Tupelo City Council, December 3, 2019: POW honored

Tupelo, MS – Tupelo City Council meeting December 3, 2019, honors Vietnam-era POW, author of “TapCode.”

Mayor Shelton Gives Col. Carlyle “Smitty” Harris the Key to the City

During the December 3rd Tupelo City Council meeting, Mayor Jason Shelton honored Vietnam-era POW Col. Carlyle Harris with a key to the city. Shelton said that he was pleased to honor Col. Harris with the highest honor a mayor could give for the things he has done for the city. Harris gave a short speech. “Tupelo did an outstanding job in accepting and helping my wife,” Harris said, referring when his wife, Louise, moved to Tupelo to be with family during his time as a POW in Vietnam.

Harris became a POW after his plane was shot down in Vietnam on April 4, 1965. He and his wife have written a book, Tap Code which tells the events that took place, both in Vietnam and at home, after his capture. Harris has also been active in the Tupelo Community. He played a role in establishing the Vietnam Memorial that is located at Veterans Park. After retiring from the Air Force, Harris had a successful career in business.

Hospital Program Seeks to Employ Special Needs Students

NMMC Community Outreach Coordinator, Marcus Gary addresses the council

Community Outreach Coordinator, Marcus Gary spoke to members of the city council about a program established at North Mississippi Medical Center. The program is designed to train high-functioning special needs students for work. Twelve students are rotated through different jobs at the hospital so they can learn skills to apply in the workforce after graduation. These students are getting on-the-job training in the areas of data entry, food service, laundry, and sanitation.

The hospital will give jobs to three of these students, however, seven of the twelve will need to be employed by the end of the school year for the program to continue. Mr. Gary asked the council members to please remember these students, and to help get them jobs so that the program can continue.

Other Items Discussed

The council voted to approve a donation of a sky jack for the Tupelo Fire Department. After voting to pay the city’s bills, the council decided to table several other topics that were not mentioned for a later date.

More about POW “Smitty” Harris’s experiences: http://newalbanyunionco.com/former-pow-tells-story/

Agenda and minutes of December 3, 2019 meeting: http://www.tupeloms.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/12-03-19.pdf