WESTSIDE HOMETOWN EVENTS

— Gentry Awards Banquet

Gentry’s annual awards night will be held Thursday, Feb. 24, at the Wooden Spoon Restaurant. The event is sponsored annually by the Gentry Chamber of Commerce. Dinner will be served at 6 p.m., with the program starting at 7 p.m. Glenn Smith, a local veteran, will be the featured speaker. Tickets are $20 and can be obtained by contacting Bev Saunders at 736-2358. Because seating is limited, reservations are sold on a first-come firstserved basis. Awards to be presented will be Lifetime Achievement Awards, Outstanding Citizen of the Year, Outstanding Business Person Award, Rookie of the Year, Silver Citizen Award and Outstanding Community Organization. The public is invited to participate.

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Prom, Pageant Dresses Offered

Gravette Project Prom is sponsoring a prom and pageant dress sale on Saturday, March 5, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Gravette High School Commons. A variety of sizes and styles will be available. Dresses will be clean and in good condition. Cash or credit cards will be accepted and 10 percent of each sale goes to this year’s project prom. For more information about the sale, contact Jennifer Meeker at 381-1889 or Peggy Galyean at 640-0536.

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Tired Iron Workdays

Tired Iron of the Ozarks will hold work days on Friday and Saturday at 13344 Taylor Orchard Road. The agenda includes work on the log cabin, kitchen maintenance, repairing a water leak and more. Preparations are for the April 15-17 Spring Crank-up Show are beginning. Those who can work one or both days are invited to join in.

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Decatur Youth Sports

Decatur Youth Sports is accepting sign-ups for baseball, softball and Tball until Feb. 28. There will be a $25 fee to participate. For more information, contact Amy Brooks at 752-3281 or abrooks@ decaturstatebank.com.

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Jolly Good Times Club

The monthly meeting of the Jolly Good Times Club will be held Wednesday, Feb. 23, at the Billy V. Hall Senior Activity Center. Members will gather inthe computer room at 10:15 a.m. The menu will feature fried chicken from Eda, veggies by Mary, salad by Susan and dessert by Betty. Betty Howard will give the program. Visitors and new members are welcome.

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Red Cross Blood Drive

Gravette High School Key Club will sponsor a Red Cross blood drive Wednesday, March 2, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The Red Cross donor coach will be at 325 Lion Drive to receive “the gift of life” from donors. All donors will receive a recognition T-shirt. If the drive meets the 39 donor quota, a $500 scholarship will be awarded.

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Faith Bible Church Video Sessions

Faith Bible Church of Gravette is presenting 13 video sessions of The Truth Project, a production of Focus on the Family. The sessions cover broad topics such as truth, philosophy and ethics, anthropology, theology, science, history and community involvement, and are moderated by Del Tackett. Sessions are scheduled each Sunday evening, with the exception of the last Sunday of each month. The public is invited. Faith Bible Church is located on Highway 59, one mile south of Gravette. For information, call 816-509-2886.

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Men's Fellowship Gathering

First Baptist Church of Gentry has a monthly Men's Fellowship Gathering on the third Saturday of each month at 6 p.m. Each man is asked to bring a main dish or a side for dinner. All men are encouraged to come for the food and fellowship. Guests are welcome. For more information, contact Madden Waits, 736-5009.

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Care and Share Closings

Care and Share in Gravette announced that when Gravette Public Schools are closed due to weather conditions, the Care and Share store will also be closed. Regular hours for Care and Share are 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday of each week.

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Knitting and Crocheting Group

Busy Hands Knitting and Crochet Group will hold meetings in Decatur the second and fourth Thursday of each month, starting on Feb. 25. Men and women of all ages are invited - childrenunder 13 need to be accompanied by an adult. The group is emphasizing making items for charities. Free lessons are available. For more information, call Sheri at 752-8555.

