The Wills Point Tiger Band got back to the grind Aug. 1, dealing with both the heat and recent bouts of rain in preparation for their upcoming marching season.
By David Kapitan, Staff Writer
The Wills Point Tiger Band began marching once again Aug. 1, laying the groundwork for its upcoming year by picking up from where they left off at the end of the 2015-’16 school year.
The Tiger Band is coming off on another banner season, with the band earning a Superior rating at the UIL Region 3 4A Marching Contest, the Midlothian Marching Festival and the UIL Concert and Sightreading Contests, winning a silver medal at the Princeton Marching Contest and earning another UIL Sweepstakes Award.
Enthusiasm has been high during the opening weeks of practices, with 145 students registered to participate in the high school band program.
The monthly meeting of the Van Zandt County Genealogical Society will be held at 2 p.m. Aug. 27 at the Van Zandt County Library at 317 First Monday Ln. in Canton.
The guest speaker will be Larry Turner of Wills Point.
He will be speaking about Pearl Harbor, concentrating on the USS Arizona and four young men that graduated from Van Zandt County schools. Dec. 7, 2016 will mark the 75th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor.
Texas Department of State Health Services accredited food handlers program will be offered from 9 to 11 a.m. Aug. 29 by the Van Zandt County Extension Office.
This class is required for all food service employees to help promote the service of safe food. The class is a basic overview of food safety practices that are necessary to ensure you serve safe food at your establishment, according to Extension Agent Melisa Rhodes.
Rhodes will be teaching the class. Some practices to be discussed include good personal hygiene; cross contamination and time and temperature abuse. “To learn more, please come to our two-hour food handlers training,” she said.
The Lady Tiger bench erupts in cheers after Wills Point rallied to pull out a 15-25, 26-24, 25-23, 20-25, 15-9 home win Aug. 16.
By David Kapitan, Staff Writer
The Wills Point Lady Tigers showed flashes of just how dangerous they could be during the 2016 season, battling back from the brink in their home opener for a 15-25, 26-24, 25-23, 20-25, 15-9 win against Commerce Aug. 16.
Commerce gave Wills Point everything it could handle and more during the first set of the match, turning back numerous Lady Tiger kill attempts to cruise to an easy 25-15 lead.
Wills Point chief of police Rob Powell, shown addressing attendees of the city’s National Night Out event held Aug. 2, has announced his retirement from public safety effective Sept. 30. Powell will stay on an assist the department’s transition to a new chief, and will continue to serve as a reserve officer for the city in the future.
By David Kapitan, Staff Writer
After more than three decades in public safety, including the past six years with the Wills Point Police Department, Rob Powell has announced his retirement as the city's chief of police effective September 30.
With just under two months to go until his retirement date, Powell added that his big focus in the coming weeks will be helping ease the transition to his successor, Lonnie Carroll.
The Children’s Advocacy Center of Van Zandt County, along with Glen Oaks Hospital, the ABC Room, East Texas Crisis Center and Maximus, will b e hosting a “Van Zandt County Back-to-School Festival and Health Fair” Aug. 20.
There will be free school supplies, back packs, food, drinks, snacks, facials, haircuts, vision and hearing checks, organizers said.
There will be a magician, face painting, a photo booth, bounce house, visiting characters and crafts
The monthly meeting of the Van Zandt County Genealogical Society will be held at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 27 at the Van Zandt County Library at 317 First Monday Ln. in Canton.
The guest speaker will be Larry Turner of Wills Point, speaking on Pearl Harbor, concentrating on the USS Arizona and four young men that graduated from Van Zandt County schools. Dec. 7, 2016 will mark the 75th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor.
Ronald McDonald gave a helping hand to Wills Point McDonald’s owner Kevin Lilly Aug. 2.
By David Kapitan, Staff Writer
The wheels of progress continued to churn locally Aug. 2, with a special grand opening held for the newly constructed McDonald's restaurant located at the corner of Highway 80 and S. 4th St.
The event, which lasted approximately 30 minutes before the restaurant opened to the public, included plenty of pomp and circumstance with special performances by both the Tiger Band’s percussion ensemble and WPHS cheerleaders, presentations and announcements before the store’s official opening.
Owners of the Wills Point restaurant, Kevin and Jeaneane Lilly, were in attendance and offered up a word of thanks to the community for their support to turn the project into a reality.
