Jackson Free Press

Marilyn and James Kithuka, owners of Gumbo Girl, recently moved their restaurant from Highway 18 in Jackson to a new, larger location at 900 E. County Line Road in Ridgeland, inside what was formerly AJ's Seafood.

The original Gumbo Girl opened in November 2015, and the Kithukas held a soft opening for the new location on Tuesday, Feb. 11.

"Marilyn and I have been planning to make this move for about a year and a half once we realized we'd outgrown the old location," James Kithuka told the Jackson Free Press. "People always wanted to book us for parties, but we only had seating for 25 people and little parking. Now, we have seating for 125 people."

With the move, Gumbo Girl is also expanding its menu to include fried food platters such as catfish, shrimp, lobster, okra, green tomatoes and more. The new location also has a full bar with items such as margaritas and champagne cocktails and a private dining section that seats up to 32 people.

Gumbo Girl is open Tuesday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. The Kithukas also plan to begin offering Sunday brunch at a later date. For more information, call 601-790-0486 or visit gumbogirl.com.

Women's Foundation of Mississippi "Thrive @ Work" Luncheon

The Women's Foundation of Mississippi, the only grant-making and advocacy organization in the state that exclusively funds women and girls' programs, will host its third annual "Thrive @ Work" luncheon on Thursday, April 16, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Westin-Jackson hotel.

The "Thrive @ Work" luncheon showcases inventive workplace policies from local companies and highlights organizations that employ women-friendly policies in Mississippi. Guest speakers will include Molly Brasfield from the University of Mississippi Medical Center, Lindsay Thomas Dowdle of Jones Walker LLP and Carol Harris from the Mississippi Development Authority.

For online ticket purchases or sponsorship information, visit https://bit.ly/2NnWAa0. Event tickets are $100 and sponsorship levels begin at $1,500. For additional sponsorship and ticket information, call 601-487-0702 or email [email protected].

Trustmark Opening New Brandon Office

Trustmark Bank will open a new, full-service location in Brandon at 1363 W. Government Street by November 2020. The two-story, 10,300 square foot facility will employ more than 30 Trustmark associates, a release from Trustmark says.

The new office will feature Trustmark's new interactive teller machine, myTeller, which allows customers to interact face-to-face with a teller through audio and video. myTeller also functions as a stand ATM machine and provides same day credit for most deposits made by 9 p.m. on weeknights.

Trustmark's Brandon location will also have extended banking hours Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Trustmark will hold a ceremonial groundbreaking at the new site on Thursday, March 5, at 10 a.m. For more information, visit trustmark.com.