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If you have any information for the Community Calendar, please email it to justin.schuver@bogalusadailynews.com.

City invited to “Love on Bogalusa”

Organizers of the “Love on Bogalusa” campaign are asking business owners, managers, school administrators, church staff, etc., to make signs for their windows or outdoor decorations stating “We Love Bogalusa” and similar positive messages. This will lead up to the “Love on Bogalusa” event to be held from Sept. 29-Oct. 1. It is a project involving churches and individuals, in and around Bogalusa and other parts of the United States, to carry the Gospel of Jesus Christ to every home in Bogalusa in a two-day period. There will be people openly witnessing and preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ around our city on these three days. The public is invited to attend a celebration in Cassidy Park on Saturday, Oct. 1, from noon until 5 p.m. There will be free food, face painting, air-up slides and bouncies for the kids, drive-thru prayer, open-air music, singing and preaching available to all in attendance that day. It is all free. For more information, call Dr. Bruce Morris Sr. at 901-834-3227.

Food distribution

Bethlehem Baptist Church along with Second Harvest Food Bank of New Orleans will distribute food this Saturday, Sept. 24, starting at 8 a.m. at the church gym, located at 837 East Seventh St. in Bogalusa. The community is asked to come out and bring their containers, boxes and wagons for food items to be placed into. Due to CDC guidelines and to keep everyone safe, organizers are asking everyone to please wear their face masks.

Museum membership meeting

The Washington Area Museum Foundation/ Varnado Store Museum’s annual membership meeting will be held on Sunday, Sept. 25, at 2 p.m. at the museum annex building. Reports on the past year’s progress and finance plans as well as election of board members will make up the agenda. All members of the museum foundation and anyone interested in supporting the history and preservation of our parish’s unique cultural heritage are invited to attend. Please make a special effort to be a part of this important meeting.

Advance fair tickets

Advance tickets for the Mighty Thomas Carnival midway at the Washington Parish Fair will go on sale beginning Monday, Sept. 26. A sheet of 40 tickets will be sold for $25. Once the fair starts, 30 tickets will cost $27 and single tickets will cost $1 each at the carnival ticket box. The advance tickets will be available at the following locations: Magee Financial Offices located at 1001 Washington St. in Franklinton, 414 Columbia St. in Bogalusa, U.S. Highway 190 in Covington, and 403 Ave. G in Kentwood; Hancock Whitney Bank located at 919 Washington St. in Franklinton and 300 Austin St. in Bogalusa; Parish Credit located at 951 Washington St. in Franklinton; and Nielsen City Drug Store located at 330 Austin St. in Bogalusa. Armband days are Thursday and Saturday from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m., for $20.

Mayoral candidates forum

The Community Action Organization will be holding a mayoral candidates forum on Tuesday, Sept. 27, from 6 p.m. until 8 p.m. at the Bogalusa High School auditorium, located at 100 M.J. Israel Drive in Bogalusa. The event is free and open to the public. The purpose of this forum is to give all Bogalusa voters an opportunity to hear candidates discuss the issues that are important to them in this election. All questions are asked to be submitted by text to 985-518-8655 or email to hendnette@gmail.com no later than Saturday, Sept. 24. If time permits, questions will be allowed from the audience.

Bogalusa fair flag raising ceremony

The Washington Parish Fair flag will be raised at the Bogalusa City Hall on Wednesday, Sept. 28, at approximately 10 a.m. The Bogalusa High School band, Paper Dolls, majorettes, flag team and cheerleaders will start with a performance at 9:30 a.m.

Citizen weather spotter information meeting

Did you know you can help the National Weather Service and become a trained SKYWARN weather spotter? A meeting will be held Thursday, Sept. 29, at 6 p.m. at the Washington Parish Courthouse in Franklinton, located at 908 Washington St. You’ll learn why there’s a need for storm spotters, how to put safety first in severe weather, severe storm structure and how to identify clues to intensity, how to accurately and safely observe and report severe storms, and how spotter reports are used.

Museum yard sale

On Saturday, Oct. 1, there will be a yard sale featuring a variety of items at the Varnado Store Museum in the annex and on the patio. The fundraiser will allow the museum to make needed repairs to the 120-year-old building. The sale will begin at 8 a.m. and continue until early afternoon. The museum hopes everyone will come by to see what they have to offer and to support the museum.

