Dear Editor,

 On behalf of the Board of Directors of the Vicksburg Foundation for Historic Preservation, I would like to take this opportunity to thank our generous sponsors and volunteers for making the 7th Annual Carnaval de Mardi Gras Gumbo Cook-off a tremendous success.  

Special thanks to our sponsors: Riverwalk Casino, Dorethea “Charlie” Gholson, Trustmark National Bank, Capital City Beverage, the Southern Cultural Heritage Foundation, Gumbo Pot, McDonalds, Sullivan’s, Super Junior, The Liquor Store, Vicksburg Specialty, Lorelei Books, Ameristar Casino, Slipin Slidin Water Slides, Corner Market, Waste Management and Martin’s at Midtown.

We would also like to thank our great Cajun Gumbo Cook-off teams!  This year was particularly challenging because of the rain! 

The competition was stiff and the gumbo was delicious! We sincerely appreciate the difficult task that our gumbo judges had and we thank them for their time and expertise!

 Events such as this take a tremendous number of volunteer hours before, during, and after the event. 

We are particularly grateful for the leadership of our Carnaval de Mardi Gras chairperson, Margaret Thames, who put together a hardworking and talented committee. 

We would not have had such a successful event without committee members Stacey Mahoney, Janice Darby, Tammy Allen, Casie Combs, Evelyn Pannell, Kathe Lawton, and Lori Jones. 

We would also like to thank those who volunteered during the day of the event and the necessary cleanup afterward: Ronnie Bounds, Denise Garner, Lenore Barkley, Minor Ferris, Kathy Dornbusch, Dianne McGuire, Jennifer Darby, Koury Eargle, Norma Massey, Jared Thames, Kevin Mahoney, Isaac Holcombe and the hard-working group of young people from Americorps. 

We would also like to thank the Vicksburg Police Department, the Warren County Sheriff’s Department, and the Vicksburg Fire Department for their support.

 Once again, thank you to all those who participated in making this not only a great celebration of Mardi Gras, but a great fundraiser for the Foundation, in its efforts to identify, preserve, and protect Vicksburg’s unique architectural heritage. We look forward to Mardi Gras 2019!

Sincerely,

Nancy H. Bell

Executive Director