A simple request on Facebook from Schwartz Principal Rondall Jones to the school’s PTA led a group of more than 40 volunteers to have a work/clean-up day at Schwartz Elementary on Saturday, Aug. 17.
An overwhelming response from parents, students, teachers and other community supporters turned out to beautify the school grounds.
"The generosity of those who gave of their time, tools, and teamwork to make our school look great on the first day of classes was overwhelming," Jones said. "Our school’s theme this year is centered around baseball. Our volunteer team truly hit one out of the park!"
It’s a long proven theory that children will be honest at the most inopportune times! They repeat the things you would never want somebody else to know you said and they mimic the things you don’t want anyone else to know you do.
Every day, it seems, they can find new and exciting ways to embarrass you if you aren’t careful.
Consider this modern-day parable from a mortified mother:
Oklahomans definitely have a love affair with our crape myrtles; in many areas you can see them on practically every street. And why not?
Few plants can match the crape myrtle’s spectacular summer flowers, colorful autumn foliage and attractive sculptured wood. Known as the "lilac of the South" they are truly versatile plants; here are some tips if you are thinking about adding a crape myrtle to your landscape.
Crape myrtles, Lagerstroemia indica, have many landscape uses: planted together, they make a great hedge or screen for your yard, while a single plant can create a distinctive focal point in a garden bed. Crape myrtles also make wonderful foundation plants around your house.
Summer is a great time to buy crape myrtles because it is easy to see bloom color.
Much like the earlier summer hit "Now You See Me," the Relativity Media release of "Paranoia" wasn’t on my radar until well into the summer.
It hit my list of must-sees with a starring cast of Harrison Ford, Gary Oldman and Liam Hemsworth and a potentially thought provoking commentary on the current have’s vs. have not’s makeup of our world.
Set in New York City, the film features the rivalry between two tech-giant owners, Nicholas Wyatt (Oldman) of Wyatt Corp. and Jock Goddard (Ford) of eikon.
The man caught in the middle of this corporate battle is Adam Cassidy (Hemsworth) as Goddard and Wyatt compete to be the first out with an industry changing product. Wyatt is willing to do anything, even stealing trade secrets, to get the product that was envisioned by Goddard’s firm, eikon.
Ralph Duncan came to Wickline United Methodist Church on the first Sunday in July 1983.
Since that time, he has been at Wickline leading the choir, heading the music program, arranging and providing special music for 30 years.
Of course, when he auditioned for the position and when he became the director of music, he had no idea that 30 years later, he would still be using his gifts in that position.
Duncan said however, it is a blessing to still be working with the Wickline choir.
He has always been interested in the performing arts — or at least since his early school years. He believes that he has been blessed to have many of the instructors and mentors he has studied under and with.
One characteristic that many of them shared in addition to their musical knowledge was enthusiasm. They were eager to encourage others in their love of music.
Duncan said he has followed that example in all of his endeavors.
The City of Midwest City’s parks and recreation department has a busy few months ahead of them.
Starting next Monday, Aug. 26, the first session of recreation classes begin. On Monday nights, cheer and pom class for ages seven to 12 will start at 5 p.m.
Cost is $54. A combination class of ballet, tumble, jazz and beam for ages four to six follows at 6 p.m. Cost is $69.
The first session of classes goes from Aug. 26 to Oct. 21. The second session is Oct. 28 through Dec. 9.
A Safe Kids Self Defense class also is available for ages four to 15. Held Tuesdays at 6 p.m., the class cost $5 per class with $5 registration fee.
It took three years for the sequel to "Percy Jackson: The Lightning Thief" to finally arrive in theatres.
Based on the bestselling Rick Riordan books, the series follows Percy Jackson as he discovers he is the son of the god Poseidon, a demi-god, and all the perils that come with the title.
"Percy Jackson: The Sea of Monsters" is set after Percy (Logan Lerman), Annabeth (Alexandria Daddario) and Grover (Brandon T. Jackson) successfully saved Olympus from Luke (Jake Abel), the son of Hermes.
When Thalia’s Tree, from which the barrier protecting Camp Half-Blood is sickened, the three set off again, accompanied by Tyson (Douglas Smith), Percy’s Cyclops half-brother.
Their goals are to retrieve the Golden Fleece from Polyphemus and save the camp.
TULSA – Taylor Craft, of Midwest City, recently received his white coat during a special ceremony for first-year medical students at Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences in Tulsa.
Craft was one of 115 students in the OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine honored during the annual White Coat Ceremony on Aug. 4. The ceremony emphasizes the importance of the doctor-patient relationship and focuses on the true meaning of the science of medicine. Student doctors also recited the Osteopathic Medicine Oath of Commitment, symbolizing their entrance into the profession.
Painting on porcelain, an art beginning thousands of years ago, is "unforgiving," Thelma Ingram said.
Ingram serves as the convention president for the World of China Painters’ exhibit held at the Sheraton Hotel in Midwest City this year. To sidestep confusion, Porcelain and China are interchangeable terms, Ingram said.
Once the brush of the artist touches porcelain, the paint cannot be retouched nor removed as per the medium.
In preparation, artists painting on porcelain first must know what they will paint. They must use foresight before they reach the point of no return.
Approximately one in five Americans will have a mental health problem in any given year, yet only a little over one in three people with a mental health problem will receive mental health services. Over 38,000 Americans died by suicide in 2010, making the number of Americans who die by suicide more than double the number who died by homicide. Serious mental illnesses cost the U.S. an estimated $193.2 billion in lost earnings per year. Effective nationwide school-based substance abuse prevention programming can offer states savings within two years ranging from: $36 million to $199 million in juvenile justice; $383 million to $2.1 billion in education; and $68 million to $360 million in health services.
According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), unaddressed mental health issues can have a negative influence on homelessness, poverty, employment, safety, and the local economy. Providing for and supporting good mental health is a public health issue just like assuring the quality of drinking water or preventing and managing infectious diseases. Communities prosper when the mental health needs of community members are met.
