Shanna Daniels, 2021 Woman of the Year, caught lighting in a bottle with this photo taken Sunday night during the city fireworks show.
The 51st season of the Summer Drama Workshop began rehearsals this week. The event is sponsored by the Friona Fine Arts Council and allows kids to develop and enhance their acting skills. Performance times for the three shows were also announced. All shows will take place in the Friona Junior High Auditorium.
The Elementary Show will start at 6:00 p.m. on Saturday, July 17th. The cast of twenty-four under the direction of Allison Johnston will perform "A Pirate's Life for Me" so get your peg leg tappin' for this swashbuckling comedy with waves of laughter. It's the most comical musical pirate adventure to hit the high seas!
The Junior High Show will start at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, July 16th. Joy Morton will direct a cast of twelve in "Pegora the Witch" which is a play that is sheer frou-frou, intentionally frivolous, and deliciously original. Pegora, an apprentice witch, has a flaw in her nature-she cannot help doing good. Can she keep her broom or will it spell curtains for her future?
Friona High School drama teacher Shawn Oakley Farrar will direct eleven cast members in "30 Reasons Not to Be in a Play" which will start following a short intermission after the Junior High Show. Stage kisses, pinkeye, inciting World War 3 - are only a few of the many things that can go wrong during the production of a play. In a series of hilarious examples, this play proves that drama can be a very dangerous thing and it must be avoided at all costs.
Chamber of Commerce members are shown finalizing details for the 15th Annual Cheeseburger Festival & Cook-Off to be held Saturday, July 17th at Reeve Lake in Friona, the Cheeseburger Capital of Texas. A guide to the festival will be published in next week's Friona Star. Call 250-3491 if you would like to enter a cooking team or to reserve a vendor spot.
The Prairie Acres Resident of the Month of July is Angelina McWilliams. The Employee of the Month is Brandon Pope. Brandon works in the dietary department and has been at Prairie Acres since January 2014. Congratulations to both Angelina and Brandon!
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Prairie Acres Administrator Jeff Procter says that they have been able to purchase new mattresses, beds, and other needed furniture. Activities have been growing and more visitations have been allowed. Appointments are still required for visitations so call ahead. Jeff is also working on getting the churches in the area involved with worship for the residents.
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Heritage Estates Housing Manager Cindy Hooley says that the building will be remodeled this month. The flooring in the building will be replaced, there will be minor framing improvements, and 12 showers will be removed and replaced. Since there will be contractors in the building, visitation may be affected, but the main goal is to keep visitation hours as normal as possible. If you want to see a resident, you should call ahead so that arrangements can be made.
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Congratulations to Milk House Market for their 7th year anniversary!
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The Friona Public Library and Texas AgriLife Extension have collaborated for the Books & Bites program to teach children entering 2nd-5th about food and nutrition through reading. The program will occur every Thursday in July from 9:30 am to 10:15 am at the Friona Library. For questions or more information, contact Wendy at 806-251-5120.
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Gone but never forgotten- the demolition at the Primary School is almost finished. The building that held so many memories over the years will be gone but the memory will live on.
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Two-a-Days is set to start on Monday, August 2nd. Volleyball practice will be from 8:00 am to 12:00 pm.
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The Cheeseburger Festival is right around the corner. Head out to Reeve Lake on July 17 to enjoy the food, vendors, music, and more. Admission is free but a wristband will cost $10 and is good for a burger (whole or 4 quarter pieces), chips, and a frisbee. Burgers will be served from 11:30 am to 2:30 pm.
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A special thanks to the Friona Chamber of Commerce and the Friona Fire Department for sponsoring the fireworks display at Reeve Lake on July 4th. Thank you to all the people who donated fireworks for the show, it was one to remember!
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Demolition at the old Primary School building is under wraps. If things go as expected, the demolition will finish sometime this week.
The new Primary School is under construction. The rain has led to a slow installation of equipment and the new playground but things are back on track.
Friona City Manager Lee Davila was a guest speaker at CivicPRIDE's 1st Annual Virtual Inclusion Summit on Wednesday, June 30th. The four-hour, virtual event included a combination of education and storytelling over three dynamic sessions hosted by local government practitioners from around the United States. CivicPRIDE's mission is to advance inclusive local government by empowering LGBTQIA+ leadership.
Davila was individually selected and invited to speak at one of the summit's storytelling events to provide his unique perspective as a city manager of a small community in the southern United States and because of his work as the Region 1 Texas City Manager Association's Allies Task Force. Davila said, "It was an honor to be part of this inaugural event. It was a pleasure to share my story with city managers from across the country."
Davila was accompanied by Austin City Manager Spencer Cronk; Arlington Deputy City Manager Jennifer Wichmann; Boulder, Colorado Assistant City Manager Pam Davis; and many others.