Pearl River County community events and landmarks have been photographed, digitized and now put into print in the first volume of a Pearl River County coloring and puzzle book.
It is illustrated by Abby Chatelain and Cody Livengood and edited by their mother, Valerie Livengood. The Pearl River County family set out to capture some of the forgotten and treasured aspects of the community two years ago.
Valerie Livengood said the project began as an activity for her family reunion. When she came across a family coloring book, she thought creating one about the county would be a good way to address the ongoing complaint that there is nothing to do in the county.
It features landmarks like the Crosby Arboretum and the Teddy Bear Museum. Valerie Livengood said some of the places featured in the book are often “nationally famous, but locally secret.”
Each page of the more than 70-page volume features a different place or event in the county, with some notable figures like Eliza Jane Poitevent Holbrook Nicholson, the Picayune Street Fair, the Pearl River County courthouse and everything in between.
Abby Chatelain said they first began with hand drawings, with their first designs of places like the Country Girls Creamery in Poplarville.
Now, after some trial and error, she said they’ve perfected the process of transforming a photograph into a digital 2-D drawing.
By polling members of the community, Valerie Livengood said they’ve been able to discover places they had never visited in their 20 years of living in the area.
“It was like a stay-cation here at home,” she said.
With so many places, groups and activities featured, Valerie Livengood said some of the pages might surprise even the oldest residents of the county.
After compiling a number of drawings for the first volume, the family plans are in motion to continue working on volume 2, which will feature more community events and landmarks.
With so much experience under their belt, Cody Livengood said they are now less shy about asking people to pose for photographs and have improved their photography skills.
They’ve also been tracking down those who posed for the first volume and thanking them with a free copy, Valerie Livengood said.
The coloring books can be found for sale at several county businesses including the Crosby Memorial Library, Melinda’s Fine Gifts, the Poplarville Farmers Market, Barzé Antiques, the Crosby Arboretum and Kelly’s Poboys.
They can also be purchased through Amazon.com.
Information can also be found on the group’s Facebook page, Hometown Treasure Creations.