The Northwest TN Economic Development Council will be distributing commodity foods on Wednesday and Thursday from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. of this week at the Central Community Building, located at 55 Jones Bend Road in Paris. Citizens whose last name begins with the letters A thru K will come on Wednesday and if your last name begins with L thru Z you will come on Thursday to pick up your commodities.

Everyone picking up commodities must have a yellow card. For more information call April Perry at 642-3132. The last day applications will be taken will Tuesday at 3pm.

The Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) site will open this year starting today, February 7, 2012, and will be in operation every Tuesday during February and March. The VITA volunteers provide a real service for Henry Countians by preparing tax returns for free and offering e-filing as well. The site will again be open at Atkins-Porter Recreation Center on Highland St. in Paris.

Appointments are now being accepted for the hours of 9 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. each Tuesday. You can make your appointment by calling Carole Walsh at 731-642-4178.

The service is open to all senior citizens, 55 years and older and for anyone whose income is less than $50,000 a year. The site filed over 500 tax returns in 2010 for people. Walsh asked that people not call on Tuesdays, as the volunteers will be busy all day on those days.

The Henry County Patriots are on their way to the Final Four in Tennessee High School Football!! Way to go Big Red!!

The Patriots’ 24-14 won over Memphis Ridgeway last Friday night at Patriot Stadium in the third round of the Class 5A playoffs. Henry County will host Hendersonville High School in the state semifinals at 7 p.m. Friday, November 25, 2011.

The town of Henry will host its annual Pioneer Days celebration this weekend, September 16th and 17th, in Henry.

Events will start Friday evening at 7 p.m. at the Henry County Saddle Club with fun and games. Admission is $3.00 a carload and concessions will be available for purchase.

Saturday at 10 a.m. is the parade, featuring Mr. & Mrs. Pioneer Phil and Jean Doyle. Line up will begin at 9 a.m. at Henry School. At 11 a.m. the bingo and cake walk begin inside the Civic Center.

Radio station WEIO, the Farm 100.9 in Huntingdon, is scheduled to broadcast from this year’s event beginning at 11 a.m.

A car show will begin at 11 a.m. Best of show and trophies will be awarded.

A karaoke contest is planned Saturday afternoon. Sign-up will start 1 p.m., with a $5 entry fee. The contest will begin at 2 p.m. Cash prizes will be awarded to winners.

Come out and dunk the city’s Chief of Police, sing your favorite song for the audience, play on the inflatable castle and double slide, play games and enjoy the cooler weather.

There will also be a dance Saturday evening at 7 p.m. at the Civic Center featuring The Teddy Bears. Admission will be $3 a person or $5 a couple.

It’s the beginning of the school year and time for all interested girls to sign up for Girl Scouts!

Girl Scout registration / parent meetings will be held during the next few weeks at schools in the Paris Special School District and the Henry County School System. Girls who were Girl Scouts during the previous school year are not required to attend registration meetings. They should contact their leader to re-register. The cost is $12 a girl, as well as an adult wanting to volunteer on a parent committee for the child’s troop.

Dates, times and school locations for registration / parent meetings, and contact information for each school’s chairman, are:

Today, Aug. 16
5:30-6:30 p.m. Paris Elementary School — Jennifer Starks, 642-6961 or 676-1303.

Monday, Aug. 22
6-7 p.m. Inman Middle School — Lorraine Sirabella, (731)407-4494.

Tuesday, Aug. 23
4:30-5:30 p.m. Harrelson School — Marci Gardner-Edmonds, 247-3819.
6-7 p.m. Henry School — Sirabella.

Thursday, Aug. 25
5:30-6:30 p.m. Rhea Elementary School — Lesley Jones, 642-1162, extension 324.
6-7 p.m. Lakewood School — Amanda Hendrix, 642-3742.

Girls at Grove and Henry County High Schools will not have a meeting date, but should contact Daphne Combs, school chairman, at 644-1926 after 3 p.m. for registration information.

For more information, email questions to hcgirlscouts@gmail.com, or visit http://www.hcgirlscouts@gmail.com

Mark your calendars for the Friday, August 19th.

