The temperature on the bank clock in downtown Lavaca said it
was 98 degrees. The humidity was above
52%, the kind of humidity where you can breathe water. But, thankfully, there’s a new snow cone
stand in town!
Arrow Ice Snow Cones opened this week in the crossroads of
Highways 96 and 255 in Lavaca. It is in
the parking lot of Elaine’s Café and Rub ‘em Tender Barbeque and owned by
Lavaca native Dustin Balance. The
little wood hut may be small but they have a powerfully large menu of items to
order for the customers of our little village!
More that twenty-eight flavors were available, not counting five
sugar-free options and different specialty drinks. One of those is specialty drinks is the Dill
Pickle Snow Cone! They sell quite a few of these, according to the young lady
who was helping out today. Sydney
Crabtree is a cousin to the owner. She
bragged that they were the best snow cone stand for miles! (Okay, they may be the only snow cone stand
around except for the occasional nomadic ice shavers.)
I interviewed Sydney between the patrons coming for their
relief from the muggy weather brought by the sun and recent flooding. Car after car came in my few minutes there so
I decided to give them a try for myself.
Did you think I might recommend them and not try them out? Come now!
I purchase a mixture of Silver Fox and Vanilla Cream. It was like vanilla ice cream from the churn!
Yeah. Two thumbs up. One customer, Mary
Carroll said, “Sure, there are other snow cone places around but Arrow Ice is
really the best and besides, I want to give my business to local people.” Wise woman, that Mary Carroll. Wise thoughts too!
Arrow Ice is open until 9PM weekdays and Saturday.
The firework stands have been here for almost two weeks and many are itching to get ahold of some.
If you’re inside the city limits of Greenwood, you’ll have to find someone outside of the city limits to enjoy setting off the fireworks for a night light show of your own. At this time, there is no listed burn ban, but please check before starting the fun.
Or, better yet, join the Freedom Fest that will be going on during the day and into the night on July 4th, with the fireworks show to begin at 9pm. Don’t forget all of the food and vendors that will be there as well as the fun things for kids.
According to the Greenwood Police Department, they want to make sure everyone stays safe this year around July 4th. Therefore, they have issued this caution:
Shooting of fireworks within the city limits of Greenwood, Arkansas is hereby prohibited and declared unlawful, except from 12 noon until 12am on July 3, 4, 5 & from 12 noon December 31 through 1am on January 1st of each year, providing a burn ban is not in effect at the time. Any person found in violation hereof shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction shall be fined an amount not less than $100.00 and no more than $1000.00 .
This Ordinance shall not apply to City of Greenwood sponsored events that may from time to time sponsor its own fireworks display.
In the event the county judge issues a burn ban, it shall be a violation of this ordinance to shoot off any fireworks within the city limits of Greenwood Arkansas, during such burn ban.
Pets cannot be forgotten during this time. Many are very afraid of the sounds of fireworks and they could possibly escape from your home, so keep them safe by following the suggestions from the Greenwood Animal Control officer, Daryl Thomas.
Rene´ Myers, Director of the Scott-Sebastian County Regional Library, has been a part of the library system for 11 years and served for 5 years as the Library Clerk for the different libraries in this region.
She says, “I remember we would get phone calls from the
public wanting to know if we had e-resources, but with the limited space and
funding, it was not possible.”
Beginning in April 2019, the Scott-Sebastian County Regional Library and others decided to pay a small membership fee to be part of the Arkansas Library system. This allows them to be part of a consortium group where each library has access to any book within that group. This has opened a lot more opportunities for books for the county residents that have not been seen before.
In addition, because of the fundraising efforts by Friends of
the Sebastian County Library, new books have been purchased, updates have been
made and more to be made. There have been adult crafts added in addition to the
continuing of the summer reading program, family night and more.
Rene´, her assistants and the Friends of the Sebastian County
Library are very excited to finally offer to the public online e-books and
audio books, called Libby.
“This has been a process and we are very excited for all
locations to be able to offer these services at Greenwood, Hartford, Lavaca,
Waldron and Mansfield.”
Rene´ goes on to say, “We have fun events for the adults,
Bingo for Books and various crafts, and they are enjoyed by all. We have many
who come. The summer reading program for the kids is even more enjoyable than
before. There are also crafting times for the children as well as the adults.
We have updated our services so that faxing, copies and printing can be done
downstairs. Computers are available to anyone to use because there are still
some people who do not have access to this type of equipment in their home. We
are very happy to provide these to the communities.”
The libraries of today are not just about books, as you can
see, they are about reading for pleasure, learning, having fun, relaxing in a
quiet environment and so much more.
