Even among the sea of comic books, trading cards, and oversized figurines, you couldn’t miss Jason Mapp milling about during this year’s River City Toy Fest at the Vicksburg Convention Center (VCC).

Mapp, sporting a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles t-shirt and with a plastic Star Wars character perched on his shoulder, was one of many vendors in town Saturday, Feb. 24, for the annual convention. A Louisiana resident and owner of Jason Mapp’s Mapp of the Lost Treasures, he said Vicks- burg is just one of his yearly stops – along with other members of his group, Mom’s Trash Can – adding that visiting the River City is always a good time.

Mapp and his cohort of collectors and vendors selling comics, sports cards, and other memorabilia are just one example of the varied interests the VCC brings to Vicksburg each year. Through only two months in 2024, the VCC has already played host to a brunch held to help empower women; the annual Jester’s Ball; a Martin Luther King Jr. Day ceremony; and a statewide gathering of DECA from high school across Mississippi, to name just a few.

Upcoming VCC events scheduled for March include: Mississippi Marshall Deluxe, as part of the Sunset Concert series, Friday, March 22. The series continues in April with The B.A.R. Band featuring Andrew “6 String” Sullivan Friday, April 5, and Compozitionz & The Chill Friday, April 19.

For a complete list of upcoming events, visit vicksburgconventioncenter.com.