The 9th Annual First Ladies’ Luncheon took place at the Jackson Fairgrounds on April 7, 2022 from 12-1pm. The First Ladies’ Luncheon is the largest annual fundraiser for the United Way of West Tennessee, and this year’s crowd was the largest yet. The luncheon is a tablescapes event, which means that each table is uniquely decorated by its sponsor. The doors open an hour early for attendees to enjoy previewing the creative and beautiful tables throughout the event space.

Tom Britt was the Master of Ceremonies with Ann Keyl, president of this year’s Sports Hall of Fame award ceremony. Along with the Hall of Fame awardees there was recognition of school athletes across Madison County. Next was the Billy Schriver Distinguished Service Award. There were nine $1,000 scholarship recipients for outstanding students.

The 28th Annual Blue Suede Dinner and Auction was hosted on Saturday, Feb. 26, at the Carl Perkins Civic Center in Jackson. This year’s concert featured The World Turning Band, a Fleetwood Mac tribute band, and everyone showed up in their best 1970s and 1980s attire and enjoyed some great music!

A large crowd gathered at the Carl Perkins Civic Center on Thursday night, February 17th, to cheer on the models of the 11th Annual Lights Camera Fashion Runway Event. This special event, presented by My Best Friend Jenna, is the Mid-South’s largest prom runway fashion show which also raises money for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. The 53 models for 2022 were all West Tennessee high school students chosen from hundreds of applicants. The models spent the last few months building new relationships and learning modeling techniques while developing their own creative strategies to raise money for St. Jude.

The Jackson Symphony held the 20th annual Crystal Ball Saturday evening, January 29 at the Carl Perkins Civic Center in downtown Jackson. If you’ve ever been to one of the Symphony performances, you know how wonderful the organization is for our community! The beautiful music and entertainment they provide are truly one of the best events in the Hub City. The event is important because not only does it support the Symphony, but also because it brings arts to our community and into the schools.

St. Mary’s School and Sacred Heart of Jesus High School held a joint fundraiser on Saturday night, February 5. Guests dressed up and came out to the Carl Perkins Civic Center to enjoy an evening of dining, dancing, bidding and betting at the Mardi Gras Auction and Casino Night Gala. The evening began with a cocktail hour and silent auction followed by a meal with Vegas-style entertainment. After dinner, there was an exciting live auction. Then the casino and disco opened for the rest of the night.

Black Tie & Boxing benefitting JDRF has become a premier event in Jackson. The event was founded in part by Ronnie and Susan Morris, JDRF President Hayden Simons and his wife who have dealt with her Type 1 diabetes for 23 years. The unusual thing is Addison Coleman, the emcee, was diagnosed at age 10 years. Emcee Abby Moffett was diagnosed at age five, and announcer Richard Mullikin has several family members with Type 1 diabetes!

The 4th Annual Law Enforcement Ball hosted by 731 Crime Stoppers was held on Saturday, January 8. Members and supporters of local law enforcement enjoyed an evening of food and entertainment, and had the opportunity to applaud some outstanding members of law enforcement and the community who received special awards for their hard work.