By Staff
GIVEAWAYS AND FREEBIES – Sylvia Lackey of Red Metro Phonebook shows Howard Pate how to register Thursday in a drawing for a cordless phone. Lackey and Harriet Harper, right, gave away huge stacks of phone books at The Main Event. Photo by Carisa McCain/The Meridian Star
By Steve Gillespie / staff writer
April 26, 2002
Before Pete Lucovich left to play golf Thursday morning, his wife, Rose Marie, reminded him it was Main Event day in Meridian.
When he got back from the golf course, the couple went right out to the Lauderdale County Agri-Center. By 11 a.m., they had visited about half the exhibits. Both are retired, and they do a lot of traveling but The Main Event is a hometown attraction they look forward to attending.
The Lucoviches were among hundreds of people who streamed into the agri-center throughout the day to see exhibits sponsored by area businesses, industries and organizations.
The East Mississippi Business Development Corp. sponsors the event.
The Main Event is also a social engagement. Rose Marie likes to mingle with the crowd.
The business community
Many of the goody bags held Red Metro Phone Books, produced by Sylvia and Harry N. Lackey of Meridian. Their business has been represented at The Main Event from the beginning.
The phone books contain area guides, and residential and business listings for East Mississippi and West Alabama.
Tim Trammell of Meridian works for Airgas, a company that sells specialty gases for use in welding and medical equipment. He spent the morning checking out the displays and trying his luck at giveaways.
The bank held a contest challenging people to guess how much cash was in a transparent case.
A salute to patriots
Also on display were exhibits reflecting this year's theme, "A Salute to Patriots," including a helicopter from Naval Air Station Meridian, a ladder truck from the Meridian Fire Department and several pieces of equipment from the Mississippi Air National Guard.
Senior Airman Randy Townsend of Starkville and Staff Sergeant Joseph Bankston of Columbus, both of the 248th Air Traffic Control Squadron with the 186th Air Refueling Wing of the Mississippi Air National Guard, greeted visitors at the event.
Both men said they appreciated this year's patriotic theme.