This is also true for me, as I have spent as much time there as anyone. The museum’s latest exhibit, Pro Hockey in Mississippi, was on display over the weekend. If you’ve been paying attention, most of us are aware that professional hockey has a long history in Mississippi. The Jackson Bandits were based in Jackson. The Surge on the Gulf Coast, Sea Wolves, the Surge in Jackson, and the T-Rex at Tupelo were all part of our history. We also had RiverKings in Southaven. All the teams have gone extinct with the RiverKings the last to go. These teams left behind many hockey fans, but not enough to pay rent at the various coliseums. There is more to the hockey exhibit than that. Did you know that both Mississippi State University and Ole Miss have clubs hockey teams? They do. Did you know that Mississippi has at least one professional born-and-raised hockey player? Marvin C. Powell II was born in Jackson and raised in Madison. He raises eyebrows wherever he goes. Powell comes from Mississippi, where ice is used to chill our ice teas and our bourbon. We don’t much skate on it. Powell is also African American, and pro hockey has very few black players. The NHL has 31 teams with at least 20 players. The league has 32 black players. Powell, 27 years old, has not made it to the NHL. However, he signed a contract with Columbus (Ga.), River Dragons of Federal Prospects Hockey League. He stands 6 feet tall and weighs in at 200 pounds. This makes him look like he could play halfback for the NFL. He has previously played pro hockey for the Danville (Ill.), Dashers and Port Huron Prowlers of the FPHL. He was also instrumental in helping Williston (N.D.) State win the American College Hockey Association national title in 2013. He played college hockey in Canada. Powell’s stock question has always been “And you are from Mississippi?” Then, he is asked “How could that be?” A Canadian teammate from Ottawa said that he thought Mississippi was a river and not a place. And then he asked him “Do you have roads down there?” How does a black child, who was born at Jackson’s Baptist Hospital and educated at Madison Central, turn into a hockey player. When Powell was 6 years old, Mequilla, his twin sister, saw the Olympic trials of figure skating. The twins fell in love with the back flip of one of the skaters and were soon hooked. They said, “We want that.” The ice skating lessons at Lakeland Drive were offered back then, which was twenty years ago. The twins received lessons for their seventh birthday. Marvin Powell started skating, then tried hockey. He was a member of a youth hockey team and competed against other teams in the South, including Atlanta, Birmingham, Biloxi, Nashville, Atlanta, Birmingham, and Birmingham. He was 13 years old when he was invited to play for a Nashville-based advanced youth hockey team. Powell says that his parents made sacrifices to allow him to play at this level. They had to travel a lot and were very expensive. I am forever grateful. They owe me so much. “That’s why I hold myself to a higher standard. Mississippi is my home. “I represent my family, who sacrificed so much, and then, obviously there aren’t that many players who play pro hockey like me.” Powell’s family was a major reason he chose Columbus for this season, which is much more convenient for his family. Powell will travel from Columbus to Jackson on Friday to dedicate the MSHOF’s new hockey exhibit. The dedication is scheduled for 5-7 p.m.