By Melinda L. Lucas

Members of the Albany Parent Teacher Organization, parents of local students, and several local businesses plan to provide snacks, meals, prizes, and gifts to Albany Independent School District teachers, support staff, and administrators during Teacher Appreciation Week May 2-6.

PTO organizer Malarie Sutton said teachers and staff members will have something special each day of the week, including snacks and gifts.

“This is a way of showing our appreciation for all that our teachers do for our children,” said Sutton.

Parents of Albany High School graduating seniors are reminded to gather baby pictures for The Albany News’ upcoming graduation section.

Pictures are due by the end of next week, on Thursday, May 5, if possible.

High resolution images for the graduation special section can be emailed to news@thealbanynews.net or photos can be brought by the News office to be scanned and returned immediately.

By Sam Waller

The Feed Store student council will make another attempt at staging its Powder Puff football game after last week’s effort was rained out.

Feed Store director Tisha Wilkins said the event is now planned for 2:00 p.m. this coming Sunday, May 1 at Robert Nail Memorial Stadium.

“Everything is the same with the exact same time; we’ve just changed the dates,” Wilkins said. “We were very thankful for the rain we got last Sunday, though.”

By Sam Waller

The Albany Ministerial Alliance is again spearheading local participation in the National Day of Prayer.

The local event will be held at 8:00 a.m. Thursday, May 5 at Bank Park.

The National Day of Prayer is an annual day of observance held on the first Thursday of May, designated by the United States Congress, when people are asked “to turn to God in prayer and meditation.”

The first Continental Congress called for a National Day of Prayer in 1775. President Abraham Lincoln called for a day of prayer in 1863 during the Civil War.

By Sam Waller

Moran’s freshman and junior students participated in an aquatic biology field day earlier at Texas State University in San Marcos.

Moran science teacher Matthew Hise said the program provided a general overview of different kinds of environments. The freshman students are taking biology, with the juniors involved in an aquatic science class.

“We  don’t have aquifer water in our area,” Hise said. “It was an experience to see aquatic organisms that are totally different from what we have in our area.”

By Sam Waller

The Albany Junior High tennis team got its first taste of outside competition Wednesday, April 20, with more than 30 players competing against opponents from Winters at the Albany courts.

“The junior high tennis season is very short,” coach M.J. Reneau said. “It’s about  getting racquets in their hands, learning some rules, getting on the court, and just trying to get them some experience to see if this is something they’d like to do in high school.”

By Donnie A. Lucas

It wasn’t exactly a case of lighting striking twice, but it was close.

The first time the Albany Lion Band earned a Sweepstakes Award for earning Division I ratings in marching, sight reading, and concert contests was in 1962.

The band that year was in the second year of a new director who had to dip down to the eighth graders, and even a few members from the seventh grade, to have a group large enough to truly compete.

Fast forward to 2022, some 60 years later, when the Lion Band repeated earning the Sweepstakes Award.

By Sam Waller

The Albany Lions and Lady Lions make their bid for a berth at the state track meet this weekend at the Regional II-2A meet at Porcupine Stadium in Springtown.

Albany has 10 boys and six girls qualified in individual events and relays. The teams have qualifiers in 11 boys and seven girls events, totaling 21 entries.

Running prelims will be held Friday, April 29, with finals on Saturday, April 30. Field events will be spread over both days.

By Sam Waller

The Albany Lady Lions split their final two District 8-2A softball games last week and start the playoffs this week.

Albany defeated Gorman 7-0 on Tuesday, April 19 on senior night at Webb Park before falling 7-5 on Friday, April 22 at Cisco.

Seniors Ana Balliew, Kam Browning, Ansleigh Garcia, and Sara Smith were recognized during the evening.

“Overall, it was a good week,” coach Jimmy Fuentes said. “We continued to play well.”

By Sam Waller

Sarah Cotter returned to the girls singles final at the Class 2A state tennis tournament this week, dropping just five games in a trio of straight-set victories to claim the gold medal.

Cotter, last year’s state runnerup, was one of three Albany entries at Blossom Tennis Center in San Antonio.

Luke Marshall reached the boys singles semifinals before being forced to withdraw because of an injury, and received the bronze medal during ceremonies on Wednesday.