ELLISVILLE – Of the seven alumni recognized during Jones College’s Alumni Recognition Program held during Homecoming celebrations, Judge Stan Sorey of Raleigh was honored with the “Outstanding Alumni of the Year Award.” During the Homecoming Alumni Luncheon, Jones College President, Dr. Jesse Smith explained this year’s recipient carries a heavy burden in his profession as a judge, protecting our rights individually and as a country.
“The Outstanding Alumnus of the Year Award recognizes the accomplishments and the service of our alumni who have exhibited exceptional service and brought honor to the college,” said Smith. “The honorable Judge Stan Sorey is a senior judge for the 13th Circuit Court District of Mississippi among the list of ways he’s served his community, successfully and honorably.”
The 1992 Jones College alumnus serves the counties of Covington, Jasper, Simpson, and Smith counties as the 13th Circuit Court District of Mississippi. After graduating from Mississippi College and the Mississippi College-School of Law, he served six years in the Mississippi National Guard, including active duty in Operation Desert Storm. Prior to his judicial service, Sorey practiced law privately for more than 16 years, serving as Smith County Prosecutor, municipal prosecutor for Mize and Taylorsville, and board attorney for the Smith County Board of Supervisors. Elected to the circuit bench in 2016, Judge Sorey has provided leadership in the legal profession, serving as president of the Smith County Bar Association and as a member of the Mississippi Commission on Judicial Performance and the Mississippi Opioid Advisory Commission. Judge Sorey and his wife, Alison, live in Smith County, and he is the proud father of one son, John Robert.
“I never would have thought that I would have been recognized in this way. It is so humbling to have this honor, and I want to thank all the faculty and staff, and everybody from the President all the way down to the guy that’s cutting the grass because it’s a team effort here. It always has been at Jones. That’s the way they take care of the students and that’s the way they take care of the alumni,” said Sorey. “I saw that when my parents, Robert Sorey and Lou Ellis Hollingsworth were honored. They got their start at Jones, and I was honored to have them lay that foundation for me, and the good reputation for me to follow in their steps here at Jones. It was a great experience for me here too.”
In addition to the Outstanding Alumni of the Year, two alumni, Cade Cockrell of Magee and Shivum Desai of Hattiesburg received the Rising Stars Award during Homecoming celebrations. Dr. Robert S. Billingsley of Laurel/Jackson and Dr. Kaylie B. Wilkerson of Ellisville/Hattiesburg received the Achievement and Excellence Award, while Ellisville native, and current Oxford, Mississippi and Atlanta, Georgia resident, Beverly Young Langford, Ph.D. was bestowed with the Distinguished Service Award and Billy Royce Folkes of Seminary was recognized as the “Legacy Award” recipient.
