By Donnie A. Lucas

The high school Winter Formal is set for Saturday at the Whitney Theatre from 7:30 to 10:00 p.m.

Sponsored by the Albany Student Council, the event is open only to high school students and guests who have been pre-approved.

The crowning of Mr. and Miss AHS will be held at 9:00 p.m., followed with presentation of the prince and princess for the freshmen, sophomore, and junior classes.

Tickets are available from the four class presidents in advance for $10, or can be purchased for $15 at the door.

By Donnie A. Lucas

General Education Development  (GED) classes have resumed with the start of the spring semester and are being held on Mondays and Tuesdays at the Shackelford County Library.

Instructor Kenzie Fairchild said anyone interested in registering for classes may still do so. Registrants will need to bring an acceptable form of identification such as drivers license and Social Security card. The classes are open to students age 17 or older. Students who are 17 must have parental consent to register.

Elia Hebel is among the students listed on the Dean’s List of Academic Honors for fall 2022 semester at Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, Texas. They are undergraduates who have achieved a grade point average of at least 3.5 out of a perfect 4.0 in all work attempted while enrolled in not less than 12 semester hours.

Elia is the daughter of Rose and Kirk Hebel.

Two Albany students were recognized for their achievements at Tarleton State University for the fall 2022 semester.

Max Balliew was  commended for the outstanding academic achievement of earning a 4.0 GPA and making the President’s List for the Fall 2022 semester of Tarleton State College.

Balliew is majoring in Biomedical Science and is scheduled to graduate in May. He is the son of Candy and Tim Balliew.

Conner Clark earned a place on TSU’s Scholastic Honors Dean’s List.

By Sam Waller

The Albany Lions, along with fellow state champion football teams from Hawley, Benjamin, and Westbrook, were honored Sunday, Jan. 22 at a reception hosted by the Big Country Athletic Hall of Fame at the Mall of Abilene.

Loraine players and coaches, who lost to Benjamin in the Class 1A Division II state game, were also recognized.

“It gave us a chance to talk about the game one more time,” Lions head coach Denney Faith said “We got to see some highlights, and a lot of people from the Big Country who didn’t get to go to the game congratulated our kids.”

By Sam Waller

Albany’s Judson Rogers caught a calf Tuesday, Jan. 17 during the calf scramble at the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo.

For his efforts, Rogers received a $500 certificate to purchase a registered beef or dairy heifer to be shown at next year’s Fort Worth show.

A Celebration of Life was held for former Albany resident Ann Elaine Speck Steele after she passed away on Dec. 23, 2022 in Schulenburg, Texas.

Born Feb. 7, 1944, she came to Albany with her parents, who were both educators.

Ann was an OR nurse who taught five medical surgery classes for 35 years.

She is survived by her daughter, Amanda Miller of Schulenburg; her brother, Jerry and wife Nadene; four grandchildren; nine great grandchildren, and six great great grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by her parents, A.P. and Effie Mae Speck.

By Sam Waller

Approximately 150 Shackelford County youth will exhibit around 250 animals this weekend at the Shackelford Youth and Livestock Show.

This year’s show runs Thursday, Jan. 19 (today), through Saturday, Jan. 21. The show is the largest extracurricular activity for Shackelford County youth with more than 100 students from Albany FFA, another 20 from Moran FFA and more than 30 members of Shackelford County 4-H entered.

By Donnie A. Lucas

Albany resident Brandi Lehew has been named as the new manager of the Albany Chamber of Commerce, starting the position this week with regular office hours.

While directors have yet to set the exact time the office will be open, Lehew said that she will be at the Depot on Tuesday through Friday.

“I’m very excited about the opportunity,” Lehew said. “We just love Albany, and everyone has been so welcoming since we moved here.”

By Melinda L. Lucas

At the end of Monday night’s meeting, following the routine closed-session evaluation of AISD superintendent Jonathan Scott, a unanimous motion among the four board members present extended Scott’s contract by one more year to January 2026.

A salary increase was included in the motion for an undisclosed percentage, contingent upon the 2023-2024 budget.

The action came at the end of a 3-1/2 hour closed session, with the meeting adjourning a few minutes later.