By Donnie A. Lucas The county commissioners court voted Monday to open the doors to the courthouse to the public again, ending a limited access policy that was in force for several weeks due to concerns about the coronavirus pandemic.

By Lynsi Musselman With more time at home, many people in Albany have stepped up their culinary endeavors.

By Kathy Thomson Pick-up dates for the May distribution of the commodity food program are expected to take place as scheduled, on May 7 and 8 using the same outdoor distribution protocols enacted last month so participants can more easily maintain proper social distancing.

By Lynsi Musselman The 2020 Census for Shackelford County, and all of the United States, is facing challenges that puts everyone at risk for an undercount. Currently, Shackelford County’s response rate is 26.2 percent.

By Lynsi Musselman Social-distancing creates an environment for personal prayer and comteplation this year during National Day of Prayer.  Albany churches will welcome all faiths for individual prayer on Thursday, May 7, from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

By Donnie A. Lucas Eight local senior athletes who were chosen earlier in the year to compete in the 2020 Big Country FCA All-Star Festival set for June received the news last week that the event has been cancelled due to due to ongoing concerns with the Coronavirus -COVID-19 pandemic.

By Kathy Thomson Communities across the country recognize those who help save lives in times of personal or national crisis during National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week, held April 12-18.

By Lynsi Musselman Jo and Matthew Hise of Moran are Big Country East FCA’s Huddle Coaches of the Year. “This is a big honor,” Jo Hise said. “We love being involved in FCA and going to the family coaches camp. It is an awesome time and a huge blessing.

By Lynsi Musselman Moran Independent School District board is still awaiting approval to consider accepting a tax deferment proposal by a windmill company which intends to start a project south of Moran. Part of the planned windmill farm will be in the MISD taxing district.

By Lynsi Musselman The Shackelford County Library has an online resource making reading more accessible. The doors might be temporaily closed due to the coronavirus but books are still available. Children to adult books in a variety of generes can be located at https://shackelford.biblionix.com.