The engagement of Mary Hanah Hester to John Clayton Whitehead, both of Tuscaloosa, Ala., is announced today. Vows will be exchanged at 6:30 p.m. Dec. 22, 2012, at Latrobe’s on Royal in New Orleans. A reception will follow.

Miss Hester is the daughter of Dr. and Mrs. Donald William Jackson of Vicksburg and Mr. and Mrs. Charles Herman Hester Jr. of Starkville. She is the granddaughter of Mrs. Gill Joseph Haynes and the late Mr. Haynes of Mendenhall; Mr. and Mrs. Charles Herman Hester Sr. of Amory; Mrs. Ralph Donald Jackson and the late Mr. Jackson of Vicksburg; and the late Mr. and Mrs. Edwin William Shields Sr.

Mr. Whitehead is the son of Mr. and Mrs. James Roy Whitehead of Houston, Texas, and Pamela Joe Dickey of Water Valley. He is the grandson of Mr. and Mrs. James Juan Whitehead of Brentwood, Tenn., and the late Nell Nichols and Eugene Wood.

The bride-elect is a 2003 graduate of Warren Central High School. She attended Mississippi State University and received a Bachelor of Science degree in international business and marketing and a master’s degree in business administration.

Miss Hester is implant coordinator for University Oral and Facial Surgery in Tuscaloosa.

The prospective groom is a 2001 graduate of Water Valley High School. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in chemical engineering from Mississippi State University.

Mr. Whitehead is territory manager for Nalco Chemical based in Chicago.