyard It means we should witness to our neighbors next door and to our neighbors who live around the world where we play and where we make our social contacts … when we travel at the social club and at the garden club.” “We should also witness to the uttermost parts of the earth …to the rural settlement in the row house and in the tenant house.” Cooper initiated a 21-member Missions Challenge Committee in 1974 that brought a report to the 1976 annual meeting in Norfolk calling Southern Baptists into a 25-year Bold Mission Thrust effort encompassing numerous international and home missions initiatives the Executive Committee’s associate executive secretary “I remember quite vividly that the whole concept of the Missions Challenge was your idea You stirred it up in the [former] Committee of Fifteen and fixed it so that it would become clear to Southern Baptists that we needed to go forward in missions.” Reflecting his passion for missions and his entrepreneurial spirit Agency for International Development to pioneer large-scale fertilizer plants in the populous Asian nation He then launched an organization to support Indian evangelists And he raised funds to rehabilitate the cemetery where missions pioneer William Carey is buried Creating an Agricultural Missions Foundation Cooper worked with farmers to nurture their missions involvement by shipping beef and dairy cattle tools and a tractor to Southern Baptist agricultural stations in Ecuador as executive director of the Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation in the 1940s he led an effort in the state legislature to create the Mississippi Commission on Hospital Care approving the construction of more than 100 rural hospitals accepting the chairmanship of an organization to lift the state’s Head Start program from bankruptcy the board consisted of an equal number of whites and blacks Cooper acknowledged to friends that his Head Start involvement would derail his long-held goal to someday run for governor of Mississippi Cooper often added his voice for race relations expressing “gratitude to God for the progress being made in an increasing number of our churches where persons of other races are welcomed into all areas of church life and fellowship.” Cooper never was shy about tying an evangelistic exhortation to his Mississippi roots as well as his business interests noting in his 1974 book “The Future Is Before Us,” “We need to be challenged by the fact that as Christians it is our responsibility not our desire to see that the gospel is preached throughout the world.” “The Thought Occurred to Me: A Book About Owen Cooper,” Don McGregor “Owen Cooper (1908-1986): Business Leader and Humanitarian,” Jo G. Prichard III, Mississippi History Now (https://mshistorynow.mdah.ms.gov/issue/owen-cooper-1908-1986-business-leader-and-humanitarian) Mississippi Department of Archives and History “Owen Cooper (1908-1986): Businessman, Devout Southern Baptist, and Racial Progressive,” Charles M. Dollar, Journal of Mississippi History (https://aquila.usm.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1044&context=jmh) “LABOR DAY: Owen Cooper’s faith keyed array of ventures,” Tim Tune Art Toalston is a writer based in Nashville and a former editor of Baptist Press © 2025 Southern Baptist Convention. Site by Mere.