Jackson Free Press

While working on a story on Tony Yarber's Jackson Crime Alignment, I got the pleasure of speaking with pastor Matt McGue of one of Jackson's newest churches, One Church.

I am admittedly not very religious, but there's something about McGue's message of inclusion that struck me as incredibly genuine.

There aren't too many pastors you can interview who will quote Billy Graham and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., but McGue isn't like many pastors. His One Church is intent on becoming a multicultural, multiracial and multi ethnical house of worship, which is rare in this part of the country.

Our churches, much like the rest of our everyday lives, are still segregated – not by law, but by cultural barriers that have needed to be knocked down for years.

That'll change if McGue has his way. He moved here from North Carolina, after helping to start a similar church in Charlotte called Lifepoint. He brought his wife ("I'm glad she decided to come"), his son and his son's wife, who is a recent addition to the family.

They are meeting in the Ridgeland Recreational Center near Northpark Mall, and he says he's found a location he hopes will be the future home of a permanent church. It's too early to say where it is, but he's hoping to be able to make an announcement soon.

He said two things in the course of a 15-minute conversation that have stuck with me the last two days, but probably won't make a story about fighting crime: "The churches have been preaching a message of inclusion and racial harmony from segregated pulpits," and "I want to build a church in Jackson that looks like Heaven, with people from every tribe and nation."

What a message – and a breath of fresh air – for a city as ethnically and racially divided as Jackson.

We just received this release from Attorney General Jim Hood's office:

An undercover operation has resulted in several arrests and numerous businesses facing allegations of unauthorized dispensing of contact lenses, announced Attorney General Jim Hood today.

Investigators with the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection and Public Integrity Divisions, working with the Mississippi Optometry Board, conducted a two-month undercover investigation which resulted this week in seven arrests involving the owners and operators of S & K Fashion & Beauty Supply (Indianola), Fantasy City (Vicksburg) , Fantasy City #2 (Vicksburg), and Underground (Ridgeland). The defendants are accused of selling contact lenses to the public without licenses. Approximately 870 pairs of cosmetic contact lenses and over $1,000 were seized.

“This practice is particularly dangerous because contact lenses must fit properly,” said Attorney General Hood. “Without proper fitting by a licensed optometrist orophthalmologist, a number of eye issues may arise. Those issues could range from minor eye damage to a total loss of vision. Also, the quality of contact lenses may vary drastically and be unsafe for wearing. This is particularly a problem this time of year when people are wanting to enhance their costumes with a change in eye color.”

Those arrested and charged with the illegal sale of contact lenses without a license are:

Jeong Hyun, 42, Indianola , (Owner, S & K Fashion and Beauty Supply) two counts of facilitation sale, 10/30/2013

Margaret Turner, 57, (Operator, S & K Fashion and Beauty Supply), one sale count, 10/30/2013

Elle Turner, 42, Indianola, (Operator, S & K Fashion and Beauty Supply), one sale count , 10/30/2013

Chong Heard, 65, Vicksburg, (Owner/operator Fantasy City #1, Vicksburg), two sale counts, 10/29/13 Suncha Beech, 61, Vicksburg, (Operator, Fantasy City #2, Vicksburg), two sale counts, 10/29/13

Michael Kang, 49, Ridgeland, (Owner/operator Underground #10, Ridgeland), one sale count, 10/29/13

If convicted each defendant faces up to one year behind bars and $1,000 in fines per count. As with all cases, the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The case is being investigated by the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division and will be prosecuted by Special Assistant Attorney General Patrick Beasley.

There's usually plenty to do on Fridays in Jackson, and if you are like me, you're going to have a tough time deciding exactly which of these awesome events to attend:

• The city of Jackson is celebrating National Night Out on Friday from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m. at City Hall to increase crime prevention awareness. Here's the kicker: Jackson State University's Sonic Boom of the South will lead the "Confidence March Against Crime" from Smith Park to City Hall, beginning at 11 a.m.

• The Jackson premiere of the documentary film "SubSIPPI" from the creative minds of Greg Gandy, Vincent Chaney, & Lauren Cioffi is set for 7:30 p.m. at the Mississippi Museum of Art. Make sure to check out the trailer here. It's free to attend and it's on the lawn outside, so make sure to bring a blanket on which to sit.

• Jackson Prep (4-1) is riding high coming off last week's 19-13 win over Madison-Ridgeland Academy, but they are in for a real test when the country boys from Bassfield, Mississippi's 2-A reigning champs, roll into town for a public-versus-private-school matchup. Prep is a much bigger school with more players on its football team, but they'll hardly be able to keep step with the speed of one of Mississippi's best prep teams. Should be one for the ages.