The Henry County Sheriff’s Department will be giving out free produce from its inmate garden program on Friday. The give away will begin at 8 a.m. at the Sheriff’s Department at 210 Forrest Heights off West Wood Street, and will continue until all produce is gone. The free produce includes tomatoes, squash, cucumbers and peppers.

Come out and get some tasty fresh veggies!!

Wednesday July 27, 2011, from 10:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. is the Blast Day for the Henry County School System Family Resource Center sponsored service for income eligible families who need free school supplies. Information booths and developmental screenings will be on hand that day, too. To qualify families must meet eligibility requirements.

You must have proof of income. The Family Resource Center, located at the Central Community Service Center at 55 Jones Bend Rd, will be accepting applications at the following times:

July 11, Monday 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
July 12, Tuesday 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
July 13, Wednesday 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

The 2011-2012 Henry County Public School calendar is available here. The first day of school is August 8, 2011, which will be a full day.

The Mobile Pantry from Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee will be at the Henry County Fairgrounds on Wednesday, June 19, from 8 a.m. until 1 p.m. to distribute free groceries to individuals and families in need. The program is looking for volunteers to help unload a truck, hand out food to clients, carry food to the clients’ cars and give a hand. The goal is to feed at least 250 families in the county. If you would like to volunteer, check in at the volunteer table at the fairgrounds that morning. Call Donna at 615-305-8719 for information.

The Henry County Farmer’s Market is open Tuesday mornings starting at 6:30 a.m. at the pavilion at the Fairgrounds and at 3 p.m. Friday afternoons, and stay open on these days while supplies last. Come out and support local farmers!!

We apologize for the length of time it has been since any new posts have been posted. There are a couple of upcoming events that we would like to inform our readers of.

April 23, 2011 is the official kick off of the Annual Fish Fry events with the 5k Hushpuppy Dash and Demolition Derby. There are several events Monday April 25th through Sunday May 1st including Arts & Craft shows, dances, catfish races and the carnival officially opens on Tuesday, April 26th. The Grand Parade is on Friday, April 29th at 10 a.m. Many businesses in Paris will be closed during this time, or closed for the day. County schools will also be closed on Friday. Everyone have fun and be safe!

The end of the school year is quickly approaching! Senior banquet is scheduled for May 6, 2011 at 7 p.m. at the Paris Convention Center / Hampton Inn. The prom is scheduled for May 7, 2011 at Paris Convention Center / Hampton Inn from 8:30 – midnight. No tickets will be sold at the door. Student guests must be at least a sophomore and no older than 20 years old. Graduation is May 20th at 7:30 p.m. at HCHS. The last day of school for the 2010-2011 school year is May 24th. TCAP testing for the public schools will be county wide from April 18-22. Please parents try to make sure your child gets plenty of rest and is at school on time! This should always be the case, but is even more important during this time. The public schools will also be closed on April 28th for Professional Development.

We hope everyone had a happy and safe white Christmas and New Years!!

All schools started back today, with high school students reviewing for finals set for Wednesday and Thursday this week.

The 2011 Helping Hand radio auction is set to begin Monday, January 10th and will continue through March 2. Proceeds from this year’s auction will benefit 72 local, non-profit organizations and charities. Those wishing to take part in the auction can not only listen to the action on the radio, but also may attend the auction at its headquarters in the Enoch community building at the Henry County Fairgrounds. The auction begins each weekday at 12:30 p.m. with radio broadcasts also beginning on WTPR-AM 710 at 12:30 p.m. To bid on items, call 644-1695. For any other information about the auction, call the headquarters at 644-1833. Office hours are from 7 a.m. each auction day until 30 minutes after each day’s auction ends. Those wishing to donate items should have their items delivered to the Enoch building before 9 a.m. on the day their organization is to provide items.

The Lifeline Bloodmobile will receive eligible donors from noon until 6 p.m. Thursday at First United Methodist Church, 101 E. Blythe St. in Paris. There is currently a critical need for O positive, O negative and A negative blood for patients in West Tennessee hospitals.

Only 18 more days until Christmas and 25 days until New Years!

Schools will dismiss early on Friday, December 17, 2010 and students will be out from December 20th until classes resume on January 4, 2011 for Henry County Public Schools.

We hope everyone has a fun, happy and safe winter break!