People from Mississippi are friendly. I saw this in action last week when I was on Capitol Hill with our board chair meeting with our members of Congress. Every year, we travel to Washington, D.C. to make the case for the importance of the humanities and urge our elected officials to support funding for the National Endowment for the Humanities. The night before, leaders from most of the state humanities councils meet to go over messaging and strategy. A few directors did "role plays" to model what to say during the meetings with members of Congress and their staffs. One group included my colleagues from New York and Washington state, who moved quickly through a terse meeting scenario in which the biggest challenge was to keep the attention of the fictional congresswoman. Then, my colleagues from Alabama and Arkansas got a turn to role play, and their performance took twice as long as much of the time was spent talking about people and places they had in common back home.

It was a lot like the meetings we have on Capitol Hill with our members of Congress. We usually have many personal connections and friends in common with the members and staffers we meet. And while I've heard nightmare stories from colleagues from other states about occasional hostile reactions from some members of Congress, we've always been very well received on the Hill.

While we don't expect our fiscally conservative members to always support increases in federal humanities funding, we bond over the importance of our state's history and cultural heritage. I explain how the humanities are very much relevant to Mississippi and can help improve the quality of life in our state. In short, I stress how our work benefits the people they represent.

In the broad scheme of the federal budget, we and the NEH are not that important. NEH received $147 million last year, while the Mississippi Humanities Council received about $670,000 - both are tiny fractions of a national budget that is now in the thirteen figures. Many of the other people sitting in the waiting rooms with us in these congressional offices were lobbying for programs that receive far more in federal funding. And yet, most of our members make a special effort to meet with us in person. Many other state council directors tend to meet only with staffers, if they are lucky.

Perhaps the reason for this distinction is that we're just polite down here. One congressional office had an intern personally escort us through the underground tunnels reserved for staff so we could make our next appointment on time. But also, I think our congressional delegation appreciates the work we do and the impact we have on their districts. We do a lot with the small amount of federal funds we receive.

During our meetings, we stressed our grants program, highlighting such projects as "Mississippi Prison Writes," oral histories about the Marks mule train, the Mississippi History Now web resource for teachers and students, and the extraordinary "From Page to Stage" program at the Lynn Meadows Discovery Center. We mentioned the upcoming tour of the Smithsonian's "Hometown Teams" exhibit, which will visit six different communities (and all four congressional districts) this year. We discussed the impact of our family reading programs, the great success of the "Telling Project" veterans initiative, and our key role in major events like the Mississippi Book Festival and the Mississippi Jubilee symposium.

In addition, we mentioned our ongoing effort to diversify our funding sources through corporate gifts, foundation grants, and individual donations. I encourage you to help us in this effort by donating.

Beyond just being friendly, people from Mississippi feel a strong connection with each other, especially when they are outside the Magnolia state. With all of our difficult history and contemporary challenges, we love our home. The Mississippi Humanities Council is proud to serve Mississippi, and we are so grateful for your support and partnership.