Mississippi’s Goodwill Ambassador Patricia Neely-Dorsey calls on fellow Mississippians to help her poem become the state’s official poem.
In the most recent legislative session, a bill was submitted to state tourism committee for consideration of making Neely-Dorsey’s “Meet My Mississippi” as state poem. However, that bill did not make it out of the committee for a vote on the floor.
Neely-Dorsey hopes that in 2017, Mississippi’s 200th birthday, her poem could become the state’s poem. She said, “Last session, the bill was assigned to the tourism committee. More than likely it would be assigned to the same in 2017.”
She said, “Please contact them. Please contact your representative in support of ‘Meet My Mississippi’ as state poem.”
The contact information is as follows:
Representative Becky Currie, the Chair of Tourism in the House
EMAIL: bcurrie@house.ms.gov
PHONE: 601-359-3131
ADDRESS: P.O. Box 1018 Jackson, MS 39215
Senator Lydia Graves Chassaniol, Tourism Chair in the Senate
EMAIL: lchassaniol@senate.ms.gov
PHONE: 601-359-3246
ADDRESS: P.O. Box 1018 Jackson, MS 39215
The artwork in the upper left is a hand-painted and embroidered miniature quilt done by Ann Tullos, a member of the Quilters By Heart’s Desire Guild in Flowood. As part of a yearly President’s Challenge , the members were asked to interpret the poem “Meet My Mississippi.”
One member, Jackie Watkins said, “When I read the poem, I realized that the author , Patricia Neely-Dorsey had covered every beautiful aspect of Mississippi – its literature, music, geography, history, folklore, traditions, home, river, countryside, the bird, the song, soldiers, politics, and faith.”
The group’s project was featured in the January/February 2016 issue of Mississippi magazine
Patricia Neely-Dorsey is the author of two books of poetry, Reflections of a Mississippi Magnolia-A Life In Poems and My Magnolia Memories and Musings-In Poems. Through her poems , the author hopes to protect, preserve and promote the rich cultural history and heritage of her state and region along with providing more positive images than all of the negative images usually portrayed. Patricia lives in Tupelo with her husband James, son Henry and Miniature Schnauzer, Happy. The author has been named a Goodwill Ambassador for the state by Governor Phil Bryant. Her slogan is “Always, Always Celebrating the South and Promoting a Positive Mississippi ” Her website is www.patricianeelydorsey.com and her email is magnoliagirl21@yahoo.com.
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