Hometown Rankin Magazine

Hometown Rankin Magazine Businesses, families, schools, and great people make Rankin County one of the fastest growing counties! Want to hear more about them?

What makes Rankin County one of the fastest growing counties in the state of Mississippi? It's the people, families, businesses, schools, and churches. Be sure and read "Hometown Rankin" Magazine!

2 Corinthians 5:17 🤍
01/11/2026

2 Corinthians 5:17 🤍

Heads up, Rankin County!This year, voting for best non profit in Rankin County will take place ahead of time. Voting lin...
01/09/2026

Heads up, Rankin County!
This year, voting for best non profit in Rankin County will take place ahead of time. Voting links will be posted Monday and Tuesday, and the winner will be announced Thursday at Red Carpet.
Don’t miss your chance to support your favorite nominee. Make sure to cast your vote!

Nominees:
5th Squad
All Things New Ministries
Baptist Children's Village and Family Ministries
Ever Reaching Community Outreach
Restoration Ministries of Mississippi

01/09/2026

Less than 250 tickets remain for Rankin’s Red Carpet Gala & the Best of the Best! New this year:

🕺After party with the band Misspent Youth

🛍️$2000 in gift certificates to Rankin County businesses

🎟️Balcony viewing tickets
**These tickets are different from general admission and should not be purchased by nominees.**
Balcony tickets are designed for friends, family, and supporters who want to come cheer on their favorite nominees!
Balcony ticket holders will enjoy:
• Access to a cash bar
• Viewing of the Red Carpet ceremony from the balcony
• Photo opportunities
• Entry to our NEW after party
🎟️$30 per Balcony Ticket *does not include food*

Get any remaining tickets here:

simpletix.com/e/rankin-s-red-carpet-best-of-the-best-2025-tickets-246954?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQKNjYyODU2ODM3OQABHpZ5GF-_SlgmrD-WkV3ZIyE5ZhiRYgPFK5hl4_rkO4YkZEjmK8XYqxszjIhC_aem_LNw6RbXQdbhSXzVrrlGzag

01/09/2026

Get ready for a magical evening at the City of Brandon Princess Ball!

Join us on February 20th and 21st at the Brandon Municipal Complex for an unforgettable experience with our Beauty and the Beast theme. This event is perfect for K4 through 6th-grade girls, and tickets are just $20 each! Each ticket includes food, door prizes, and a chance to meet your favorite Beauty and the Beast characters. There will also be a guest appearance by Rankin County’s own Miss Mississippi Anna Leah Jolly.

The ball will have two nights of fun:
Friday, February 20th
6:00 PM – 7:30 PM

Saturday, February 21st
Two sessions:
5:00 PM – 6:30 PM
7:00 PM – 8:30 PM (4th-6th graders only)

But that’s not all! We’re also hosting a Special Video Contest for a chance to win a VIP experience! To enter, simply have your daughter record a 30-second video telling us why her dad is special and email it to [email protected] three lucky winners will receive a VIP experience that includes a limo ride to the ball from VIP Limo, a gift from Heart of the South, hair and makeup by The House of Blondes, a $50 gift card from Burgers and Blues, and a manicure from Infiniti Nails. The deadline to submit your video is February 2nd.

Everything will be fit fo princess! Don’t miss out on this enchanting evening. Buy tickets now and be our guest!

Official Event Link:https://www.facebook.com/share/17puSWZnt9/

Ticket Link:https://www.simpletix.com/e/city-of-brandon-princess-ball-2026-tickets-253458 f a

Hometown Family | The Wilkinsons ❤️❤️ John - 56, Employed with the Mississippi Air National Guard for the last thirty ye...
01/07/2026

Hometown Family | The Wilkinsons ❤️

❤️ John - 56, Employed with the Mississippi Air National Guard for the last thirty years. Graduated from Richland HS then Miss. State with a degree in Aerospace Engineering. Completed USAF pilot training in 1997 at Vance AFB, Enid, OK. Flew C-141B/Cs for five years before transitioning to the C-17 in 2003. Has served as an aircraft commander, instructor, and evaluator pilot. Served as commander of the 183d Airlift Squadron, and the 172d Operations Group. Currently serves as the commander, 172 Airlift Wing.

