Welcome
ASSP Mississippi Chapter CHRISTMAS Meeting
Time: DECEMBER 8, 2023 | 12:00 – 1:00 PM
Location: River Hills Club (Ridgewood Rd & Lakeland Dr)
3600 Ridgewood Road, Jackson, MS 39211 – 601-987-4450
$25 Meeting Fee (incl. Buffet) Check Payable To: ASSP **First time guests free**
TOPIC: CHRISTMAS LUNCHEON

Join us for a casual luncheon to celebrate the holiday season. There will be no formal speaker or presentation. Just a time of fellowship and good food. (OK, Maybe a few gifts :’o) Our usual private room is not avialable, so River Hills Club has set up a group table in the main dining hall. There will be no ZOOM option so please come out and celebrate the season.
Thank you Sonny Blackwell for a Great October 13th Meeting Presentation
TOPIC: Safety & Security Lighting for Businesses.
We had an excellent crowd this month and the topic was very ILLUMINATING! (couldn’t resist)
George (Sonny) Blackwell, MS, ARM, ALCM, CTP (Certified Training
Professional), ROIP (Return on Investment Professional)
Job Title: Risk Improvement Advisor, Alchemist, Sasquatch hunter
Company/Organization or Professional Bio:
Sonny is currently on sabbatical after 36 years of insurance-related risk improvement
roles. So far this year he has completed 344 miles on the Appalachian Trail.
His competency domains include Highly Protected Property and Fire Protection, general
liability, workers compensation and law enforcement liability in various industries
including manufacturing, healthcare, commercial real estate, gaming & hospitality, and
public entity. He developed and led the Travelers public entity loss control team and
then joined Cadence Insurance. Sonny was a member of the Security Lighting
Committee that last updated the ANSI Standard for Security Lighting that will be the
basis of today’s session.
Sonny leverages data-driven analytics and visualizations, various survey methods, and
small group facilitation to define specific issues and select high ROI (Return on
Investment) opportunities.
Presentation/Topic: Fundamental security lighting elements:
Safety and security often overlap. Adequate lighting significantly affects workplace
violence incidents that may involve employees and invitees. Lighting also contributes to
walking/tripping hazards that can affect employees and customers at a facility.
Some safety professionals may not realize that there is an ANSI standard for lighting
levels in places where security is an issue. This session will introduce the IES
(Illuminating Engineering Society of North America) G-1-16 which is the current
standard used by lighting designers and is often cited in negligent security litigation.
We will also demonstrate instrumentation for light level measurement and assessment
documentation.
Location: River Hills Club (Ridgewood Rd & Lakeland Dr)
3600 Ridgewood Road, Jackson, MS 39211 – 601-987-4450
Meeting Fee: $25 Cash or check made payable to ASSP which includes full buffet and beverage. First time attendees are free!
September Meeting Summary
Thanks to Mandy McIntyre:
Mandy provided some great insight for the growing problem of depression and suicide in the workforce. We learned about the 988 crisis hotline as a great tool that was recently implemented to replace the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. Among other services, Mandy offers a great Mental Health 1st Aider Certification Course. To learn more go to www.levelup-consultants.com. She will be posting course dates for individuals and groups to join a class or you can coordinate a private group training session.
Other Developments:
- We welcome Cameron Andrews from Ross & Yerger Insurance to the chapter committee. Cameron will be acting as MEMBERSHIP AND RECRUITMENT COORDINATOR. Cameron will spearhead the chapter’s efforts to reach the younger and newer generation of safety professionals. Please reach out to us with any prospective safety pros who are not plugged into ASSP. ms.assp.org or email at secretary@ms.assp.org
- Feedback for the River Hills Club venue has been very positive. The room can comfortably accomodate 20 attendees and we also have the Zoom option for each meeting. The buffett is excellent so make every effort to attend in person.
- We already have an outside speaker slated for the October meeting so be on the look out for that meeting announcement next month. PLEASE send us any suggestions on topics or speakers that you feel would be beneficial to our chapter members and we will make every effort to arrange it. ms.assp.org or email at secretary@ms.assp.org