At this time each year, The Natchez Democrat pauses to remember those who, in the past year, survived the odds, served the community and supported one another &045;&045; and, in doing so, became some of the year’s most inspiring people:

1086th Transportation Co. and its supporters

On a gray, cold February day, standing before soldiers who were saying goodbye to their families, the ranking officer lifted his chin and called out an assurance. &uot;You will,&uot; he told the soldiers, &uot;see them again.&uot;

Turns out, he was right.

Completing its mission to the praise of a host of military officials, including the Louisiana National Guard’s Maj. Gen. Bennett Landreneau himself, the 1086th Transportation Co. returned last month to an explosion of fanfare.

The transportation unit provided logistical support during their more than 50 missions from the Kuwaiti base throughout Iraq and covered more than 170,000 miles in Iraq itself. Not one man or woman from the unit was killed, and there was only one moderately serious injury, as one soldier was shot in the hand.

Then there were the supporters. When the 1086th left and when it returned, the soldiers were honored with parades through the streets of Vidalia and ceremonies at the Armory.

Meanwhile, support group members and other local residents sent prayers and other necessities to the soldiers and were a ready source of support and help for the families left at home.

They continue to support the families and soldiers of the 1087th Transportation Co. of Jonesville and other soldiers from the Miss-Lou who continue to serve our country.

Gordon and Nell Arnold

Walking in the Miss-Lou Relay for Life is nothing new for Gordon and Nell Arnold. They got involved several years ago through their daughter, volunteer Lisa Cater. &uot;And besides, it’s for a good cause,&uot; Gordon Arnold said.

But this year, for the first time, they walked with hundreds of other cancer survivors, after surviving their own bouts of cancer starting last August &045;&045; his, prostate cancer, and hers, breast cancer.

They consider themselves lucky to have escaped the worst of the disease &045;&045; and to have caught it early. They credit each other’s loving support, humor and a positive attitude as keys to their survival.

And their bouts with cancer have made them evangelists of sorts &045;&045; they tell everyone they know to get mammograms and prostate exams regularly. &uot;I have no doubt we’ll beat this thing … together,&uot; Gordon said.

Hillaire Long

Talk about a can-do teen. Hillaire Long, 18, presented her case to aldermen in July for distributing, through the Police Department, curfew stickers parents could place on the back windows of their children’s vehicles. By the end of the year, the stickers were reality.

Long said she was simply tired of seeing her peers become injured or die as a result of after-hours vehicle accidents. The idea is that if an officer sees a vehicle with the sticker out after curfew, he can stop the vehicle to make sure nothing is wrong.

In addition, Long organized a &uot;tipsy taxi&uot; service for the weekend of the Great Mississippi River Balloon Race, pulling local bars and restaurants in to help publicize the effort. Next challenge for Long: a stint in the Marines.

Dr. Frances Henderson

Dr. Frances Henderson, who retired this year from Alcorn State University, served two years as head of its baccalaureate nursing program and then 15 years as dean of the school.

Under her guidance, the nurse master’s degree program was initiated, and the baccalaureate program has grown. Challenges of providing health in a rural area also captured her enthusiasm.

With grants from the Kellogg Foundation, she led the way to providing a mobile health unit to travel into areas where health care was scarce or nonexistent and developed the rural health clinic on the nursing school campus.

She credits the faculty and staff at Alcorn for much of those gains &045;&045; and for supporting her in her own battle with breast cancer.

Sharon Richardson

Despite having post-polio syndrome &045;&045; 56 years after she contracted polio as an infant &045;&045; Sharon Richardson of Natchez is doing once again what she loves &045;&045; painting works of art.

The syndrome took the use of her right arm, her voice and her ability to chew food and made swallowing difficult.

Nevertheless Richardson, who has painted for more than 30 years, learned to use her left hand to paint in her home studio &045;&045; using brushes fitted with straws around the handles, since holding small objects is painful. &uot;I still have this mind in here that doesn’t say no,&uot; she said.

Most recently, she worked on 11 new paintings for a March of Dimes fund-raiser for post-polio syndrome research.

Rhonda James-Brown

Yes, Rhonda James-Brown mourned when her only child, Sgt. Henry L. Brown, was killed April 8 while on duty in Iraq &045;&045; and, at times, it seemed all of Natchez mourned with her.

But she has said she wants the public to know she’s OK because her faith in Christ will see her through. &uot;Keep your faith in Christ, who has never done anything wrong. Cry, scream if you have to, but don’t lose your faith,&uot; she said.

Since her son’s death, people from all over the United States have called and written to James-Brown, telling her she inspires them and they’re praying for her.

What would James-Brown like to see God ultimately bring from Henry’s death?

&uot;A better world, one where people love each other,&uot; she said. She saw that happening, at least for the moment, as people gathered to comfort her and to say goodbye to her son.

Josephine Matthews

Josephine Matthews of Natchez, who passed away just this month, was a stalwart volunteer at the Natchez Senior Citizen Multipurpose Center since 1986.

As recently as this year, she would arrive at 7:30 each morning to supervise 30 to 40 people in the center’s adult day care.

She helped the seniors with crafts projects and chair exercises, served snacks and meals for homebound seniors and center patrons, led Bible classes and singing, advised seniors on nutrition, prepared the center for parties and assisted older people who use wheelchairs.

For her efforts, Matthews received one of two Outstanding Service to Mississippi’s Senior Citizens Awards from the Governor’s Initiative for Volunteer Excellence.

She also served on the Stewpot’s Board of Directors and was a United Way spokesperson. &uot;What did I do before this? I raised 12 children,&uot; she said earlier this year.

Betty Barnes

At age 97, Betty Barnes is still growing &045;&045; flowers, that is. Her love for things that grow led her and a church committee to build a garden on the grounds of the Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd in Vidalia.

This year, the garden won an annual state award from the Mississippi Garden Clubs. It then won the nationwide May Duff Walters Achievement Award for Landscape Design of Church Gardens presented by the National Garden Clubs.

But Barnes herself gave credit to other volunteers for their work on the project &045;&045; and said that in working on the garden, she was simply filling a need.

&uot;It was barren. I thought, ‘oh, dear, something has to be done,’&uot; she said.

Eddie Ray

The doctor who told Eddie Ray of Natchez, just last January, that he would never walk again apparently didn’t know Eddie Ray very well.

It was Jan. 18 when Ray fell while trying to descend from a tree stand while hunting on a friend’s property in Jefferson County and landed on his back, a fall that left his legs paralyzed.

Yet with the help of family and faith over several months, Ray can now use a cane to walk. Meanwhile, he has stayed active as Scout master of Boy Scout Troop 170, even helping one of his sons achieve the rank of Eagle Scout.

But Ray believes the highest role he can fill now, given what he’s overcome, is that of witness. &uot;God has given me this challenge,&uot; he said, &uot;to prove to people who have never seen God’s work that God’s hand is in everything in this world.&uot;

Pete Smith

For Natchez resident Pete Smith, who contracted the West Nile virus, just concentrating enough to be able to walk is a challenge &045;&045; but one he’s meeting day by day.

&uot;I had muscle loss, nerve loss, chronic fatigue and my thought process is impaired,&uot; Smith explained in July of this year, almost one year since he contracted the virus.

His case of West Nile left him unable to drive, much less work, due to poor concentration.

But Smith has met such challenges with determination and a sense of humor. Case in point: his business cards now say &uot;Pete Smith, West Nile Survivor.&uot;