Rene´ and her assistants as well as the Friends of the Sebastian County Library invite everyone to come and get a fresh view of your local library at 18 North Adair in Greenwood.
Potato chips are a major staple in American foods. You can find almost any flavor or variety you could think of and even some name-brand products have contests to encourage customers to create new flavors. Northern Plains Potatoes tells us that it takes 10,000 pounds of potatoes to make 2,500 pounds of potato chips, and the average American eats over 4 pounds potato chips each year! In 2011, Americans ate 1.5 billion pounds of potato chips. According to Statista based on the U.S. Census data and Simmons National Consumer Survey (NHCS), 34.84 million Americans consumed 16 bags or more in 2018. The average person consumes approximately 110 pounds of potatoes per year! Imagine how high those numbers are for the average person living in the south would be with as many BBQs we have and side dishes of fried potatoes? So by these simple statistics, we can clearly see that potato chips are a growing snack food in America!
However, in the “diet world,” potato chips are viewed as the enemy! MayoClinic.com reports that too much salt in your diet can lead to several negative health problems, including high blood pressure and kidney disease. Most servings listed on the back of the bag of potato chips is only about 1 ounce, but as said above, most people consume far more than just 1 ounce when they sit down to eat! I have to say of all snack foods, potato chips are probably my downfall as well. I could sit and snack all day on a bag of Doritos, Lays, or Ruffles.
In recent times, the new found substitute for dieters has been “Kale Chips.” At first, it sounds odd. Why would a green vegetable become a chip? However, baking the kale actually makes it become a crispy crunch that many people miss when getting to eat potato chips with their sandwich or needing something salty to snack on. Kale is actually an excellent source of B vitamins as well as being high in vitamins A and C, folate, calcium, iron, potassium and bioflavonoids. It also helps with fiber intake! Kale is actually a dieters’ dream food because it is low in carbohydrates as well as calories; therefore, it is ok to indulge in! With all of these facts and research, I decided to give it a try! The recipe below is a kind of toss and dash recipe! It’s simple and easy! I’ll let you be the judge and decide if this will be your new replacement for your bag of chips! Check out the recipe below!
Ingredients:
Approximately 8 oz. of Kale (washed and completely dried)
Garlic Salt
Onion Powder
Cavender’s All Purpose Greek Seasoning
Chives
Olive Oil
Parchment Paper
Directions:
First, remove all stems and hard parts from the kale leaves. Then, wash and dry kale. Make sure your kale has no moisture or it can make your chips soggy after baking. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Next, place kale in a large bowl and toss with a dash of olive oil. You just need enough oil to slightly coat the leaves so the spices will stick to the kale.
Kale- washed, dried, and ready for tossing!
Once the kale is lightly coated in the olive oil, add your spices. You only need a dash of each one (Garlic Salt, Onion Powder, Cavender’s All Purpose Greek Seasoning). Then, add a tablespoon and a half of chives. Stir and toss lightly so that seasonings and chives are evenly distributed.
All the spices you will need! Remember, just use a dash! If you use too much, the chips will be too salty!
Line two baking pans with parchment paper and evenly spread out the kale on the pans. Try to not overlap the kale. Bake for 13 minutes, and then remove from oven and allow kale chips to sit for two minutes to cool.
Spread the kale evenly on the baking pans to avoid uncooked kale or soggy chips!
Now, make your favorite sandwich and enjoy the kale chips as your side!
Recently a group was created on Facebook called, “Hide and Go Seek Painted Rocks Mansfield, AR.” At first, it was just an idea by a few moms in the Mansfield Moms Group, but one mom decided to put the idea into motion. The group is open to anyone who is ready to have FREE summer fun with their kids.
Mansfield kids of all ages as well as adults are painting rocks of all kinds of shapes and designs in their free summer time. Rocks can be painted with acrylic paints, sharpies, or even fingernail polish. Once the rocks are painted, the kids, with the help of their parents, hide the beautiful painted rocks all over Mansfield and Huntington areas. Mainly the local parks, walking trails and the town gazebo have been the hot spots. Participants are told to hide in places that will not effect city mowers or in any way damage any town property. Those hiding rocks are encouraged to have parents go online and post a picture of their rocks for a clue to know where some of the rocks are hidden and also to show what the rocks look like. Hiders can even give riddles and clues to where their rocks might be.
Then, other kids go hunting! Once the rocks are found, parents once again post in the group letting others know of their “found” rocks! It’s a great summer FREE activity for all ages.
One local Resident, Irene Klentz in the Facebook group, even left a small note tied to her rock leading to more clues of a hidden treasure to accompany the rock find. A small wooden angel was found as the prize at one of the parks’ gazebo. Another local Resident has attached a note to a rock saying that the finder will receive one FREE snow cone from Huntington’s local Express Sno Cones shop by returning the rock to the snow cone shop!
