Pottsboro Library Trivia Night Fun’Raiser

BJ Kirkpatrick Lake Texoma news
Pottsboro Library Trivia Night Fun’Raiser

The Friends of the Pottsboro Area Library, a 501(c)3 organization, will hold a fun-raiser Trivia Night on Friday, February 10, 2017 from 6-9 p.m. at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Pottsboro.

Tickets are $25 each or $200 for a table of 8 and includes a German-style meal; bring your own beer or wine.  Participants are encouraged create a theme and costumes for their group, table decorations are optional.  Trivia questions are presented to the entire group, with a time limit and points for the correct answer(s).

The winning team will enjoy bragging rights and the honor of displaying the trophy until next year’s event.

Advance reservations and payment are requested by January 31, 2017.  Mail your check, payable to Friends of the Pottsboro Area Library, P.O. Box 477, Pottsboro, TX  75076.  For questions or more information, check out our website, www.pottsborolibrary.com and www.facebook/pottsborolibrary,  or call the library at 903-786-8274.

 

Deadline Nearing for Local ATHENA Leadership Awards Nominations

BJ Kirkpatrick Austin College, News
Deadline Nearing for Local ATHENA Leadership Awards Nominations

The deadline is approaching for nominations for Athena Award and Athena Young Professional Award for exemplary women leaders in Grayson, Fannin, and Cooke counties. Nominations must be made by January 30 with completion of the online ATHENA Leadership Award® Nomination Form and the ATHENA Young Professional Leadership Award Nomination Form, which can be found at www.austincollege.edu/athena.  Past award recipients are not eligible to receive the award, though previous nominees may be nominated again.

Austin College and its Texoma Women Get Connected program re instituted the prestigious awards locally a few years ago and will recognize the 2017 honorees at a luncheon in spring 2017.

The ATHENA Leadership Award® is presented to individuals who have attained and embody the highest level of professional excellence in their business or profession, devote time and energy to improve the quality of life for others in the community, and actively assist women in realizing their full leadership potential.

ATHENA Young Professional Leadership nominees are emerging women leaders who demonstrate excellence, creativity, and initiative in their business or profession; provide valuable service to improve the quality of life for others in their community; and clearly serve as role models for young women both personally and professionally.

Event sponsors and table sponsors are needed for the event. Learn more from the Sponsor Information Sheet, also available at www.austincollege.edu/athena. Event sponsorships benefit the College’s Social Entrepreneurship for Poverty Alleviation (SEPA) summer intern program. For more information, please contact Trish Jennings at 903.813.2042.

The ATHENA Award had been presented locally in the past by the Sherman and Denison Chambers of Commerce, but had not been awarded in several years until revived by Austin College in fall 2014. Since its reinstatement locally, the ATHENA Award has honored Stacy Rake Murphy, owner and principal agent of Nationwide Insurance in Sherman (2014), and Brenda Hayward, executive director of Child and Family Guidance Center of Texoma (2016). The ATHENA Young Professional Leadership Award has honored Michelle Lemming, president and CEP of Texoma Health Foundation (2014), and Hillary Luckett Clark, a Sherman attorney and community leader (2016). No awards were given in 2015. A list of all known local recipients is included on the Austin College Athena Award website.

The ATHENA Leadership Award Program is administered by ATHENA International, a non-profit women’s leadership organization, along with licensed host organizations and sponsors. Over 6,000 awards have been presented in the U.S. and around the world since the program’s inception in 1982. Recent recipients include Condoleezza Rice, Billie Jean King, Pat Summit, and Gabby Giffords.

Denison Music on Main wins 2017 Levitt AMP Grant

BJ Kirkpatrick News
Denison Music on Main wins 2017 Levitt AMP Grant

Denison Music on Main wins 2017 Levitt AMP GrantThe Levitt Foundation recently announced Denison Music on Main as one of 15 winners for the 2017 grant program.  Each of these communities will receive $25,000 in matching grants to present their own Levitt AMP Music Series which consist of 10 free outdoor concerts featuring high caliber entertainment in a broad range of music genres.

The Levitt AMP Grant Awards were created in 2014 by the Levitt Foundation, a pioneer in the creative placemaking movement.  Levitt AMP brings the joy of free, live music to people of all ages and backgrounds living in small to mid-sized towns and cities, transforming underused public spaces into thriving community destinations

For the past two years, the Levitt AMP Denison Music Series, presented by Denison Main Street Inc., has seen increasingly larger audiences, more downtown foot traffic and amplified community pride. This year the series aims to build on this, reinforcing the relevance of the city’s core in the midst of investment in its outskirts.

The Levitt Foundation strives to strengthen the social fabric of our country by bringing people together in outdoor spaces, with live music that invigorates community life. That is exactly what Music on Main is doing for Denison. Music on Main lets people of diverse backgrounds come together, interact, & engage in activities. Held each week during the summer at the center of downtown, Music on Main is accessible and open to all which encourages community participation

The Denison Music on Main Concerts are held at Heritage Park located in the center of downtown Denison. Heritage Park is an open, grassy space on the corner of a busy intersection. The park has been developed in phases over the last few years as it replaced buildings that were lost to fire.

Denison is one of the original Texas Arts & Culture Districts, and the entertainment aspect of the district is taken seriously. Growing the Music on Main concert series into a bigger event helps promote the businesses in the Central Business District. The city is experiencing significant growth on the outskirts, and the outdoor concerts will play an important role in keeping downtown relevant with outstanding free live music. The Levitt partnership has given Denison attention on a national stage and this helps bring in patrons and sponsorships for a regional audience.

Denison’s growth makes it even more important for downtown to remain the heart of the community.  The 2017 Levitt AMP Grant will allow Music on Main to host artists of excellent quality and maintain community participation that will help solidify Denison’s reputation as “Event Central” and will mean a great deal to the economic and cultural centers in Denison.