By Kathy Thomson Two important events for local ag students will occur next week, and another took place earlier this Monday.  The Shackelford Youth and Livestock Association will have a meeting on Tuesday, Dec. 10 at 6:00 p.m.

By Kathy Thomson The Feed Store has a lot of events on its December calendar including a senior citizens “Legacy” dinner, a fundraising meal, the annual youth Christmas party, and opportunities for students to study for exams.

By Melinda L. Lucas The third annual Cele-bration of Remembrance, intended to honor lost loved ones and help with the grieving process during the holiday season, will be held this Sunday, Dec. 8 at 6:00 p.m.

By Kathy Thomson Applications for the Albany Ministerial Alliance Christmas Baskets must be turned in by this Friday, Dec. 6. Those still needing forms can pick them up at participating churches or at the Resource Center in Albany.

By Kathy Thomson Pick-up dates for the December distribution of the commodity food program are Dec. 5 and 6. Moran recipients should note that both the day of the week and the time of pick-up have changed since last month. On Thursday, Dec.

By Kathy Thomson The Christmas season is underway, and local churches are hosting numerous activities to spread Christmas spirit throughout the community.

Albany News publisher Donnie Lucas announced this week that there will not be an edition published during the week of Christmas on Thursday, Dec. 26. “We’ve decided to take that week off and be able to enjoy our family more during the holidays,” said Lucas.

By Melinda L. Lucas The Christmas season is in full swing at the Old Jail Art Center, and special activities for December include the free holiday marionette shows that were offered earlier this week, as well as an upcoming family festival on Saturday, Dec. 14.

By Donnie A. Lucas The Lady Lion basketball team split games last week, suffering the first loss of the season against Ballinger but rebounding for a victory over Hamlin. Albany traveled to Munday on Dec. 3, picking up an easy 55-25 win to improve to 5-1 for the season.

By Donnie A. Lucas The varsity Lion basketball team opened their season in Munday this week, dropping their first outing 52-44 on the road. The varsity will be open this weekend after being bumped from the Winters Tournament, but the JV and JV II Lions will host a local tournament.