Page 62 - South Mississippi Living - September, 2026

Brenda Blount and Nancy Wilson
story by Lynn Lofton photos courtesy of John Reyes
If you’re thinking civility and good manners are lacking in
today’s world, you are not alone. Two Coast women feel the
same way and have charted a course to offer assistance. Nancy
Wilson of Ocean Springs and Brenda Blount of Gulfport
premiered their podcast, Sweet Tea & Civility, six months ago.
The duo have worked together on and off offering etiquette
classes since 2014.
Their mantra is: civility and etiquette are not old-fashioned,
but essential. “We are passionate about it,” Wilson says. “We
were excited about it at the same time and moving to a podcast
62 | September 2026 but there were decisions to be made, such as who would be our
tech people.”
The partners worked through three teams before settling on the
group at the Mary C. O’Keefe Museum in Ocean Springs where
a room was built for podcasting. “Everything came together
with Take Action Video Productions with John Reyes and Reith
Gibson,” Blount explained. “As for the name, we knew it should
be something Southern. Some suggestions were Southern Touch
and You’ve Been Hooked. A big brainstorming session came up
with Sweet Tea & Civility, which we think is perfect. We knew
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