By Kathy Thomson Christmas is less than a week away, and with the help of generous donors, several local organizations are working to help make sure that everyone in Shackelford County has a Merry Christmas.

By Melinda L. Lucas Students at the Albany Independent School District will be released for the day at 12:30 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 19, and will break for the Christmas holidays at noon this Friday, Dec. 20. The district will be closed for the winter break from Monday, Dec. 23 through Friday, Jan.

By Kathy Thomson Several students and teams from Nancy Smith Elementary School and Albany Junior High placed at the district A+Academics University Interscholastic League meets held during December.  Writing exams were taken at the regular campuses.

By Melinda L. Lucas One major change is being publicized this week about Christmas events being conducted by local congregations during the week leading up to Christmas.

The Hendrick Regional Blood Center bloodmobile will be at First Baptist Church on the first Thursday of the new year, Jan. 2, from 1:00 p.m. until 6:00 p.m.  Hendrick Regional Blood Center supplies all of the blood and blood products used for patient care at 17 area hospitals.

By Kathy Thomson The former Shekinah office building, located catty-corner to the post office and near the Depot, is being re-purposed into a long-awaited senior citizens center, but funding is still needed to complete the transformation.

By Kathy Thomson The Shackelford County Youth and Livestock Association met last Tuesday, Dec. 10, to finalize plans for this year’s stock show, and with a large number of entries expected, the annual fundraising drive has begun.

By Melinda L. Lucas A new board member was sworn in during a very brief meeting of the Shackelford County Hospital District directors on Monday, Dec. 16.

By Kathy Thomson The annual Albany Chest campaign is nearing the Dec. 31 deadline, and although donations slowed to a crawl in early December, after a recent surge, the drive is now within $7,000 of reaching the goal of $42,000 set by directors for the 2019 campaign.

By Kathy Thomson The Albany Volunteer Fire Department honored member Casey Kimbrough with the 2019 Firefighter of the Year merit award at the annual Christmas party and meeting on Monday, Dec. 16.