There is a lot going on in our area coming weeks. This is the last call for the Coldspring Chamber of Commerce Luncheon. The Culinary Arts Students of Coldspring High School will serve chicken piccata with wild rice and asparagus, followed by chocolate chip brownies.
President Jennifer Hoff will talk about “The State of the Chamber” with Peoples State Bank sponsoring this delicious meal. Cost is $15 at the door at the High School, on Oct. 1, from 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Call the Chamber to RSVP.
•Congressman Morgan Luttrell will be in Coldspring on Monday for a meet and greet at the SJC Republican HQ in Coldspring. Stop by to hear him and ask any questions you may have, from 10-11 a.m. For more information call Gayle Booth at 832-259-6812.
•SJC Democratic Party will hold a Fall Gala on Saturday, Oct. 12 at 6 p.m. in Jones Auditorium in Coldspring. Candidates who will be featured are Laura Jones for U.S. Representative District 8, Laura Ashley Simmons for House District 146 and Katherine Culbert for the Railroad Commission. There will be music, a live auction, great food and fun.
Tickets are $40 each or $300 for a table of 8. Monthly meetings are held each month on the second Tuesday at 6 p.m. in Coldspring Community Center at 101 E. Cedar Ave. Call (936) 252-8453 for more information or go to Facebook: Democrats of San Jacinto County.
•Coldspring Garden Club will meet at 1:30 p.m. on Thursday at Coldspring Community Center. This month the guest speaker is Irene Pawlowski who, in honor of it being Breast Cancer Awareness Month, will talk about living wreaths. Members are asked to wear pink if possible to show support for the topic. There will be refreshments.
•Christmas is coming. For those who asked about the theme this year, it will be the same as last year, “A Country Christmas.” The Parades for both Chambers will have entry forms on their websites. Call the numbers below if necessary.
There will be more information on the celebrations in the coming weeks, but you can be sure that Santa will show up for photos.
•I have mentioned the webinars given by SBDC before. They are posting a lot of new ones on their web site. If you are starting a business or need some advice on a particular subject, look at this site. There are classes for working on the Internet on such subjects as opening a food truck. It is worth a look to see if there is something to interest you. Go to SBDCinfo@uh.edu to learn.
•Both libraries are holding fundraisers. Coldspring has their annual garage sale at the Coldspring Community Shelter starting with an early-bird session from 5-7 p.m. on Oct. 9. The entrance fee is $20 to have first look at the huge amount of items for sale. The sale starts the following day till Oct. 12. Saturday closes down the sale at noon, but previous days will open at 8 a.m. till 5 p.m. There will be a special table for the Dolly Parton Imagination Library for a silent auction featuring Dolly’s Kitchenware. She and her sister recently published a cookbook of their family recipes. This kitchenware is made to her design.
Shepherd Library will hold a fundraiser on Oct. 18 at Coldspring Community Center. This will be a team trivia night led by Bill Powell, DJ and facilitator of such games at his many gigs. The team can be 1-5 people. Points will be given and if you turn up in costume, you get extra points. Winner is the team with most points. There will be a silent auction as well as marble racing and other fun things to do with snacks and sodas available. Please call the library to register at (936) 628-3515. Tickets are $10 pre-pay or $15 at the door.
•With the storms and floods, we have had in our country, first responders have been on call continually, many have gone to other states to help there. Shepherd Fire Chief Wayne Jenkins said that one of his team had gone to Georgia to help there.
Wayne has been involved with the Fire Department for many years, starting at 17 years old. He talked about the training responders go through, a weeklong course from A&M which can be done online. There is a need for volunteers. I was interested to learn that juniors, 16-18 years, can be volunteers although they are limited in their work. They are not allowed to enter buildings but will learn how the job is done by watching the adults (18 and over). Juniors must show they are passing grades at school, this is in the by-laws.
Shepherd VFD has a 74-year-old who drives a truck, proving if you want to help, age is not a problem, and yes, women can be volunteers too. The Auxiliaries are supporters for the Fire Fighters, raising funds through Bake Sales, getting donations etc.
Recently they bought a new stove for the kitchen and in emergencies, will cook for them. The president is Wayne’s mom, Myrna Jenkins, with Wayne’s wife Amy as VP. Obviously, wives and moms want to support their firefighter family. But they will welcome help when it is needed. Go to their Facebook page or call (936) 628-6566 to know more.
<i>Contact the Shepherd Chamber of Commerce at (210) 995-7420 or the Coldspring Chamber at (936) 653-2184.
Yvonne Cones is president of the Shepherd Chamber of Commerce and a member of the Coldspring Chamber of Commerce.</i>
