Archives March 2024

by Heeza de Seaver

The weather in The Valley in 2023 was not ideal. We had a late freeze, and then we had a very bad drought that took a toll on the vegetation in The Valley. There are countless dead trees all around The Valley. Also, the late freeze and drought took out the landscaping trees and shrubs for thousands of residents. Last year was a tough year especially for the farmers, but it has also provided a huge opportunity for some businesses.

Greenleaf Landscaping & Tree Cutting Co., owned by Gary Greenleaf, is seeing massive growth currently. Greenleaf’s company has been in business for about 15 years, and he is well respected in The Valley. Greenleaf said, “I’ve done pretty well over the years, but the current environment is the best I’ve ever seen by far. We are blowing and going right now, and I think we’re just in the 1st inning. Everybody needs new landscaping, trees cut down, and a lot of people need both. Nobody wants to do that kind of thing themselves anymore, so that’s why my phone is blowing up.”

In the past, Greenleaf has had 4-5 employees at any given time. Currently, he has 40, and he plans to add more. “Greenleaf said, “I’m starting guys at $50 per hour, and I’m hiring people from all walks of life. I’ve hired 7 guys that were in college; a couple were at MSU and a couple were at Ole Miss. I even had one guy quit medical school to come work for me. I about fell out when he said he wanted to come work for me, but he said he could make a killing and he wouldn’t have any college debt. I also had a CPA quit accounting to come work for me; I guess he thought he might like landscaping over the ledger.”

Greenleaf said, “A lot of my guys are going to make 6 figures doing landscaping and cutting trees. That ain’t bad! Plus, we got years of work ahead of us. I plan to double my workforce over the next few months. There’s a ton of demand for our services, and I gotta have the manpower to get the work done.”

With this massive growth, there has been some growing pains for Greenleaf. He said, “I don’t even know all my guy’s names now. I don’t have a training program for guys cutting trees and running chainsaws, and I guess I need to create one. I’m basically just telling them to watch a couple Youtube videos on how to run saws and cut trees. Some of the landscapers don’t know the names of the different types of plants I like to use. I got to hire another HR person too. I hired one, but she wasn’t on board with me paying my guys in cash. So, I had to let her go. But, we’ll figure it out.”

I asked Greenleaf what he attributed to his company’s recent growth, and he named multiple factors. Greenleaf said, “There is a ton of work, and a lot companies can’t find good workers. I don’t have a problem with that. I pay all my guys in cash. Cash is king! They know not to deposit more than $10K at one time. Also, we do good work, and we’re dependable. This year, we started offering a 10 year warranty on all our landscaping. If a plant dies within 10 years, we replace it. I figured that drought last year was a once in a lifetime kind of drought, and it shouldn’t happen again for a long time. Plus, if we keep blowing and going like we are, I’ll be retired in 5 years living in The Bahamas.”

Young men and women looking for a good career path should consider Greenleaf Landscaping and Tree Cutting Co. according to Greenleaf. He said, “Forget college and come make $50 per hour out of the gate. Work hard and be dependable, and you’ll be a supervisor in no time making $75 per hour or more. Be smart, save your money, and you’ll have a great start on life. You won’t waste four years, and you’ll have no college debt.” If you’re interested in joining the Greenleaf team, call 1-800-50P-HOUR.

by “Stretch” DeTrooth

Turkey season is in full swing in The Valley and Mississippi. Hundreds of avid turkey hunters are hitting the woods each day trying to bag a big gobbler. Turkey hunters are very passionate, and they put in a lot of time and effort to chase turkeys all across The Valley. However, some turkey hunters take it too far and ignore private property lines. This issue has come to the forefront this season as more hunters than ever are trespassing on private property.

In an effort to combat this issue, multiple law enforcement agencies including the MS Dept. of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks (MDWFP) and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) have formed the Turkey Trespassing Task Force (TTTF). Tirk Longbeard is heading up this joint law enforcement task force. Longbeard is a veteran of over 30 years in law enforcement, and he’s excited to head up this task force. He said, “We know turkey hunters tend to trespass, but it’s really bad this year in the state and especially in The Valley. We’re going to have officers all across the state, but our main focus is The Valley. We’ve gotten a ton of reports early in the season about Valleyans trespassing on private property. I’m not gonna tell you all the tactics and assets we’re going to use to catch the perpetrators, but they better watch out. That’s all I’m gonna say.”

I was able to talk with Jake Shortspur who is a deputy on the task force, and he gave me some information on the tools the task force may use. He said, “We may use drones to monitor some areas, and we may have officers in the woods early in the morning with night vision goggles and heat sensor cameras. The task force is serious about this issue, and we’re going to do all we can to stop trespassers.”

A couple Valleyan turkey hunters I talked with are not happy about the TTTF. One said, “I’m pretty ticked off about this stupid task force. I’m afraid these idiots are gonna scare off the birds. This is all overkill in my book. It’s hard enough to kill a dern turkey, and these sapsuckers are gonna make it even tougher. Also, don’t these people know the Lord’s prayer? Forgive our trespassers…”

Another hunter said, “I have been guilty of trespassing trying to kill a turkey. It just happens you know. You hear one gobble, and you go after the dern thing. I don’t start out on someone else’s land, the dang turkey just might lead you onto somebody’s else’s property. These jack wagons have taken this too far. I guess we’ll just have to sit on the ground and call them up; there ain’t gonna be no chasing after em. We’re gonna be like lazy deer hunters now, and just sit there waiting for a dern deer to walk out. I’m not happy.”

The TTTF plans to make an example of trespassers. In addition to possible arrest and certain fines, TTTF will post the pictures of trespassers on social media and digital billboards around The Valley. So, you turkey trespassers better be careful the remainder of the season.

by Carl “Bull” Crapper

People across central MS are starting to realize The Valley is on the rise. We have a lot going on right now, and our future is looking bright. The list of recent accomplishments and new attractions is pretty long, and now you can add one more to it. Eddie Cousins, a local entrepreneur and philanthropist, is developing some prime real estate off Hwy. 13 on the Strong River.

Cousins is building what he calls a RV park/resort and spa, and he’s going to call it the Strong River Valley Camping Resort and Spa. He said, “I’ve been throwing around different ideas on what to do with this prime property, and one day I had an epiphany. I’m going to build a RV park and resort. You see RV parks popping up all over the place these days, and there is really only one option in The Valley- the D’Lo Water Park. It’s a great park, and it’s been around a long time. But, my resort will offer a lot of amenities you won’t find at other RV parks and resorts.”

It’s going to be a family resort for all seasons. For the kids, we’re going to have a petting zoo- ponies, goats, pigs, and more. Additionally, we’ll have a 9 hole putt putt golf course. The kids can swim in the river of course, but the resort will have a very nice above the ground pool as well. We’ll also have a nice playground with slides and more.

Cousins said, “Of course we’ll have hookups for RVs and campers, and we’ll have pads for tent campers. We’ll offer canoe and kayak rentals for the family. Also, we’ll have a small bait shop for the anglers. We’ll also have a restaurant not just for campers but for anyone that wants to eat there, and we’ll have some of the best catfish in The Valley. But, there are a few things that will really separate us from everyone else.”

Cousins’ resort will offer noodling or hand grabbing expeditions. He’s contracted with Big Willy’s Outfitters to offer noodling. Cousins expects a lot of people from outside The Valley to stay at the resort just for the noodling. Additionally, the resort will offer a zip line course with multiple lines over the majestic Strong River. The resort even had golfers in mind; it will have two short golf holes that require golfers to hit the ball over the river to the greens. A bridge will be constructed for the golfers and campers that want to go to the other side of the river to hike on the resort’s hiking trails.

Last but not certainly not least, Cousins’ resort will have a spa. Cousins said, “There ain’t another RV park/resort around that has a spa. Unfortunately, I ran out of funds, so I wasn’t able to build a nice bungalow for the spa. For now, the spa will be housed in a small portable building, and it will have a window unit. Hopefully, we can build that bungalow in the future. I’ve contracted with two masseuses to treat our visitors- Achara Chen and Dao Wu. Both ladies have a lot of experience, and our visitors will love them.”

Construction on the resort is expected to be completed in early May 2024. Stay tuned to the Strong River Valley Camping Resort & Spa’s Facebook page for updates. Cousins and his crew can’t wait to see you this summer!

by “Stretch” DeTrooth

In recent years, travel or select baseball and softball has grown substantially. There are more teams than you can shake a stick at, and new teams are being formed all the time. This has made baseball and softball more popular than ever in The Valley and in Mississippi. Kids are learning the game at a younger age, and many are becoming better and more refined players earlier than past generations.

However, there are some drawbacks to this surge in travel ball, and one is the decline of the local recreational (rec) leagues. Many of them are struggling to survive because many local players are now foregoing rec to play travel ball. Some kids play rec and travel ball, but most play one or the other. Many rec leagues have shut down, and more will probably shut down in the future unless something changes.

The Valley Youth Sports (TVYS) is going to try to change that trend this year. Their board, which is led by Bob Mamfred, is implementing new measures to lure parents and their kids back to TVYS. Mamfred said, “We came up with some unconventional things to hopefully attract more families this year. We had to do something; we’re almost at the point of shutting TVYS down. It’s really a last ditch effort. I guess we’ll see if it works.”

TVYS is pulling out all the stops. For 10U, 12U, and 14U boys games, a boy from each team will be randomly selected 15 minutes before game time. The two boys from opposing teams will play a quick 5-10 minute game of Fortnite that will be watched by an umpire. The Fortnite winner’s team will be start the game with a 1-0 lead.

Additionally, all kid pitch teams will be able to play with an additional player on defense. TVYS is calling the player a “rover.” You can put him or her anywhere on the field except in front of the pitcher. One coach said, “I coach 10U boys, and our catcher can’t catch a cold. So, I’m gonna put a good player behind our catcher to hopefully cut down on passed balls and steals.”

Another rule change that the kids are super excited about is that each team will be allowed to have a dog present in the dugout during games. One 12U softball coach said, “Our girls get a little uptight sometimes because their mom is yelling like a crazed lunatic, and they need something to calm them down. We’re gonna bring my lab to home games, and he’ll be an emotional support animal for my girls. Hopefully, he’ll have a calming effect on my girls, and help them focus a little better.”

TVYS is adding one more thing to spice things up. Games that are tied at the end of the last inning will have a dance off to decide the winner. Each team will get to pick 3 players to dance on the field. The umpire will pick the dance and or song, and the umpire/s will decide the winning team based on the dance off. Many of the kids I talked with really like this idea. One 11 year old boy I talked with said, “I hope we’re tied at the end of every game, and I hope the umps pick the Griddy. Can’t nobody out Griddy me! The other team doesn’t have a shot.”

Mamfred said, “Some people have laughed at our new changes for this year, and some have said they’re too gimmicky. But, I think it’s going to be a home run, and I think other rec leagues will copy our ideas. Signups are way ahead of last year at this time, so parents and kids are already excited about it.” Additionally, TVYS will give rings to all players regardless if their team wins their league or not. Bling for all! Time will tell if these changes will save TVYS, but it’s definitely going to make things more interesting for the kids.

by I. B. Lyon

Bubba’s Buffet has been a fixture in The Valley for many years. They have great food and a friendly staff, and people come back time after time. Bubba Biggers decided to let kids (12 & under) eat free on Leap Day, Feb. 29th, this year. It was something fun to get people in the door during a week night . Biggers did a good job of getting the word out on social media, and they had a great crowd last night.

Not long after they opened, Bubba realized that he might have made a mistake. One of his waitresses came to him to talk about an angry customer. The waitress told Bubba that a grown man with a wife and two kids claimed that he was 9 years old, and he let the waitress know up front that his meal along with his kids’ meals should be free. The waitress basically told him that he was full of it, and he would have to pay for his meal. The customer then explained to her that he was born on leap year 36 years ago, but he was technically 9 years old. So, the waitress told him that she’d have to talk with Bubba about it.

Bubba said, “I told my waitress to let him know that his meal would be free, but I realized that he probably wasn’t going to the be last customer to make this claim. And, I was right. My waitress came back to me 5 minutes later with the same issue, and I told her that we were one and done. Another waitress came to see me a few minutes later with another customer making the same claim. Then, I stopped what I was doing and talked to every sapsucking adult that claimed they were born on Leap Day. I let them all know they would have to pay for their food. It really ticked me off. There’s no darn way that many people in The Valley were born on Leap Day.”

A couple diners got downright ugly. One diner made one of Bubba’s waitresses cry. She said, “This guy started cussing when I let him know he’d have to pay for his food. He started making fun of the way I talk, and he even made a comment about my weight.” Bubba did all he could to put out the fires all night, but he was losing his patience.

Things came to a head when a gentleman told a waiter he was born on Leap Day 48 years ago. So, he claimed he was 12. The waiter informed him that he’d have to pay of his meal. The diner got very angry, and he and the waiter exchanged words. Bubba said, “I know the guy a little bit, and I know he wasn’t born on Leap Day. I saw on Facebook that he had a birthday about a week ago. This idiot was just trying to get a free meal like 20 other moochers tonight.” The gentleman told Bubba and the waiter if he couldn’t get a free meal because of his age then they’d have to give him one since it was his birthday. Things escalated from there. Bubba said, “I told him to leave my restaurant immediately. I may have called him a name or two.”

One of Bubba’s employees called the police because they feared things might get out of hand. The police arrived after the irate gentleman had left. Bubba said, “I told the police what had happened all night, and they laughed about it. I never dreamed people would’ve tried this stuff. I guess one person came up with the idea, and they must’ve told all their friends. I even had one diner say he identified as a 10 year old boy, so he should get meal for free. I won’t be doing this on Leap Day again I promise you; I probably won’t even open up on Leap Day again.”

Valleyans, the moral of the story is that no good deed goes unpunished. And, people like free food. They will do anything under the sun for free food. Stay alert out there today Valleyans, and don’t fall victim to any Leap Day scams.