❤️ Jessica - Likes to cook, host parties, and perform. Been an actor my whole adult life. Performs at New Stage Theatre regularly. Been in many films. Loves hanging out with our 12-year-old dog Boo Radley. Adores Christmas time with family! Graduated with my bachelors and masters in English from Mississippi College. Been a teacher, actor, broadcaster, mom ever since.

❤️ Belle Grace - 22, likes going to concerts, making handmade crafts, and traveling. Really into local coffee shops and restaurants. Graduated from Mississippi State University in May 2025 with a BA in Public Relations. She is a Tri Delta. Spent the summer of 2023 living abroad in France.

❤️ Noble - 18, likes all kinds of music, particularly R&B and Hip Hop, watching movies, and hanging out with friends. Currently attending the University of Mississippi studying Biology on a pre-med track, and is a member of the Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity.

❤️ How did you and your spouse meet, and how long have you been married?
Our families knew each other for many years before we officially met. We both graduated from Richland High School but seven years apart, so we didn’t know each other in school. We met while working a Christmas job for TempStaff at MobileComm. Jessica was in college and John was waiting for pilot training to start. We got married in 1996, just before moving to Enid, OK for pilot training at Vance Air Force Base. We’ve been married for 29 years.

❤️ What’s a quick go-to meal that isn’t fast food? And who does the cooking?
Jessica does the cooking, although Lenny makes a great smash burger. A quick go-to meal is fish tacos or omelets. We have chickens so we always have eggs on hand. Jessica also has a quick chicken air fryer dish that we named Noble Chicken because he loves it.

❤️ How long has Rankin County been your home?
Both of us have lived in Rankin Country our entire lives, except for the one year we lived in OK for his pilot training. Both of our parents live here as well.


❤️ What are some of your favorite things about Rankin County?
We love the people and the relaxed, friendly environment. We love being close enough to Jackson to visit, but we love having land to enjoy with our families and around the people we’ve grown up with. It’s been quite a blessing for our children to grow up with all four grandparents close by.

The Way We Were | Michele & Walter Johnson ❤️by Camille Anding I guess you could call it one of those love at first sigh...
01/06/2026

The Way We Were | Michele & Walter Johnson ❤️
by Camille Anding

I guess you could call it one of those love at first sight meetings,” the then single Michele Hauptman said as she thought back over first being introduced to Walter Johnson. It was a November day at Crossgates Village in the Ozone Music Store. Walter had gone there to visit a friend, and Michele went to the same record shop with her friend, looking for an Alabama record. Walter and Michele found themselves together while their friends were in their own conversation. What might have appeared awkward turned quickly into an interesting meeting.



Walter was a twenty-three-year-old, dressed in a fireman’s uniform and with a charisma that captivated the seventeen-year-old’s heart. By the time that Michele left the record shop with her friend, Cupid’s arrow had hit its mark. “I’m going to marry that man,” Michele told her friend.



It was only phone conversations that followed until their first date in March of the next year. Michele never doubted that she had met her future husband, but Walter was taking the relationship more slowly. Marriage was a serious decision. “I wanted to make sure that our commitments would be lasting ones,” Walter said.



Michele enrolled at Hinds Community College, intending to pursue a nursing degree. Walter was working in construction material sales. With Walter insisting that Michele finish her education before marriage, Michele decided to switch to a dental assistant degree to remedy a longer wait before getting married.



After three and a half years of earning her degree and just days before her graduation, Walter got down on a knee and proposed inside a gazebo by Crossgates Lake. Walter remembers his heart pounding as he asked her to be his wife. In recalling that monumental moment, Michele said, “I think I said yes before he finished the question!”



“I was crazy about him,” Michele added. “He was intelligent with great leadership qualities and always took care of me.”



The couple shared how Michele frustrated her mother with changing the marriage date multiple times from September 5 to finally settling on August 17. Once the date was confirmed, Michele’s mom had a friend that offered to loan her the perfect wedding dress and Michele accepted a friend’s offer to loan her a wedding hat. All the typical wedding extras were not important to this bride and groom.



