# The Gulfside Assembly Story — Press Notes © 2026 Gulfside Assembly and LS3 Studios. All rights reserved. Press kit prepared by LS3 Studios. ## Logline Shut out of the beaches, hotels and meeting halls of the Jim Crow South, Black Methodists built a sanctuary of their own on the Mississippi coast in 1923. The Gulfside Assembly Story follows Bishop Robert E. Jones’s Chautauqua by the sea through a century of faith, learning, storms and rebuilding. ## Short synopsis In 1923, Bishop Robert E. Jones opened Gulfside Assembly in Waveland, Mississippi: a Chautauqua-style retreat where African Americans barred from the segregated coast could worship, study and rest by the sea. The Gulfside Assembly Story, an award-winning documentary from LS3 Studios, traces Gulfside from its founding through fire, Hurricane Camille and Hurricane Katrina to the community still carrying its mission forward. ## Medium synopsis In 1922, Bishop Robert E. Jones visited Lakeside Assembly, a Methodist Chautauqua in Ohio. Black Methodists in his Southern conference had nothing like it. A year later, with $4,000 raised from churches and individuals, he opened Gulfside Assembly on the beach at Waveland, Mississippi. For decades it trained ministers and teachers, ran camps and schools for young people, and served as one of the few places in Mississippi where Black citizens could meet during the civil rights movement. Fire, Hurricane Camille and Hurricane Katrina destroyed it again and again, and each time the community rebuilt. Told in three acts, through Hancock County Historical Society photographs, archival research and first-person interviews, The Gulfside Assembly Story is directed by Leonard Smith III and produced by LS3 Studios with Gulfside Assembly. ## Long synopsis In the Jim Crow South, African Americans were shut out of the beaches, hotels and meeting halls their white neighbors used. In 1922, Bishop Robert E. Jones, longtime editor of the Southwestern Christian Advocate in New Orleans, spoke at Lakeside Assembly, a Methodist Chautauqua in Ohio that offered religious instruction, education, the arts and recreation each summer. He decided Black Methodists in the South should have one too. With $4,000 raised from churches and individuals, Jones bought 300 acres and leased another 316 along the beach at Waveland, Mississippi. The Gulfside Chautauqua and Camp Meeting Ground opened on April 16, 1923. Over the decades that followed, Gulfside trained Black pastors and teachers, ran a school for poor boys, hosted Boy Scout and Camp Fire Girls camps, and became one of only three places in Mississippi, with Tougaloo and Rust colleges, where Black citizens could meet during the civil rights movement. Holding beachfront land in Jim Crow Mississippi took constant negotiation. Holding it against the Gulf took something more. Fire destroyed the old Jackson House in the 1940s. Hurricane Camille struck in 1969. In 2005, Hurricane Katrina took every one of Gulfside’s 13 buildings. Each time, the community came back. The Gulfside Assembly Story tells this history in three acts: the life of Bishop Robert E. Jones, the history of Gulfside Assembly, and the Gulfside Experience in the words of the people who lived it. Built from Hancock County Historical Society photographs, archival research and first-person interviews, the film has won two Silver Telly Awards and a Communicator Award of Excellence, screened at universities, churches and Chautauquas from Mississippi and Louisiana to California, Ohio and Washington, D.C., and in 2025 was accepted by PBS for national broadcast. ## Fact sheet | | | |---|---| | Title | The Gulfside Assembly Story | | Format | Feature documentary, three acts | | Running time | Long form, over 40 minutes | | Genre | History · Religion & spirituality · African American history | | Year | 2024 | | Country / language | United States · English | | Director / Producer | Leonard Smith III | | Writer / Producer | Tod Smith | | Director of Photography | Larry Everage Jr. | | Executive Producers | Leonard Smith III · Cheryl Thompson · Rev. Dr. Elijah Stansell | | Production | LS3 Studios, New Orleans, with Gulfside Assembly | | Archival images | Hancock County Historical Society | | Broadcast | Accepted by PBS in 2025 for national broadcast; air date to be announced | Trailer: https://vimeo.com/928206183/46fd6950f4 Website: https://thegulfsideassemblystory.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thegulfsideassemblystory ## Awards and recognition - 2024 — Silver Telly Award, Documentary: Long Form (Above 40 Minutes), Non-Broadcast (45th Annual Telly Awards) - 2024 — Silver Telly Award, Religion & Spirituality, Non-Broadcast (45th Annual Telly Awards) - 2024 — Award of Excellence, General History & Biography (30th Annual Communicator Awards) - 2025 — Accepted by PBS, National broadcast (Public Broadcasting Service) ## Screening history - Nov 9, 2024 — Private screening, Jazz & Heritage Center, New Orleans, Louisiana - Feb 2, 2025 — 100 Men Hall, Bay Saint Louis, Mississippi - Feb 18, 2025 — Dillard University, New Orleans, Louisiana - Mar 11, 2025 — Anderson United Methodist Church, Jackson, Mississippi - May 2025 — Holman United Methodist Church, Los Angeles, California - Jul 19, 2025 — University of Southern Mississippi, Gulf Park, Long Beach, Mississippi - Aug 2025 — Rivera United Methodist Church, Los Angeles, California - Aug 2025 — Main Street United Methodist Church, Bay Saint Louis, Mississippi - Aug 2025 — Almanett Bistro, Gulfport, Mississippi - Oct 2025 — National Historic Campground organization,   - Mar 2026 — Bethany United Methodist Church, New Orleans, Louisiana - May 2026 — Mt. Zion United