[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 176 (Tuesday, November 15, 2022)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1145]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]





                    HONORING DR. CINDY AYERS-ELLIOT

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. BENNIE G. THOMPSON

                             of mississippi

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, November 15, 2022

  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor 
humanitarian and farmer, Dr. Cindy Ayers-Elliot. Dr. Ayers-Elliot has 
shown what can be done through hard work, dedication, and the desire to 
help people in need.
  Dr. Ayers-Elliot is a Mississippi native and graduate from Rust 
College with a bachelor's in business administration, and then became 
only the second Mississippian to become a National Rural Fellow. Once 
Ayers-Elliot had completed her fellowship, she moved to New York and 
worked on Wall Street as an investment banker. After 9/11, she returned 
to Jackson and received her master's degree and a doctorate in Urban 
Higher Education from Jackson State University in 2006. She went to 
work for a local nonprofit that focused on agricultural policy, but she 
wanted to do more than talk to farmers. In 2010, she ``traded high 
heels for work boots'' and ``designer suits for overalls.'' She became 
a farmer herself, setting up Foot Print Farms on 68 acres in west 
Jackson.
  Foot Print Farms has several projects to combat Mississippi's food 
deserts. In partnership with the Mississippi Department of Health, Foot 
Print Farms supply boxes of fresh produce in season to needy families 
living in food deserts. During the pandemic, Foot Print Farms secured 
donations and supplied fresh food to three schools in impoverished 
parts of Jackson. Dr. Ayers-Elliot has been a great asset to her 
community, and her work never goes unnoticed.
  Madam Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing Dr. 
Cindy Ayers-Elliot for her hard work in fighting food insecurities in 
the State of Mississippi.

                          ____________________