Hometown Events

Decatur FFA Fundraiser

The Decatur FFA will be selling Blue & Gold Sausage for the next three weeks as a fundraiser for the FFA and the trap shooting team. To purchase sausage, contact a Decatur FFA student or call the high school office at 752-3983.

Decatur PTO Meeting

The Decatur Parent Teacher Organization will be holding its next meeting at 6 p.m., Jan. 22, in the Decatur Northside Elementary School Library.

GYO Baseball/Softball

signups

Gentry Youth Organization 2013 baseball and softball signups are ongoing. Forms are available at all Gentry school campuses or by contacting Kevin Hodges at 233-9001. The form submission cutoff date is Feb. 8, and the final day for signups will be at the Main Street concession stand on Feb. 9, from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. Cost for softball signups, ages 5-16, or boys’ T-ball and baseball, ages 5 through 12, is $45.

Sanctity of Life Sunday

Gentry Church of God (Holiness) will be holding a Sanctity of Human Life Sunday event at 11 a.m. on Jan. 20. This service is set aside to focus on the intrinsic value of human life, including the life of unborn children. The church is located just north of the Gentry police station, at 104 N. Collins. For more information, please contact Pastor Dan at 626-831-2942.

Retooled and Refueled

A “Retooled and Refueled” essential Christian life skills seminar is being planned at the Gravette Church of Christ, with a date and times yet to be announced. The seminar will focus on living debt free and worry free. Interested persons are urged to call 787-6459 by Jan. 23.

Souper Bowl of Caring

Sunday, Feb. 3, is not only Super Bowl Sunday, it is “The Souper Bowl of Caring” at First Christian Church in Gravette. The church is collecting cans of soup and canned goods for the “Feed My Sheep” Food Pantry to try to help “tackle hunger” and is also collecting monetary donations to go to the food pantry. Donations of soup and canned goods are now being accepted. The public is invited to assist members of First Christian Church as they join other churches around the country in making a difference.

Annual Awards Banquet

Gentry Chamber of Commerce annual awards banquet is Thursday, Feb. 28, with dinner at 6 p.m. and the program at 7:15 p.m. Please contact Chamber director Bev Saunders to reserve tickets at $20 per seat, 736-2358 or [email protected]. Nominations for awards may be sent to the Gentry Chamber of Commerce at P.O. Box 642, Gentry, AR 72734, or by email to info@gentrychamber. com, no later than Feb. 3. Nominations are being accepted for 2012 Citizen(s) of the Year, Business Person(s) of the Year, Outstanding Volunteer of the Year, Outstanding Organization, Silver Award (More than 25 year of community service). Other awards will be considered if nominees don't fit one of these categories. Simply write down the person’s name and contact information and a brief summary of why they are being nominated.

DHS Colors Day

Decatur High School will celebrate basketball colors day on Jan. 25. Festivities will begin during spirit week, Jan. 22-25. A pep rally will be held at 1 p.m., Jan. 25. Coronation will be held 5:30 p.m., in the Lloyd Peterson Gym, followed by the senior boys and girls games against Hackett and the homecoming dance. For more details, the school calendar can be viewed online at http://decatur. k12.ar.us.

Gravette Baseball/

Softball signups

January is the month to sign up for spring baseball and softball in Gravette. Registration for the programs is open through the end of January for ball players, ages 4 to 18, at www.leaguelineup. com/gravette. In-person registration sites will be open at the Gravette Middle School gym from 9 to 5 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 26, and at the Arvest Bank Conference Room from 6 to 7 p.m., Thursday, Jan. 31. Fees are: Boys 4-12, $35; Boys 13-15, $75; Boys 16-18, $100; Girls 4-12, $35; and Girls 13-16, $50. Family discounts and scholarships are available. Players not signed up by Jan. 31 will pay a $10 late fee and cannot be guaranteed a spot on a team. Any players interested in trying out for Gravette League Travel Teams should contact the following board members by Jan. 15: 7-year-old Baseball, Tim Betz, 270-9942; 8-year-old Baseball, Tony Kildow, 787-0250; 11-12-year-old Baseball, Kevin Cole, 871-1365; 6U-8U Softball, Bill Romine, 640-4588; 10U Softball, Jerel Ellis, 531-3416; and 12U Softball, Tony Kildow, 787-0250. Those playing on the travel teams will also play on their league teams. Tryouts will be held in January, so contacting coaches as soon as possible is advised. Veteran coaches and new volunteers are needed. The only requirements are to love working with kids and knowledge of baseball or softball. Application forms are online at www.leaguelineup. com/gravette or may be obtained by calling Tony Kildow for more information, 787-0250. The League will be accepting applications for umpire positions until Jan. 31. Experienced umpires and people wanting to get started are encouraged to apply. Applicants may sign up at www.leaguelineup.com/gravette.

