[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 60 (Monday, April 5, 2021)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E341]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    HONORING MRS. JUDY HUDSON BLAND

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. BENNIE G. THOMPSON

                             of mississippi

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, April 5, 2021

  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor 
Mrs. Judy Hudson Bland.
  Judy Bland moved to Quitman County at the age of five with her 
parents, Floyd and Christine Hudson and her three older brothers. She 
was educated from first through twelfth grade in Marks. Upon high 
school graduation, she attended the University of Mississippi on a 
journalism scholarship her freshman year.
  In the spring of 1963, she married Johnny Bland, who had signed a 
contract with the Boston Red Sox and traveled with him to play at 
various locations in their farm system. After an eye infection ended 
his baseball career, he began a new one as a banker with First Security 
Bank at the Marks Branch. They brought their young family to Marks; a 
son, Kevin Bland, and daughter, Kimberly Bland (Wells), who were both 
educated in Marks; both received associate degrees from Northwest 
Community College and B.S. degrees; Kevin, from Mississippi State and 
Kimberly, from Delta State. These two children, their spouses and her 
grandchildren have been a constant source of joy, pride and inspiration 
as a part of her daily life.
  Bland had obtained her B.S. degree at the University of Memphis and 
worked for several years in the Memphis City School System, so in 1977, 
she returned to her teaching career, one that included a variety of 
afterschool programs which exposed the students in Quitman County to 
new technology and gave them opportunities to volunteer for worthwhile 
projects, such as participating in the relief efforts after Hurricane 
Katrina. In 1992, she was honored to receive recognition as ``Teacher 
of the Year'' at Quitman County High School. She was also often called 
upon to interview prospective teachers at recruiting events on college 
campuses.
  After her retirement in 2004, she continued the spirit of 
volunteerism. Whenever she saw a need, she offered to do what she could 
to fill it and help those in need lift themselves above their 
disadvantages. She helped patients at DePorres Rural Health Clinic who 
could not afford their medicine apply to the pharmaceutical companies 
for free or at a discounted price. Working with the Community 
Foundation of Northwest Mississippi, she created a pilot program for 
Head Start to educate the children on eating nutritious food and to 
encourage their family members to eat healthy, as well. Working with 
the local nonprofit, Youth Opportunities Unlimited, she supervised 
youth on educational fieldtrips; helped students learn GIS/GPS 
technology and to map the condemned buildings in Quitman County that 
should be cleared and used for environmental friendly projects; 
prepared yard signs with house numbers to improve 911 accuracy; 
delivered Emergency Kits to elderly residents in the county; helped 
open a fitness center that welcomed all area residents; and conducted 
afterschool workshops for students on topics, such as financial 
literacy, entrepreneurship, and screen printing. Working with the Marks 
Project, a local nonprofit formed in 2017, she has been instrumental in 
providing playground equipment, an outdoor fitness trail, and an 
outstanding football field for countywide youth in the City of Marks 
Park; providing an excellent reading program for Pre-K, a Saturday 
tutoring/recreation program for middle school students, conducted on 
the campus at the University of Mississippi's School of Education, and 
ACT Prep Boot Camps at the high school, all in the Quitman County 
School District; and securing partnerships with both Northwest and 
Coahoma Community College to provide free job training to Quitman and 
its surrounding counties.
  Bland has served on numerous boards in Quitman County and north 
Mississippi, including the board of directors of DePorres Delta 
Ministries, Youth Opportunities Unlimited, and the Marks Project, as 
well as the Advisory Board of the Community Foundation of Northwest 
Mississippi and the Board of Trustees of Northwest Mississippi 
Community College.
  She has won several awards in recent years, such as the 2010 
President's Volunteer Service Award, the 2013 Quitman County Alumni 
Scholarship Gala Award, the Community Foundation of Northwest 
Mississippi's 2019 Community Star Award, Margaret Madddox Woman of the 
Year and the 2020 Mule Train Historical Society Woman of the Year.
  Madam Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing Mrs. 
Judy Bland for her dedication to the teaching profession and her 
untiring efforts of volunteerism,

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