Raymond News

School is out and summer time is officially here in Raymond! I can bear-ly contain my excitement!

Around lunch time last Friday afternoon, Raymond PD received phone calls regarding a large black bear wandering around Raymond. The bear was spotted on Palestine Street and Coopers Well (a little too close for comfort to Raymond Elementary!) and in the front yard of the beautiful Hiawatha house. The bear eventually made its way down Dry Grove Road and Highway 18 and was spotted by Utica residents over the weekend.

I'm sure many readers are having flashbacks of "Lady Raymond" who visited downtown in the 1960s. This black bear was spotted in a tree near the Presbyterian Church and a large crowd gathered as word spread of the bear in a tree. Parents even picked up their kids from school to watch this story unfold.

Ultimately, she was tranquilized and taken to the Jackson Zoo. She was appropriately named Lady Raymond because she was captured in Raymond. Raymondites continued to visit their bear friend for many years after this big town event!

Hinds County Sheriff Tyree Jones announced that Hinds County and Utica Police responded to sightings of at least two black bears in the Utica area. The Hinds County Sheriff's Office is aware of the recent uptick in black bear sightings across parts of the county. Residents are urged to stay alert, secure food sources around homes, keep pets close, and avoid approaching or attempting to feed wildlife. Report sightings to local authorities so we can help keep both the community and the animals safe.

Please heed the advice of Sheriff Jones and be sure to clean up all your summer BBQ food. And whatever you do, don't take your kids out of summer school and follow the bear around town. What were those 1960's parents thinking anyways?

Our Memorial Day weekend forecast was looking bleak in weather reports, but it turned out to be quite pleasant without any rain. We spent the majority of the weekend playing outside, visited two of our favorite Clinton parks (we really need a nice Raymond playground!) and ate loads and loads of ice cream.

While I'm thankful we have this day to spend with our families, it is not lost on me that it is a day to remember and honor those who died for our freedoms. We don't know them all, but we owe them all. And I often think about the families who were left behind to carry the cost of their deaths.

Lieutenant Hedrick Amos Gray, United States Marine Corps, a Raymond native and Hinds Junior College alum, died in battle at just 22-years-old in World War II on November 10, 1942. Lt. Gray was killed in one of the first waves at Guadalcanal. His body was never found, but there is a memory marker for him alongside his family in the Raymond Cemetery.

Lori Gray Berry, Amos' great-niece, told me how her great-grandmother, Vessie, always held out hope that her youngest child would return home to her. Some mornings, Vessie would get all dressed up and cook all day long - saying she just had a feeling Amos was going to come home that day. The cost that Amos's mother carried her whole life is palpable. Please take time this summer to visit Lt. Gray's headstone in the Raymond cemetery.

With Memorial Day, Flag Day, and Fourth of July approaching, I was hoping to share information on how to subscribe to the Raymond Boy Scouts Troop 92 flag program. However, all thanks to the support of so many Raymondites, Troop 92 is currently at maximum capacity on their current routes and no more subscriptions can be filled at this time. But that doesn't mean you cannot fly your own American flag high! Thank you, Troop 92, for everything you do for our splendid little town.

Don't forget about Ms. Martha Ferguson's 90th birthday celebration this Saturday, May 30th from 3:00pm - 4:30pm at 237 North Oak Street. It will be a special weekend to celebrate a very special lady! I hope to see you there.

Be kind and suffer well.