The Mississippi Hills Heritage Area Alliance Board of Directors approved more than $77,000 in grants for Lafayette County tourism projects.

It’s the highest dollar amount of all 19 counties the Alliance covers.

In total, the MHHAA awarded 34 grants impacting 13 counties within the MHNHA area, totaling $360,000.

The grants were approved during the board’s quarterly meeting on March 19 at the Isom Place in Oxford.

The awards were announced at a public ceremony following the board meeting.

The Lafayette County projects that received matching grants were:

• Visit Oxford has been awarded $20,000 to assist with the development of its Welcome Center Digital Information Kiosk.
• University of Mississippi has been awarded $19,914 for “Reconstructing William Faulkner’s Library: A Digital Collaboration.”
• Friends of Thacker Mountain Radio has been awarded $19,340 to support 2025 programming. 
• Margaret Crosby Art / Yoknapatawpha Arts Council has been awarded $5,000 to produce “The Portrait of Little Joe,” a short documentary film showcasing one of the last living original Mississippi Hill Country bluesmen.
• Yoknapatawpha Arts Council has been awarded $3,500 for Mississippi Creates, a documentary filmmaking initiative dedicated to highlighting how the cultural heritage of the Hills continues to shape contemporary musicians in the region.
• Oxford Juneteenth Festival has been awarded $3,500 for its 160th Anniversary Celebration.
• Greenfield Farm Writers Residency / The Mississippi Lab has been awarded $3,000 to produce its “Greenfield Farm Over Time” Documentary Photography Project.
• Mississippi Presenters Network has been awarded $2,500 for its Arts and Cultural Leadership Convening, which fosters collaboration among arts and cultural leaders.
• Yocona International Folk Festival has been awarded $1,125 for its Heritage SelfGuided Summer Camp, which highlights local heritage sites.

Since the Community Grant Program was initiated in 2016, over $2,500,000 in grants and designated special projects has been awarded in regional communities.

For a complete list of FY25 Community Grant recipients and brief project descriptions, visit https://mississippihills.org/grants or email sonia@mshills.org.