National Night Out

The Bogalusa Police Department and Washington Parish Sheriff’s Office is offering “National Night Out 2022” on Tuesday, Oct. 4, from 6 p.m. until 9 p.m. at Cassidy Park in Bogalusa. There will be activities for kids, including an obstacle course and jumpers. More information will be available soon.

Clean up day and movie night

The Franklinton Chamber of Commerce, along with the Town of Franklinton and Amwaste Management, is excited to present the first annual “Team Up to Clean Up Day and Movie Night,” which will be held Saturday, Oct. 8, from 8 a.m. until 2 p.m., ending with the movie night at 6:45 p.m. All adults, children of all ages, families, businesses, organizations and churches are invited to form teams of two or more in efforts to rid the town of litter. To sign up, contact Penny Jones, Community Pride committee chair, at 334-301-4969. Sign up and receive a “Team Up to Clean Up” T-shirt. The T-shirt and coloring sheet will grant you access to the movie (Monsters, Inc.). Bring your chair, blanket and a picnic dinner to enjoy the movie, which will be shown behind the Washington Parish School Board, across the street from Franklinton Jr. High School (800 Main St.). For more information, visit the Facebook page of “Franklinton Chamber of Commerce/Events.”

Boo-galusa

The Bogalusa Parks, Recreation and Culture Commission will be presenting “Boo-galusa” on Saturday, Oct. 29. It is $10 to enter motorcycles, classic cars, golf carts, ATVs and trucks/trailers. This will be a lighted parade, either fall or Halloween themed.

Electrical box art contest

Design and paint an electrical box in the city of Bogalusa. There is a $100 cash prize once the painting is complete. Two winners are chosen, and the painters must be in grades seven through 12, and must have an address in the 70427 ZIP code. The theme is “Bogalusa: Past, Present and Future.” The design should include all four sides of the box. The boxes are located across from Butler Park on Eighth Street. Designs are due by Monday, Oct. 31.

Balloon Festival Queen pageant

The Bogalusa Parks, Recreation and Culture Commission and the Bogalusa Balloon Festival Queen’s Committee will present the Bogalusa Balloon Festival Queen’s Pageant on Saturday, Nov. 12, at George R. Carr Memorial Airfield (the Bogalusa airport). The pre-teen and teen pageant will be held at 2 p.m. and the Miss Pageant will be held at 4 p.m. Information and an application is available on the Bogalusa Balloon Festival’s Facebook page.

Bogalusa Open Market

The Bogalusa Parks, Recreation and Culture Commission will present the Bogalusa Open Market on Saturday, Nov. 19, from 2 p.m. until 7 p.m. at the Avenue B Ballpark/Bogalusa Sports Complex. Garage sale booths are $10, vendor and food booths are $25, and interactive map spots will be $5. There will be live entertainment. For more information, email BPRCC.bogopenmarket@gmail.com or visit “Bogalusa Open Market” on Facebook.

Light Up Franklinton

Bring back the memories of loading up the family and going to look at the Christmas lights in the community. Light up Franklinton with us and create those memories with today’s generation! The Franklinton Christmas Festival is inviting all residents and businesses to celebrate the spirit of Christmas together. Decorate and light up your home and/or business from Nov. 26 through Dec. 3 and leave them up throughout the holiday season. Big or small … this is how you can get involved in our community.

Christmas on Austin Street

The Bogalusa, Parks, Recreation and Culture Commission will present the fourth annual “Christmas on Austin Street” on Saturday, Dec. 3, from 5:30 p.m. until 8:30 p.m. There will be free activities, festival-style games and booths, Santa Claus, food and vendor booths and more.

Lighted Christmas parade in Franklinton

The beautiful Franklinton Christmas Festival’s Lighted Christmas Parade will roll through the streets of Franklinton on Saturday, Dec. 3, at 6 p.m. This parade is listed as one of the top-10 must-see events in Washington Parish.

K of C Assembly 2206 raffle

Knights of Columbus Patriotic Degree Assembly 2206 members are selling raffle tickets. The first prize is a Henry Big Boy Wildlife Edition II 44 Magnum Rifle, second prize is a Charbroil 6 burner gas grill and third prize is a $100 Walmart gift card. Tickets are $5 each and are available through members of the assembly and can be ordered in Bogalusa by calling Bob Ricca at 504-460-8887 or in Franklinton by calling Joe Aucoin at 985-335-8710. The drawing will be done just before Christmas, in December of this year.

Mark your calendar for 2nd balloon festival

The Bogalusa Balloon Festival has already announced its date for the second annual event. Mark your calendars now for June 2-4, 2023. Follow the festival on Facebook to stay updated.

