Jackson Free Press

Jackson tech-based nonprofit The Bean Path recently celebrated its one-year anniversary by rewarding students from the Mississippi Coding Academy who applied for a community grant. Students Margarito Valencia and Taniyah Jackson each received an all-expense paid trip valued at $1,500 to Render ATL, a Javascript conference in Atlanta, Ga., that software engineer Justin Samuels hosts. Mississippi Coding Academy also provided a matching $1,500 grant of its own. The Bean Path awarded a third student, Lauren David, with a $50 Amazon gift card.

The Bean Path launched at the Eudora Welty Library in October 2018. The organization provides technical advice to new startups, small businesses and individuals in the Jackson community. The Bean Path offers tech office hours at local libraries, engineering and coding programs and scholarships and grants for students and community organizations.

Throughout 2019, The Bean Path has been providing its services at the Medgar Evers Library every second Saturday of each month, a release from the organization says. The Bean Path has aided more than 240 individuals, provided grants to six local organizations, awarded an academic scholarship to an engineering student and assisted with five tech start ups.

The Bean Path's one-year anniversary celebration took place on Saturday, Oct. 19, in downtown Jackson. The event included tech demonstrations from Jackson State University's engineering students and Michelle Obama Early High School's Technology Club students.

UMMC Opens LGBTQ Clinic at Jackson Medical Mall

University of Mississippi Medical Center recently established the state's first LGBTQ health clinic at the Jackson Medical Mall. The Trustworthy, Evidence-based, Affirming and Multidisciplinary Care Clinic sees patients by appointment the first Friday afternoon of every month.

The TEAM Clinic offers wellness visits, endocrine and hormonal treatment, STD screenings and treatment, behavioral health and psychiatric services, medication management and more. The center's staff includes specialists in family and internal medicine, pediatrics, psychology and psychiatry.

UMMC's Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior also staffs an LGBTQ specialty clinic that offers mental health services. That clinic, which opened in 2015 at the Jackson Medical Mall, provides psychiatric care and psychotherapy.

The TEAM Clinic will offer day-to-day medical treatment and help with managing chronic conditions such as diabetes, with referrals to specialists when needed, a release from UMMC says. The clinic normally sees patients by referral, but anyone can make an appointment. The Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior refers patients to the LGBTQ specialty clinic, which will sometimes refer its patients to the TEAM Clinic.

To schedule an appointment at the TEAM Clinic, call 601-984-2644. For more information, email [email protected]. The number and email are for non-emergency use.

Trustmark Donates $1,050,000 to Mississippi Youth Charities

Trustmark National Bank recently donated a total of $1,050,000 to three Mississippi youth and family-based charities, a release from the bank says. The organizations are Southern Christian Services for Children and Youth, Methodist Children's Homes of Mississippi and Canopy Children's Solutions.

On Sept. 24, Trustmark donated $500,000 to SCSCY at its 31st-annual Bottom Line for Kids Benefit Dinner and Auction. Trustmark has partnered with SCSCY since 2002. The charity will use Trustmark's donation to purchase a permanent facility for its services and programs, the release says.

Founded in 1988, SCSCY offers therapeutic foster care, adoption services, group homes and a transitional living program for children.

Trustmark donated $50,000 to Methodist Children's Homes of Mississippi on Sept. 30. MCH will use the contribution as an initial investment to fund its Permanency Assessment Center, which will provide care for children age 12 to 18 who are in need of immediate assistance due to foster care placement disruption, as well as victims of human trafficking.

Originally an orphanage, MCH was founded in 1896 and has provided care for more than 11,000 children, the release says. MCH has multiple homes in Mississippi and a primary campus in Jackson.

On Oct. 12, Trustmark donated $500,000 to Canopy Children's Solutions at its Inaugural Butterfly Ball, a fundraiser that aimed to raise awareness for mental and behavioral health services for children. Trustmark has been a partner of CCS for more than 17 years.

Canopy is a nonprofit that provides children's behavioral health, educational and social services. It has been active for more than 100 years and serves all 82 counties in Mississippi.

Trustmark is also participating in The Children's Promise Act, which will provide a Mississippi tax credit to individuals and businesses for donations to eligible charitable organizations. For more information, visit mycanopy.org or mchms.org.