Junior Auxiliary ball set for Friday evening

Published 7:26 pm Wednesday, February 20, 2019

: Ellen Amborn, from left, Kellie Pierce and Sally Southall pose for a picture Tuesday. The trio is heading up the Junior Auxiliary of Vicksburg Magnolia Ball, which will be held from 7 to 11 p.m. Friday, at the Levee Street Warehouse, 1609 Levee St. (Terri Cowart Frazier/The Vicksburg Post)

The Junior Auxiliary of Vicksburg will host the third annual Magnolia Charity Ball Friday, a fundraiser for the group, with proceeds benefiting children in the Vicksburg and Warren County area.

Magnolia Charity Ball Chairman Ellen Amborn said the goal of the event is to raise $10,000 that will help fund JAV projects in the community.

Amborn said these projects include volunteering at the Children’s Shelter and their Helping Hand project.

“At the Children’s Shelter members provide hands-on activities with the children, host parties, and babysit. The Helping Hand project provides basic items to the Vicksburg-Warren School District’s social workers and families in need, as well as supporting community events and efforts,” Amborn said.

Additional projects, she said, are Camp Silver Cloud, which is where JAV members implement a day camp in the summer for mentally and physically challenged children, and the Career Development project, which pairs high school students with local businessmen and businesswomen to teach them about their careers through mentoring and job shadowing.

The Game of Life project, Amborn said, is designed to prepare high school students for the real world with real-life scenarios.

“We also help girls gain a better understanding of who they are and what’s important to them by providing exercise and a healthy lifestyle mentoring service with our Heart & Sole project, and we support the Good Shepherd Community Center with the JAV Cares project by assisting with tutoring, holiday parties, and any other needs that may arise at the center,” Amborn said.

JAV also works alongside Make-A-Wish Mississippi to grant the wishes to Warren County children with life-threatening medical conditions and through their Jacob’s Ladder Pottery project, members assist students at the Jacob’s Ladder Learning Center, which is a school geared towards adolescents and young adults who have intellectual disabilities.

In addition to serving as a fundraiser, the Magnolia Charity Ball is an opportunity to recognize those those in the community who have supported JAV.

“And also three awards will be given out during the evening,” Amborn said. “One to the JAV life member of the year, and two community leader awards — one male and one female.”

Amborn said the event will also include a local silent art auction.

The ball will be held from 7 to 11 p.m. Friday, at the Levee Street Warehouse, 1609 Levee St. Admission is $50 per person and will include food by The Anthony and Divine Donuts and entertainment by The Chill. A cash bar will also be provided.

Tickets will be available at the door or at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/magnolia-charity-ball-2019-tickets-51633330682.

The JAV was founded in 1936 and Mrs. R. L. Dent served as the first president of the organization.

About Terri Cowart Frazier

Terri Frazier was born in Cleveland. Shortly afterward, the family moved to Vicksburg. She is a part-time reporter at The Vicksburg Post and is the editor of the Vicksburg Living Magazine, which has been awarded First Place by the Mississippi Press Association. She has also been the recipient of a First Place award in the MPA’s Better Newspaper Contest’s editorial division for the “Best Feature Story.”

Terri graduated from Warren Central High School and Mississippi State University where she received a bachelor’s degree in communications with an emphasis in public relations.

Prior to coming to work at The Post a little more than 10 years ago, she did some freelancing at the Jackson Free Press. But for most of her life, she enjoyed being a full-time stay at home mom.

Terri is a member of the Crawford Street United Methodist Church. She is a lifetime member of the Vicksburg Junior Auxiliary and is a past member of the Sampler Antique Club and Town and Country Garden Club. She is married to Dr. Walter Frazier.

“From staying informed with local governmental issues to hearing the stories of its people, a hometown newspaper is vital to a community. I have felt privileged to be part of a dedicated team at The Post throughout my tenure and hope that with theirs and with local support, I will be able to continue to grow and hone in on my skills as I help share the stories in Vicksburg. When asked what I like most about my job, my answer is always ‘the people.’

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