Narcotics Anonymous

A new Narcotics Anonymous meeting series, led by Bro. Ruben Watts, will be held Tuesdays and Fridays at 7 p.m. at Brown’s Soul Kitchen in Cassidy Park in Bogalusa. The New Life NA Group will meet from 7 p.m. until 8 p.m. and will be led by Watts, a deacon at Westside Emmanuel Baptist Church.

YouthBuild Bogalusa

YouthBuild Bogalusa (YBB) is enrolling students for its program. To gain entry in the program, a student will need to be between the ages of 16-24, and have not graduated from high school or earned his or her HISET. The new applicant will take the TABE placement test, in order to gain entry in the program. There will be testing for placement, Monday through Thursday every week from 9 a.m. until noon. YBB offers opportunities in educational aid in passing the HISET, Carpentry Skills (NCCER Certification/OSHA 30), mentoring, AmeriCorps (educational stipend/award), CNA, and welding, along with life skills (community involvement/leadership skills). YBB provides monetary incentives to learn — up to $500 every two weeks. YBB also has a full-time Case Manager and Counselor on staff. If you have any interest in the program or know of any one that will benefit from the program, visit YBB at 1242 Austin St. in Bogalusa, or call 985-545-1622.

American Legion bingo

Bingo is every Thursday at the American Legion. Doors open at 5 p.m. Great food. All jackpots pay out 100 percent, including the $1,000 blackout.

Washington Parish alert system

Stay alert by enrolling in the Washington Parish Emergency Notification System. This alert system provides rapid notification of emergencies, critical events and urgent situations. The alert system can send notifications through the following methods: phone call, text, email or TTY/TTD service for the hearing impaired. Landline phones are automatically entered for the alert system. To receive alerts through a mobile phone or email, a citizen must register through one of the following options: call 985-282-2620, text “Alert” to 985-282-2620, or sign up online at www.hyper-reach.com/lawashingtonsignup.html. Citizens can also download the Hyper Reach Anywhere app to any smartphone. This alert system is completely free.

Bogalusa Help Center

It’s easy to smile when someone cares, and Bogalusa Help Center, our local food bank, cares. It is now a drive-through operation, located at 350 Martin Luther King Drive in Bogalusa. It is open from 8 a.m. until noon every Wednesday (except the fifth Wednesday of the month) providing food to those in need in our community. Since partnering with Second Harvest Food Bank/USDA, and along with generous donations from our community, BHC now distributes 35-40 pounds of food each month to over 400 families. These distributions include canned goods, meat, dry beans, peanut butter, fresh fruit and vegetables, etc. New clients can apply each week. They must provide: Name of head of the household; driver’s license or ID; address; number of persons in the household and ages; and SNAP or SSI printout, or proof of income of all in the household. Donations are always very much needed and appreciated. For more information, BHC may be reached at 985-735-6404 every Wednesday.

Ongoing services at the Bogalusa Branch Library

• The Bogalusa branch of the Washington Parish Library offers a variety of services throughout the year. Faxing is available for $1 per 20 pages, and copies can be made for 20 cents each (black and white) or 50 cents each for color. There is also free computers for use — the first five copies are free, and it is 10 cents a copy after the first five.
• If you are an E-book reader, check out the selections offered by the Washington Parish Library in partnership with four other library systems.
• Patrons have free access to ancestry.com at any Washington Parish Library, and free access to heritagequest.com from any home or personal device, as well as a large selection of genealogy materials at the Bogalusa and Franklinton branches.
• The Bogalusa branch receives current copies of local and national newspapers, as well as popular magazine publications. The public is invited to sit in the comfortable reading center to enjoy their favorites.
• For students, the Homework Louisiana website offers a variety of assistance methods, including a live online tutor, “Skills Builder,” homework help and tutoring for kindergarten through basic college level, a writing center, a career center and an adult education center.

New contact information for Council on Aging

There is new contact information for the Franklinton office of the Washington Parish Council on Aging. Since Monday, Sept. 19, the Franklinton office has been located at 703 14th Ave. in Franklinton, the Magee’s Temple C.O.G.I.C. fellowship hall. The phone number for each department is as follows: main office number (985-335-8816), transportation (985-335-7043) and nutrition department (985-335-6942). For home delivery meals, requesting information or services, call 985-335-7387. You may contact the Bogalusa office at 985-732-6869 or 985-732-6868.