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Horses for Healing

Horses for Healing is offering an 8-week course on equine education to home-schooled children, ages 8 to 18. Classes began on Monday, Feb. 21, and will meet each Monday from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. The course satisfies the home school curriculum animal science and physical education requirements and covers riding lessons, stable management, horsemanship, animal science, social skills and equine care. The cost is $50 per week for each child. All proceeds from the program will benefit the Horses for Healing Equine-Assisted Program for Northwest Arkansas children with special needs. Horses for Healing is located at 14673 Daniels Road in rural Bentonville (in the Highfill area). For more information, contact Karen at 795-0570 or karen @ horsesforhealingnwa .org.

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Gentry Area Riparian Project Planned

The Illinois River Watershed Partnership will be sponsoring tree planting from 9 a.m. until noon on Saturday, March 12, to plant 5,000 seedlings along creeks and 1,000 seedling for the SWEPCO tree farm. For more information, call 238-4671 or e-mail [email protected].

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Chair Exercise Program

The Gentry Senior Activity Center started a free chair exercise program called PEPPI (Peer Exercise Program Promotes Independence) at 1 p.m. on Tuesdays and at 10 a.m. Thursdays. The program consists of stretching, strengthening and balance. It is designed to help prevent falls, to gain strength and flexibility in the limbs and to gain independence. The class is open to anyone, age 60 or above, and his or her spouse (regardless of age). For more information, call 736-0378.

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Computers Needed

The Gentry Lions Club is collecting and refurbishing older computers and laptops and giving them to students in need of a computer. Older computers and laptops - up to about 10 years old - are being accepted. Hard drives are reformatted and a lighter Linux-based operating system and programs are installed. For more information or to donate a used computer to the Lions Club, contact Randy Moll at 233-0081.

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Gentry Lions Club Meetings

The Gentry Lions Club meets from 6:30 until 7:30 p.m. on the second and fourth Thursdays of each month. The club is now meeting in the Gentry Public Library’s community room. Visitors are always welcome.

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VFW Meetings

Decatur VFW Post 9834 meets on the first Tuesday of each month - at 7 p.m. New members and guests are welcome. The facility is three miles east of Decatur on Arkansas Highway 102, right on Tilly’s Hill Road, and the first building on the right.

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Gentry Senior Activity Center

Gentry Senior Activity Center, at 121 East Main Street (just east of the Gentry Public Library) is open from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Meals and rides to the center and activities are available Monday through Friday by calling Jackie Bader, the center’s manager, at 736-0378. Van routes are Monday, Wednesday and Thursday - Gentry, Highfill and Springtown; and Tuesday and Friday - Gentry and Decatur.

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Gravette Senior Activity Center

The Billy V. Hall Senior Activity Center, at 1870 Limekiln Road, is open from 8 a.m. until 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. The Center is one of seven operated by the Office of Human Concern, in partnership with the Area Agency on Aging of NW Arkansas and United Way of NW Arkansas. Many activities are scheduled and lunch is served every weekday. For information on hot home-delivered meals for Gravette, Decatur and Sulphur Springs, frozen home-delivered meals for Maysville homebound seniors or other services the center offers, call Mary Kay Kelley, director, at 787-5950.

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Singing Services

Monthly singing services at Falling Springs Church are held at 7 p.m., the first Friday of each month. The church is located northwest of Gentry and west ofDecatur on Falling Springs Road.

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Gentry Fire Dues

Fire dues are due again for those living within the Gentry Fire District but outside the Gentry city limits. They can be paid at city hall.

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Address Markers

Gentry Fire Department has reflective address markers available to help responders locate a home or apartment quickly in the event of an emergency. The reflective address markers are only $10 and are made to last for years. For more information, call 228-0694. The signs are also available from the Highfill Volunteer Fire Department. Those in the Highfill Fire District may obtain the signs for $10 by calling 736-5711 or stopping at the Highfill City Hall.

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Decatur AG Van Service

Van service is available to children and adults who need transportation to Sunday morning and evening church services and Wednesday evening services at the Assembly of God Church in Decatur. For more information, contact Stacy Brooks at 790-7171.

Community, Pages 3 on 02/23/2011