One parent's dream Mother's Day
By Jeff York
For the Daily Corinthian
SELMER, Tenn. -- Happy Mother's Day!
That loving phrase will be heard all across the Crossroads area today as children honor their mothers on their special day.
There is one mother in Selmer that has dreamed about how special it would be to hear her 20-year-old son say "Happy Mother's Day" for the first time.
Lee Ann Atkinson will tell you the hardest part is to see her son, Casey, try very hard to talk to her and not be able to get the words out.
"He tries his best to talk to me," said his mother. "There are times when I think he can almost say 'mama' and then he gets frustrated when he can't say it."
Casey has Pervassive Developmental Disorder (PDD). He has been unable to speak since he was diagnosed with autism as a two-year-old.
"I just believe hearing Casey talk would be the best Mother's Day gift I
could ever get," said a teary-eyed Lee Ann. "He wants to talk so bad that it just breaks my heart."
Casey has endured a tough transitional period since his twin brother, Matthew, left for college at Lambuth University this past fall.
"Casey is so structured because of his autism and he did not understand when Matt left for college," Lee Ann said. "I had to take him out of school in November because he was having self-control problems."
A special education student at McNairy Central, Casey is not going to return to school until the fall.
Lee Ann talks about watching parents with small children when they first learn to talk and wonders whether they understand what it means to hear your child speak.
"It is just so precious to see the little children talk. It is the sweetest sound to hear their little voices," remarked Lee Ann. "I just dream about
what it would be like to hear Casey talk someday."
While there is little chance that Casey will ever be able to speak, his mother will never give up the hope that maybe someday she will hear him say 'mama.'

dailycorinthian.comWEB EXCLUSIVE
Small earthquake felt in area
Online reports, www.wtva.com
Lee, Pontotoc and Union Counties were rattled just before 1 p.m. Saturday by a small earthquake.
According to seismographs at the University of Memphis Earthquake Center, the quake registered a three point one on the Richter scale.
The quake was apparently centered one mile southeast of Sherman in the Belden area.
Several Crossroads area residents reported feeling the tremor.


Vacated House seat up for grabs
By Jebb Johnston
Staff Writer
The race for the First Congressional District's U.S. House Seat will have a winner -- at least temporarily -- come Tuesday.
It is the fourth time this year that north Mississippi has voted on the post and it will not be the last.
"I'm hearing more and more people saying, 'How many more times have we got to vote?'," said Joe Caldwell, circuit clerk for Alcorn County.
Tuesday's special election runoff fills the post formerly held by Roger Wicker until the current term expires in January. Democrat Travis Childers and Republican Greg Davis will meet on the ballot again in November to determine who will be elected to the next two-year term of office.
Polls will be open from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m. at each of the 16 county precincts. Jacinto voters again need to report to the community center near the old country store.
Although Caldwell sees some voter fatigue on this race and frustration with the negative advertising, he is expecting another slight upswing in voter turnout.
Davis is a three-term mayor of Southaven, and Childers is the four-term chancery clerk of Prentiss County and a Booneville resident. Davis has worked as an engineer and consultant and was a state representative from 1991 to 1997.
Childers, owner of Travis Childers Realty & Associates, the Landmark Community and the Landmark Nursing Center in Booneville, took 49 percent of the vote on April 22, narrowly missing an outright win.
Gov. Haley Barbour appointed Wicker to the U.S. Senate in December when Republican Trent Lott resigned with five years left in a six-year term.
Wicker won the House seat in 1994 after the retirement of Democrat Jamie Whitten.


Students get up-close look
By Brant Sappington
Staff Writer
Alcorn Central High School students got a lesson in protecting themselves from the consequences of risky behavior as they were challenged to make positive choices in all aspects of their lives during the first ever Teen Conference held Wednesday at the school.
Students in grades 10-12 spent the day learning how they can build the right kinds of relationships and avoid the pitfalls young people often face as they begin to deal with more adult types of relationships and situations.
The conference was lead by the SAFE Inc. domestic violence prevention and assistance organization in partnership with Aiming for Healthy Families Inc. and Tan Su Karate.
Teacher Connie Lambert, who invited the groups to bring the conference to the school, said she hopes the students will come away with a better understanding of the consequences of their behavior and how to handle the many challenges they face everyday.
"They just need some guidance in making wise decisions," she said.
The conference focused on four main areas: the consequences of promiscuous behavior, dating violence, sexual harassment and personal safety. Students spent time in discussion periods as well as hands on training in self-defense techniques.
Self-defense instructor Mark Davidson, who teaches programs at schools throughout the area, said he believes teens must learn that there are consequences to every choice they make and they have to understand the long-term effects of the decisions they make during their teen years. He described his program as a Christian-based, abstinence focused program that he hopes will encourage the students to make the right decisions when they are confronted with life changing choices.
The instructor said it's also vital to reach out to the kids who may have already made mistakes in their lives and help them understand they can still have a positive future.
"If people have made mistakes, what you're looking to do is to alter that behavior so they don't keep on making them," said Davidson.

See this week's news here

TRIAD meeting
The Alcorn County TRIAD and Alcorn County Sheriff's Department invites senior citizens to attend this month's meeting, Monday, May 12, 2 p.m. at the Alcorn County Sheriff's office. These meetings are for the safety and well-being of senior citizens. Refreshments will be served.

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