JANS – The Jerald D. Ball Award recognizes businesses or organizations in the community who have given exemplary service to MSH. This year, the Mississippi Museum of Art was chosen for this recognition. Originally named the Together We Make a Difference Award, the name was changed in 2018 to honor Jerald D. Ball. Ball began his career at MSH in 1984 when he became the Director of Volunteer Services. He immediately developed a plan to recruit and retain volunteers, provide needed clothing through a donation center, and provide for all patients/residents during the holiday season. He also developed “Santa Day” where business leaders, legislators, and others dressed as Santa Claus to personally deliver the bags to every individual served by the hospital.

Ball also sowed the seeds for Friends of MSH and was a charter member in 1987. This coming year, Friends will provide more than $20,000 for projects. After his retirement in 2005, Ball remained an avid supporter and volunteer at MSH until his death in 2018. His programs will continue to reap dividends for patients and residents well into the future. Ball exemplified the spirit of volunteer service and spent his professional and personal life promoting and nurturing that spirit in others.

Earlier this year, the Mississippi Museum of Art invited the MSH Art Program to feature a “Sneak Peek” of the 35th Annual Serendipity Art Show & Silent Auction. The Serendipity exhibit opened on June 6 with a special reception for the artists. Artists arrived at the museum and were greeted with an impressive display of their artwork. Each piece was hung and identified by a museum label that included the artist’s name, name of the piece, materials of the work, and a quote from the artist.

Wyatt Waters, renowned watercolor artist, and Ron Lindsey, former MSH Art Instructor, made a surprise visit and viewed the entire collection of artwork. After the viewing, the artists gathered in the Community Room of the MMA for refreshments and were presented with a certificate of recognition mounted in a special Serendipity Sneak Peek folder with a photo of their artwork and personal quote printed inside. The certificates were presented by Lydia Jasper, Assistant Curator of the Permanent Collection and 35th Serendipity Guest Curator; Ceci Whitehurst, MSH Art Services Supervisor; and Ricky Shelby, MSH Art Instructor. Afterwards, Waters and Lindsey worked their way around the room discussing various art topics with the MSH artists. The MSH Music Department Trio was in attendance and performed during the opening, adding a special flair to the event.

The Serendipity Sneak Peek was in conjunction with the Noah Saterstrom show, “What Became of Dr. Smith”. It explores the story of Noah’s great-grandfather, a traveling optometrist, who disappeared in 1924. His years-long search yielded evidence of a complex set of events that resulted in Dr. Smith’s institutionalization for 40 years at the MS Insane Asylum in Jackson, and later at MSH. Presented as a narrative painting of 183 canvases that together span 122 feet, the exhibit is a visual culmination of the story. The exhibit expands on Saterstrom and the Asylum Hill Projects shared goal of acknowledging those marginalized by society due to mental illness. The “What Became of Dr. Smith” exhibit will run through September 22, 2024. 

Jasper shared, “People were interested to know what the exhibition was about. We were able to utilize the Serendipity pamphlets with information (about the hospital and the program) so it was really great for the community that didn’t know anything about the State Hospital or the programs it offered to be able to interact in that way. It brought a lot of questions and smiles so it was really great to see the public engaged in a different way.

“Ceci (Whitehurst) and Ricky (Shelby) (MSH Art Services) did a really great job of letting people know about the Serendipity Sneak Peek, so we had a lot of visitors that came to the museum for that exhibit and stayed to visit (other parts of) the museum.

“I wasn’t expecting an award because it just felt like a natural thing for us to do at the Art Museum. Our mission is to connect the community and the power of art together and it just felt like the natural thing to do with this exhibit. We hope to see how we can connect with the State Hospital in other ways.”