This wonderful activity is making the minds of kids creative and active by painting rocks while at home, and it is also encouraging families to stay physically active while out from their local school session.
So, parents get your kids to painting so they can go hunting! Happy Hunting!
Painted Rocks hidden at a local park in Mansfield
Trenton and Kasen painting rocks to hide!
Braxton painting his rocks to go and hide!
Look at this happy bunch of kiddos who found lots of rocks!
Brothers rock hunting at the local parks in Mansfield
Remington found a rock!
Can you find this rock?
Zach is happy he found a rock!
This cute minon rock was painted by Audrey Goines of Mansfield.
Officer Dylan Thomas has only been the Greenwood Animal
Control Officer since February 2019 and enjoys what he does. He picks up an
average of 4 or 5 dogs every day that are lost.
With an animal shelter that can only contain 14 dogs, there
can quickly become an overabundance if they can’t find the owners quickly.
Officer Thomas sees many people who find animals decide to
keep them at their home. While this is understandable, it can make it more
difficult to find the owner.
“I don’t recommend keeping an animal at your home when you
find one. Contact me at 479-322-8814 so that I can come get the animal, have
them scanned for a chip and get them back to their owner much faster.”
Since February, he estimates between 140-150 dogs have been picked up. When asked where the most popular areas are where dogs are escaping. Officer Thomas says “Everywhere in Greenwood. About 90% of escaped dogs are let outside by their owners to potty but are not put on a leash.”
While Greenwood has a “Leash” ordinance and a “Registration” ordinance, many residents have chosen their own route and have lost their pets in the process, some to never be found.
Officer Thomas says, “This is why there are so many dogs that
are running loose in Greenwood. These requirements are in place to protect your
dog. There may be some who find your family pet and decide to keep it, causing
you to not only worry where your pet is, but wondering if they are being
treated well. Then, there’s the added issue of the family missing their pet.
All of this could be alleviated with the registration of your dog and using a
leash whenever you take them outside.”
While the proper owner will always try to be found, if there
is no registration tag on the collar or a micro-chip, sometimes the only thing
that can be done is put the dog up for adoption.
When that is the case, there is no charge to adopt the pet and they will be neutered or spayed before you pick them up. If you are interested in adopting a dog, Officer Thomas is the one to contact.
The dogs that are roaming around are taken to an animal shelter where they are properly cared for in a climate-controlled environment.
They are regularly let out into a well-maintained area for exercise and potty breaks.
To keep your pet safe:
City registration with proper-fitting, secure collar
and tag with your information
Micro-chip by veterinarian (most charge around $40
unless it is a GPS-type, then those rates are higher)
Use a leash whenever they are let outside. Some dogs “escape”
when a door is open. In those cases, place them in a closed room before you
open the door then let them out once you return
Even while on a leash, be with your pet to make sure
they don’t find a way to escape
Annual rabies vaccine by a qualified veterinarian as
well as regular health checks
Proper and regular bathing, grooming, teeth brushed,
etc.
“Be courteous to your pet, making sure they have proper
shelter in all seasons, plenty of fresh water, proper food and regular
veterinarian appointments for shots. Having
an animal is a big responsibility. While they are cute and give joy, they
deserve to be treated properly.”
Finally, Officer Thomas says, “Keeping your pet safe gives
you more time to enjoy them and them to enjoy being with you. Some pets are
very anxious and scared when they are not with their owners. Following the
above guidelines will make sure they stay with you.”
Contact Officer Thomas at 479-322-8814 if you have any
questions or concerns. In addition, if you would like to donate food or treats
for the dogs who are at the animal shelter, he would appreciate it.
At the beginning of the 2019 school year, the Arkansas High School Coaches Association voted for and delivered the results of the players and coaches chosen to play in the upcoming All-Star games. Among that list were three Hackett Hornets who were picked to represent the 4-2A West conference. Brady Hester for football, Audrie Chaney for volleyball, and Coach Bridget Freeman as an assistant volleyball coach. The 2019 All-Star games were held on June 21 and 22 at the University of Central Arkansas in Conway.
Coach Bridget Freeman second from left
Audrie Chaney was one of 15 girls picked to play on the West volleyball roster. Chaney is the first Hornet from volleyball to secure a spot in the All-Star games. Also slated to be by her side was her own beloved coach, Bridget Freeman, who would be assisting in the volleyball match along with two other coaches from Paris and Rogers. Heading the West team was coach Jennifer Golden out of Greenwood. The game was played on Friday, June 21 at the Farris Center and after a ferocious battle of the best, it was the East that walked away victorious 4-1.
