Mississippi Power employees beautify town of DeKalb

Mississippi Power employees from Plant Ratcliffe beautified the town of DeKalb by planting new flowers and shrubbery alongside business windows and streets surrounding the Kemper County Courthouse as part of an annual environmental stewardship project.

Senior Compliance and Support Specialist Laura Williams, who organized the effort, said the group typically completes environmental stewardship tasks at Kemper County Lake each year, but she noticed the large planters scattered throughout town needed improvement ahead of the town’s Christmas parade.

“I was driving one day and noticed that the planters needed a little bit of help, so we contacted the Chamber of Commerce and made the project happen,” said Williams. “We are always looking for ways to give back to our community, so we were overjoyed to be able to assist our neighbors in DeKalb.”

Employees removed overgrown, dying plants from planters in town before adding newly purchased soil, flowers and shrubberies.

These planters, located randomly throughout DeKalb, have become notable to the town’s history over the years. They were first purchased over 35 years ago by businesses and individuals as part of an initiative to make DeKalb more attractive.

DeKalb Mayor Clark Adams, who has personally repainted each of the planters twice, said the work done by Mississippi Power employees has prepared the town for the Christmas parade in a significant way.

“It sets the image for the town, which is something that is really good and well-needed,” said Adams. “I am so glad Mississippi Power helped with this, and I’m really excited about the progress. We are most definitely proud of this Mississippi Power group, and the town is grateful for all their work.”

Kemper County Chamber of Commerce Director Faye Wilson, who helped facilitate the project, said she is proud of Plant Ratcliffe employees for consistently giving back to communities throughout Kemper County.

“This is one of the best Christmas presents this town has ever gotten,” said Wilson. “It is really nice to have someone give back to the community, and Mississippi Power has continuously done that ever since arriving to Kemper.”

Now in its 98th year of operations, Mississippi Power, a subsidiary of Southern Company (NYSE: SO), produces safe, reliable and affordable energy for more than 191,000 customers in 23 southeast Mississippi counties. Mississippi Power was honored with a Community Partner Impact Award from the Center for Energy Workforce Development for its innovative and ongoing efforts to build a diverse workforce. The Employer Support for the Guard and Reserve recently recognized Mississippi Power for its commitment to its military workforce. Mississippi Power has nearly 160MW of solar capacity at four locations across the company’s service territory, including Southern Company’s first project to combine the latest, cutting-edge solar technology with battery storage. Visit our websites at mississippipower.com, like us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube.