Mid-Mississippi Regional Library System Wall of Fame Inductees

L-R – Henry Brand, JoAnn Brandt, Sylvia D. Clark, daughter Camille Clark Ball and Robert E. Clark

Two prominent Louisville ladies were recently inducted into the Mid-Mississippi Regional Library System Wall of Fame in Kosciusko, MS.  JoAnn Brandt, co-founder of the Winston County Friends of the Library, and Sylvia D. Clark were honored with a luncheon and ceremony at the Mid-Mississippi Regional Library System headquarters in Kosciusko with a plaque and photo to be placed on the Wall of Fame. They share this honor with librarians and library Board of Trustee members who served the library system for many years and with high esteem in their communities. They are the first Friends of the Library members to be inducted.

The crowd gathered to honor them included family members, headquarters staff members and librarians from all five counties in our library system: Attala, Winston, Leake, Montgomery and Homes. Library Executive Director Richard O. Greene and former Assistant Director, Linda Milner, highlighted each inductee from past years. Included in the honors are Winston County Librarians Doris Suber, Maxine McNeil and former Winston County Library Board of Trustee member of 32 years, Doris Ward. 

Former Winston County Librarian Rhonda Porter and current Winston County Library Board of Trustee/MidMississippi Regional Library System Board of Trustee President presented the award to JoAnn and Sylvia and introduced them to the crowd. “JoAnn and Sylvia join a long list of distinguished Wall of Fame inductees, and I am so pleased to see them honored in this way,” commented librarian Beth Edwards. “They deserve this honor for their over 32 years of continuous service to this library.” The inductees were earlier honored with the Ruby Asaaff Award at the Mississippi Library Association annual conference in Vicksbury, MS, which is presented to outstanding Friends of the Library members for their extraordinary service to their library.

JoAnn Brandt & Sylvia Clark Awarded Ruby Assaf Presidential Award

The Ruby Assaf Presidential Award honors an outstanding individual volunteer(s) in the Friends of the Mississippi Libraries or in a local Friends chapter.

JoAnn & Sylvia have served as officers and tireless library supporters since 1984 until retiring in 2016. During their over thirty-year tenure, they, along with many other friends members, raised over $256,000 to fund badly needed items for the library that cannot be provided by county and city funding.

The award ceremony was held at the 2016 Mississippi Library Association Annual Conference in Vicksburg, MS on Friday October 21 at the  MLS Awards Breakfast.