On the day of the wedding, all the wedding participants were told to be at the church early for the wedding pictures. Walter said, “I began to get a little worried when everyone was there, dressed and ready except the bride.” No one, not even her mother, knew where the bride was!



Michele still doesn’t know why she and a friend went on a shopping spree on her wedding day that made her late for the pictures. She remembers having to throw on her wedding dress when she got home and tearing out for the church. Her late arrival rushed the photographer, but the walk down the aisle of McLaurin Heights Baptist Church stayed on schedule...

Read the rest of their story in the January edition of Hometown Rankin!

Happy New Year! We are so excited for what’s coming in 2026. We are incredibly thankful for our community, our readers, ...
01/01/2026

Happy New Year! We are so excited for what’s coming in 2026. We are incredibly thankful for our community, our readers, and the local businesses who make what we do so special. Above all, God has been so good and has blessed us beyond measure. We’re looking forward to another great year! 🎉

The January issue is here! We are so proud to celebrate these amazing young professionals in Rankin County. You won’t wa...
12/31/2025

The January issue is here! We are so proud to celebrate these amazing young professionals in Rankin County. You won’t want to miss this issue. Deliveries start today!

Tickets are going *FAST* for Rankin’s Red Carpet Gala & Best of the Best! This SOLD OUT last year and will again. Don’t ...
12/30/2025

Tickets are going *FAST* for Rankin’s Red Carpet Gala & Best of the Best! This SOLD OUT last year and will again. Don’t be left behind; grab your tickets NOW.

And get ready to enjoy yourself as we dance into the night with the after party!🕺💃

(Your ticket/table includes dinner and the after party.)

https://www.simpletix.com/e/rankin-s-red-carpet-best-of-the-best-2025-tickets-246954?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQKNjYyODU2ODM3OQABHpZ5GF-_SlgmrD-WkV3ZIyE5ZhiRYgPFK5hl4_rkO4YkZEjmK8XYqxszjIhC_aem_LNw6RbXQdbhSXzVrrlGzag

Psalm 34:8
12/28/2025

Psalm 34:8

The Time Coin Camille Anding The culmination of another year confronts us with the arrival of December. As 2025 closes ...
12/26/2025

The Time Coin
Camille Anding

The culmination of another year confronts us with the arrival of December. As 2025 closes and is filed away into history, I celebrate the thought that the last month of each year ends in a joyous celebration. Christmas has FINALLY arrived. At least that’s what the children say as all their activities are wrapped in sparkly ribbons and their taste buds stay sugar-coated for the rest of the year.

It’s a universal season for all ages to celebrate. Historians and the Bible confirm the coming of the infant Messiah. His birth story as told in Luke is a unique and somber one, considering the long trek in Mary’s condition, the “no vacancy” sign in every sleeping space, and their finally securing a delivery room in a stable.

It’s when the scraggly group of shepherds arrived and shared about the heavens being filled with angels announcing Christ’s birth that the young couple realized more clearly. Everything they had been told to them by the angels was true. The Christ child was theirs to nurture and raise.

There’s so much I wish the Bible would have told us about His childhood. We get only small segments. As I think about Mary caring for the Creator, my mind can’t wrap around the thought. Imagine a child that always obeyed, was never unkind to his siblings, never mistreated anyone and never tattled on his schoolmates. Everything He did was perfect!

How did His siblings treat Him? Did they model His behavior or were they jealous of His ability to always stay out of trouble? At what age did He realize the shadow of the cross over His life? Was His perfect behavior accepted or shunned by His teenage peers?

My questions and thoughts run in all directions. It’s sufficient to know what God’s Word tells us about Jesus. Someday His children will have answers to all of those questions and more. Until then, we can read the familiar story of Christ’s birth from the book of Luke and refuse to let it grow old or lose its wonder. Immanuel – God with us!

You can find "The Time Coin" every month in your Hometown Magazine. ❤️

Address

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Brandon, MS
39042

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