With two decades of experience, Lois Russell has been named the new manager of the Triangle Cultural Center.
With her past accomplishments as an executive director and events coordinator within the non-profit sector, Russell is excited to be returning to a field of her passion.
“I’ve worked in the not-for-profit and corporate world for 20 years,” Russell said. “I’m thrilled to be back where I started…at the Triangle Cultural Center and back to my first love, the arts. Servicing the South Delta with a collaboration of arts and history is Yazoo City’s Triangle Cultural Center.”
Russell has served as executive director for the Yazoo Arts Council as well as an associate director and director of special events for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. She was also the executive director for Preserve Sight Mississippi, where she facilitated successful management and operation.
Russell has also owned and operated successful businesses as a chef, interior director and real estate investor. She has served on numerous boards, including the Yazoo County Chamber of Commerce, Art Association, Cancer Society, Heart Association and is a charter member and founder of Playhouse ’75 Little Theatre Group.
Russell recently retired as a docent with the Mississippi Governor’s Mansion. She is a member of First United Methodist Church and has a son, a daughter and three grandchildren.
The Board of Mayor and Aldermen hired Russell a few weeks ago, with her contract and first day beginning this week.
Bettye Crout, chairman of the Triangle Cultural Center Advisory Board, said the center board is looking forward to working with Russell in the hopes of creating various programs that will appeal to people within the community.
“Lois is the perfect person for this job,” Crout said, “She meets people well and gets along with all types of people. She is also very dedicated to preserving the building.”
The Triangle provides the community with a multi-purpose facility that is housed within a historic Georgian-style building. It has become a landmark with Yazoo’s history, having first opened its doors in 1904 as a public school.
The city of Yazoo City, recognizing the business and cultural needs of its citizens, is a gentle steward of this historic facility by making use of its past.
“The Triangle can be the centerpiece of Yazoo cultural activities,” Crout added. “It has a long history of being the central spot for gatherings of people. Back in the early days, there were band concerts on the Triangle grounds. Town meetings were held there. We hope it will be a welcoming place for tourists, especially with the museum, art studio and ballet studio there.”
Russell is excited to embrace the Triangle’s rich history, combined with modern initiatives to ensure the facility is put to good use.
Improvements to the center are on Russell’s agenda. Through a continuous restoration program, she hopes to provide a glimpse into the past with the center’s museum while promoting the present by providing a venue for receptions, parties and other events.
Russell would also like to collaborate with other community groups to promote long-term social and economic improvements in the community. Also, through art education, she would like to encourage local artists to display their work within the center.
“The major goal of the Triangle is to educate, inspire and entertain its regional community in a historical environment,” Russell said.
