August Swings

August already. This year is really speeding by. School starts next week. Teachers are already at work, and we have a new elementary school principal. The familiar face of Mark Manchester will be gracing the halls of Rector Elementary. Welcome home Mark. We are glad to have you and your precious family back

You may have heard that Jessie Malin is now 90 years old. Well, she has lived 90 years. I still have a hard time using “old” in any sentence with Jessie’s name. Her family threw her a big party on Saturday and everyone she knows showed up. Not really everyone, of course. The whole town isn’t that big. There were, however, at least a hundred people at Shindigg’s to help her celebrate. And Jessie greeted each of them personally looking more like 60 than 90. Good food, good friends, good family and special people. Happy Birthday, Jessie! One of our jewels.

I would love to list the names of those who were at Jessie’s party, but I would for sure leave someone out and this column would be pages long. Suffice it to say that I saw people I haven’t seen in years and met people I had only heard about before. As I said it was good party.

Check out the window display at the Rector Community Museum. It is stunning.

Things are gearing up for Labor Day. There will be a public Labor Day Picnic meeting at City Hall, Thursday, August 8 at 6:30 p.m. Everyone is welcome. There is plenty to do. Also, for everyone else, don’t forget that there is always a need for canned vegetables for the noon meal on Labor Day. These can be purchased at Harp’s and they will deliver them to the Community Center.

Get ready for the Ultimate Oldies Show on the Friday before Labor Day at the Rector Community Center. Tickets are already on sale. You can get them at the Rector Water Department or call (870) 595-3035. The cost is still $15.00 for general admission and $20.00. for reserved seating. It is great show and always has a crowd so get your tickets early.

.

The 5-K run will also be held in Rectory on Saturday August 31. Proceeds for this benefit the RHS Helping Hands Association which provides for children in need.

I am happy to confirm that there is a new dentist in town. Daniel Blackshare has joined Dr. Bryan Blackshare’s practice. Welcome home, Daniel. I am confident that you will be as good as your dad, who is still the only dentist I have ever been to that didn’t cause me great mental anguish. Glad to have you both in Rector.

I also want to remind you that you may donate items of local interest to the museum. They are particularly interested in memorabilia from the Ford Theater right now as they are working on a Ford Theater Room in the back of the Museum.

For the second weekend in a row, the nation mourns the loss of life to mass shootings. Two last weekend and two more this past weekend. This is a national crisis. That it is so prevalent here, is also a national disgrace. This is a problem we all have. It is a problem that will take all of us to solve. Please remember we are all very similar in our needs and our desires. Let’s take care of one another. Love one another. It’s a matterof humanity. We are all one.

That’s it for this week.

Warnings include: Don’t leave children, pets or elderly people in cars during the summer months. It gets hot really fast in a closed car. Also, if you have outside pets, be sure they have shade, shelter and water. Those plastic pre-fab shelters are not cool. They magnify the heat and become an oven. Please take care of your outside animals.

I will be glad to post your Labor Day plans for reunions and functions in the column if you will let me know. I will also put them on the city calendar. Give me a call, send me an email or facebook me.

What else is going on that you would like to see in this column. Give me a heads up and I will share it with everyone else. Email: porchswing@newwavecomm.net . Phone number (870) 595-4997. Check out your Rector, Arkansas website: www.rectorarkansas.com from time to time. I love to be told I need to update it and I take all suggestions to heart. Take a look.

Goodbye for now