#8 Audrie Chaney
On Saturday, June 22, it was Brady Hesters turn to highlight the Hackett Hornets in the All-Star football game. Held at Estes Stadium, Brady was prepared to show the state why exactly the 4-2A district shouldn’t be messed with. Hester is only the 12th Hornet picked to play in the All-Star football game. Holding a roster of 46 players, the West team was led by Coach Brad Harris out of Benton. After the final buzzer sounded and the dust had settled, it was the East that sealed the win 34-28.
#41 Brady Hester
I think it’s safe to say that anyone who had the opportunity to watch any of the games that took place over the two-day weekend, can see that there is more out there than just big town players. That these small town schools are just oozing with talent. But fear not. The time is fast approaching that these underdogs will rise up and get their day!
Heavy rain caused flooding and damage to roads and bridges across Scott County as well as southern Sebastian County over the weekend.
Highway 80 in Scott County was completely closed down on Sunday, June 23. Also, several streets in the City of Mansfield were also closed due to flooding.
On Sunday afternoon the Mansfield Fire Department responded to a partially downed tree on Highway 378. After removing it, they worked to divert one lane traffic on Highway 71 near Casey’s General Store.
Residents were left to clean up debris and washes to their driveways following the heavy downpours. County crews will be busy assessing the damage and developing a plan of action.
Sebastian County Road Superintendent Jim Carter said, “the county road system faired rather well during the events this weekend. We had a few road closures but all have been opened back up with the exception of Utah Ranch Road in the Lavaca area.”
Scott County Judge James Forbes said parts of Scott County received 11.5 plus inches of rainfall over the weekend. “At one point, Hwy 71 at Packsaddle, Hwy 80 West, and Hwy 28 West had numerous places where water was impeding traffic,” stated Forbes. “There is over 75% damage to county roads, including washed out roadways and bridges. Road crews have been working since Sunday afternoon repairing these areas. We hope to have all areas passable by Friday evening. I would like to thank the folks on Fuller Road for the help on the low water bridge, you did an outstanding job. Your help allowed us to get to other areas quicker. We only had one home that had water damage and a few more that had water close or around them. Thanks for the help and support during this local flood.”
Dayton Road in Sebastian County. (Photo courtesy of Kimberly Boyd.)Flooding damages property owners driveway in Scott County. (Photo courtesy of Terre Traylor.)Pine Lake area homes in Sebastian County.Water nears the door of a home in Sebastian County.Dayton Road in Sebastian County. (Photo courtesy of Kimberly Boyd.)Cass Road in Scott County. Cass Road in Scott County. (Photo courtesy of Lisa-Reed Cass.)Echo Road in Scott County. (Photo courtesy of Kimbery Boyd.)
Greenwood’s Freedom Fest on July 4th each year is one of the most talked-about and attended events around with one of the best fireworks displays. The best vantage point of the Post Office, City Hall, Farmer’s Bank or the Church of Christ, all around Gary and Center Streets. Bring your chairs or blankets and get your spot early, fireworks start at 9pm. Vendors will be located around the square. Any non-food vendors have until July 1, 2019 to provide their application.
Prior to the Freedom Fest starting, the 5K Freedom Run will have already kicked off in full steam with about 400 runners of all ages. Be sure to run in the Freedom Run and then stay for the festivities. See related story to sign up early.
However, earlier, starting at 9:45am, the Color Guard will kick off the Freedom Fest, then the music from local, regional artists and well-known musicians will start performing. Bands such as RC and the Blues Bandits, Sweet River Band, Inspyral, Soul’d Out, Boom Kinetic and the Klocks will perform.
There will be free games, bounce-arounds, 14 food vendors, 80 regular vendors, face-painting, bounce-around inflatables (some with water), helicopter rides, free hot dogs and at 9pm one of the largest fireworks displays in the area. Everything is free except if you purchase from one of the vendors.
Tammy Briley, Greenwood Parks Director says, “The kids can play and the adults can be entertained all day without spending any money. There will be 750 free hot dogs with drink and chips. In addition, the police officers and fire department will be available for pictures with the kids. We have a great event planned for the entire family starting with the 5K Run.”
Miss Arkansas 2019 Darynne Dahlem, from Greenwood and
daughter of Ron and Traci Lewellen, will also be in attendance.
One of the local sponsors has provided custom medals to the
winners. And, you may find Mayor Kinslow showing up incognito.
The Freedom Fest on July 4th is for the entire family and will be enjoyed by all. Appreciation for the Chamber of Commerce, sponsoring businesses, the City staff and the volunteers who spend their time bringing this for the community’s enjoyment.