Methodist Church, New Orleans, Louisiana - Jul 2026 — Lakeside Chautauqua, Lakeside, Ohio - Jul 2026 — Brooks Shaw Temple & Peoples United Methodist Church, New Orleans, Louisiana - Jul 2026 — St. Paul United Methodist Church, Hattiesburg, Mississippi - Nov 2026 — Emory United Methodist Church, Washington, D.C. ## From the director > “We are deeply honored to receive these awards for The Gulfside Assembly Story. This documentary was a labor of love, and we are thrilled that it has resonated with audiences and judges alike. Our goal was to shine a light on the incredible history of Gulfside Assembly and its contributions to social justice, and these awards affirm the importance of preserving and sharing these stories.” > > — Leonard Smith III, Telly Awards press release, May 28, 2024 > “This award is not just a win for our studio; it’s a recognition of the importance of preserving history through storytelling.” > > — Leonard Smith III, Communicator Awards press release, May 7, 2024 ## Selected audience reactions > “I had no idea of the pivotal role it played in the Civil Rights Movement in the American south.” — Winnie Magee > “Through archival footage and personal accounts, The Gulfside Assembly Story captures the spirit and determination of those who kept Gulfside alive even after the devastation of three hurricanes.” — Dr. Al Kennedy > “This film made me reflect on the importance of recording and sharing our history.” — Harold Ellis Clark ## Filmmakers **Leonard Smith III**, Director, producer and executive producer. Leonard Smith III is the founder and creative director of LS3 Studios in New Orleans, which produces documentaries about historical events and personal stories. The two Silver Tellys for The Gulfside Assembly Story were the studio’s seventh and eighth Telly Awards. **Tod Smith**, Writer and producer. Tod Smith wrote and produced The Gulfside Assembly Story. **Larry Everage Jr.**, Director of photography. Larry Everage Jr. served as director of photography. **Cheryl Thompson**, Executive producer. Cheryl Thompson is the executive director of Gulfside Assembly, where she leads youth leadership, life skills, college tour and senior programs. In 2026 the Hancock County Chamber of Commerce named her one of its Top 10 Outstanding Citizens. **Rev. Dr. Elijah Stansell**, Executive producer. Rev. Dr. Elijah Stansell chairs the Gulfside Assembly board. ## Key facts for writers - Gulfside opened on April 16, 1923, and was incorporated on January 24, 1924. Source: [UMC.org](https://www.umc.org/en/content/gulfside-assembly-waveland-mississippi) - In 1920, Robert E. Jones and Matthew W. Clair Sr. became the first African American bishops elected in the Methodist Episcopal Church. Source: [UMC.org](https://www.umc.org/en/content/ask-the-umc-when-was-the-first-african-american-bishop-elected) - Gulfside trained Black ministers and teachers and ran camps and an industrial school for poor boys. Source: [Mississippi Encyclopedia](https://mississippiencyclopedia.org/entries/gulfside-assembly/) - With Tougaloo and Rust colleges, it was one of three places in Mississippi where Black citizens met during the civil rights movement. Source: [The Christian Post](https://www.christianpost.com/news/gulfside-assembly-shines-as-church-treasure.html) - Hurricane Katrina destroyed all 13 of Gulfside’s buildings in 2005. Source: [UM News](https://www.umnews.org/en/news/we-have-to-rebuild-gulfside-united-methodists-say) - In 2016 the United Methodist Church named Gulfside a Heritage Landmark. Source: [UMC.org](https://www.umc.org/en/content/gulfside-assembly-waveland-mississippi) - Bishop Jones is buried on the Gulfside grounds. Source: [Hancock County Historical Society](https://www.hancockcountyhistoricalsociety.com/reference/cemetery.htm?cemetery=GUL) - For the wider history of Black beach communities and Gulfside, see Andrew W. Kahrl, “A Sanctuary by the Sea,” in The Land Was Ours. Source: [University of North Carolina Press](https://academic.oup.com/north-carolina-scholarship-online/book/35746/chapter-abstract/307042816) ## Boilerplates **About the film.** The Gulfside Assembly Story is an award-winning documentary about Gulfside Assembly, the Methodist Chautauqua that Bishop Robert E. Jones opened in Waveland, Mississippi in 1923 as a sanctuary by the sea for African Americans in the Jim Crow South. Directed by Leonard Smith III and produced by LS3 Studios with Gulfside Assembly, it has won two Silver Telly Awards and a Communicator Award of Excellence and in 2025 was accepted by PBS for national broadcast. TheGulfsideAssemblyStory.com **About LS3 Studios.** LS3 Studios, led by Leonard Smith III, produces documentaries that vividly depict historical narratives with emotional depth and factual accuracy. Known for meticulous research and eloquent storytelling, LS3 Studios’ works foster intergenerational understanding and empathy, connecting viewers to historical experiences and celebrating shared history and humanity. LS3Studios.com **About Gulfside Assembly.** Gulfside Assembly, founded in 1923 in Waveland, Mississippi, is one of only two African American Chautauquas left in the country and the only one owned by the community it serves. Named a United Methodist Heritage Landmark in 2016, it runs youth leadership programs, life skills training, college tours, senior services and community advocacy. GulfsideAssembly.org ## Media contact Leonard Smith III, LS3 Studios — info@ls3studios.com · 504-434-0513 Gulfside Assembly — gulfsideassociation@gmail.com · (228) 206-1750 · 301 Herlihy St., Waveland, MS 39576 --- © 2026 Gulfside Assembly and LS3 Studios. All rights reserved. Press kit prepared by LS3 Studios.