WCTU to meet

Northwest Arkansas Woman’s Christian Temperance Union will meet at 7 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 18, at 10896 Northfork Drive, just off Mount Olive Drive between Decatur and Gravette. This is a meeting of the local chapter of the WCTU, a worldwide organization that was organized by women who were concerned about the destructive power of alcohol and the problems it was causing their families and society. The purpose of the meeting is to educate about the harm that alcohol causes and to work against government policy that encourages alcohol and drug use. For more information, please contact Sherry Wood at 479-228-1842.

Jolly Good Times Club

The monthly meeting of the Jolly Good Times Club will be held Wednesday, Jan. 23, at the Billy V. Hall Senior Activity Center. Members will gather at 10:15 in the sitting room. Potluck lunch will feature a meat dish by Betty, veggies or salad by Mary, rolls from Susan and dessert from Emily. Susan Holland will give the program. Visitors and new members are always welcome.

Community Food Bank

Decatur Methodist Church offers a community food bank from 5 to 7 p.m. on the first and third Thursdays of each month, located at 230 Third Street. The food pantry requires identification and proof that mail is received at an address in the 72722 zip code, such as a utility bill, rent deposit or bank statement. The USDA Commodity Program is also available. It is income based, therefore proof of income is required. Those receiving food stamps are automatically qualified with an acceptance letter.

Decatur Food Pantry

United Christian Charities has opened a food pantry in downtown Decatur for anyone needing food in the northwest Arkansas area. The hours of operation are Mondays and Wednesdays from 9 a.m. to 12 noon. The point of contact is Tina Holt, 435-5699.

Feed My Sheep Hours

The Feed My Sheep food pantry in Gravette is open each Thursday from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.

Maysville Food Pantry

Maysville Missionary Baptist Church opens its food pantry, Our Healing Hearts, every fourth Sunday from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. for those in need.

Praise and Worship

Maysville Missionary Baptist Church holds a praise and worship service at 6 p.m. every third Sunday night, with refreshments following.

Care and Share Vouchers

Care and Share vouchers are only issued on Tuesdays and Fridays from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m., at the Care and Share Specialty Shop, 103 Huntington Street S.E., off Hwy. 59 South in Gravette. In an emergency, appointments may be made. Call 344-6114.

Tired Iron of the Ozarks

Regular meetings of the Tired Iron of the Ozarks are held at 7 p.m. on the third Tuesday of each month at the Tired Iron clubhouse located at the club’s show grounds on Taylor Orchard Road southwest of Gentry. The next meeting will be on Tuesday, Jan 15.

Gravette American Legion

Gravette American Legion Post 20 meets the third Tuesday of each month at 7 p.m. at the Civic Center. All veterans are encouraged to attend. The next meeting is Jan. 15.

Gentry Lions Club

Gentry Lions Club meets at 6:30 p.m. the second and fourth Thursdays of each month in the McKee Community Room at the Gentry Public Library. Guests are welcome.

Gravette Kiwanis

The Gravette Kiwanis Club holds breakfast meetings at 7 a.m. each Friday at the cafeteria in Ozarks Community Hospital. Guests are welcome.

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 of Decatur on Falling Springs Road.

Men's Fellowship

First Baptist Church of Gentry has a monthly men's fellowship gathering at 8 a.m. on the third Saturday of each month. All men are welcome to come for food and fellowship. Guests are welcome. For more information, contact Madden Waits at 736-5009.

VFW Meetings

Decatur VFW Post 9834 meets at 7 p.m. on the first Tuesday of each month. 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.

Genealogical Society

The Northwest Arkansas Genealogical Society will meet at 6 p.m. Monday, Jan. 28, in the Bentonville Public Library, 405 South Main. Dorothy Miller from the Benton County Cemetery Preservation Group will tell how they oversee the morethan-300 cemeteries in the county. They organize clean-up projects and try to keep up with property sales that cemeteries are on in order to keep them from being destroyed.