The fourth annual Fort Griffin BBQ Cook-Off will take place in downtown Albany on the weekend of Sept. 28-29. Entry fee for the cook-off is $150 per team.

“I signed my team up today,” said Albany Chamber of Commerce president Ramby Anderson on Tuesday. “I’m excited about it, and so is my family!”

Anderson’s “Second Ham Smoke” team joined “Undercooked & Overserved,” “bbq_ye5epl,” and “Llano it’s GOOD BBQ,” as early entries in the contest.

Albany schools will start the first six weeks of the fall semester in five weeks, and it’s time for parents and school staff members to begin preparations for the upcoming school year, making sure that children are properly enrolled, and the school is ready for the starting day of the fall semester. 

Classes at the Albany Independent School District will begin on Thursday, Aug. 16, one day earlier than last year. 

New and ongoing recipients of Albany ISD Education Foundation scholarships need to provide proof of enrollment in order to receive their benefit for the fall 2018 semester.

“As far as I know, we don’t currently have a specific deadline date set this year,” said secondary campus principal Edward Morales. “But in the past, the students have sent their proof of enrollment to us as soon as possible, so we could release their scholarship funds to them.”

Children from pre-K to sixth grade are invited to grab their megaphones, lace up their cleats, tune up their instruments and come “gear up for life’s big game” at the Albany Ministerial Alliance supported Community Vacation Bible School Game On! taking place next week, July 16-20, at Friendship Baptist Church.

The theme verse for this year is 2 Peter 1:3. His divine power has given us everything required for life and godliness through the knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness.

Junior high and high school youth still have a couple of days to sign up for the remaining spots at The Feed Store’s lake retreat scheduled to take place the last weekend of July.

Registration is $25, and the signup deadline is Monday, July 16.

“We are trying to limit it to 30 students, but currently we are still accepting applications,” said Feed Store director Tisha Wilkins. “The girls will sleep inside and the boys will be outside, so we are hoping to borrow sleeping bags and tents for them. We will be sure to tag them and return them afterward!”

Albany’s new Academic Booster Club recently announced that it has reached its ambitious $150,000 developmental goal, and the funds are already being put to work with several educators attending special workshops and equipment purchases made for local school programs.

In addition, the need for “building out” a Creative Minds Facility, or “Maker Den” as it will be known at Albany ISD, received generous funding of $200,000 from an anonymous donor.

What It’s All About

Members of the Shackelford County Appraisal District’s board of directors passed a preliminary budget of $371,361 for 2019, an increase of about three percent from the current budget, during a meeting held on June 8.

The budget proposal is being presented this month to all county taxing entities, but will not be adopted until sometime this fall.

It is prepared early in order that participating tax entities can be aware of any additional expenses and include them as they prepare for the next fiscal year, according to assistant chief appraiser Clayton Snyder.

The Texas Water Development Board (TWDB) is partnering with the Texas Historical Commission (THC) and the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) to host the third annual #TXwindmills and #TXwatertowers Virtual Road Trip in July.

The TWDB is on the lookout for two iconic and important Texas water symbols that help define the story of Texas water: windmills and water towers. 

Preparations are beginning for the 15th annual gala planned by the Friends of Fort Griffin for Saturday, Oct. 6.

An open bar with premium brands, a rib eye dinner, silent and live auctions, music, and dancing will all take place at the fundraiser held again this year at Lynne and Clifford Teinert’s Collins Creek Ranch.

Doug Moreland and the Flying Armadillos will provide live music.

A cheer camp for local girls ages three years through sixth grade, originally planned for next week, has been rescheduled due to conflicts with VBS and with the twice yearly refinishing of the high school gym floors.