WHITFIELD– Supporters of Mississippi State Hospital and Hudspeth Regional Center recently hosted an appreciation luncheon for the state’s legislators at Galloway United Methodist Church in Jackson.

Rep. Sam Mims, R-McComb, and Sen. Bob Dearing, D-Natchez, were among those in attendance.

Dearing represents Adams, Amite, Franklin and Pike counties in Senate District 37, while Mims represents Adams, Amite, Franklin and Pike counties in House District 97.

The legislative appreciation event is an annual program hosted by Friends of MSH and Friends of Hudspeth Center.

The volunteer organizations are dedicated to raising funds and awareness for their respective programs and those Mississippians served through them.

Employees, volunteers, advocates and other members of the Friends groups hosted the event in order to thank lawmakers for their work in the legislature and for their continued support of the Mississippi Department of Mental Health.

Founded in 1987, Friends of Mississippi State Hospital, Inc., is a tax-exempt, non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the work of MSH and informing the public of mental illness and the needs of the mentally ill.