THURSDAY The annual Hughes County Free Fair will open to the public at 1:00 p.m. Thursday, September 2.

The Holdenville School Board held its monthly meeting August 9. Former teacher Diane Bennett open the meeting, addressing the school board about her concerns over a recent incident during her employment last school year and the need to address some of the current policies in place at Holdenville Schools.

SENDING ONE DEEP.... Cheyenne Fixico takes a peek as she sends a home run high and deep over the left field fence.

Sales tax revenue returns for Hughes County were mixed in the latest report. Wetumka, Calvin, Stuart, Atwood and Yeager all showed an increase in business, while Holdenville, Dustin and Gerty saw a decrease in the latest report.

MISDEMEANORS Christopher M. Hutchinson OSW— driving a motor vehicle while under the influence of drugs CIVIL Absolute Resolutions Investments vs.

Many of us who still go to Sunday School are studying a part of the Old Testament called Ecclesiastes. Not only can we not spell it, we in the “Cemetery” Class have a hard time trying to comprehend the teachings of the old teacher (Solomon). But we try. This morning I got out of bed and walked toward my kitchen where my wife was fixing our breakfast. She had our TV tuned to channel 25 and it was saying something about the “heartbreak of erectile disfunction.” That was the same commercial that had played the morning before. Yep. Just like in Ecclesiastes, it too had already been. And my breakfast was on the stove.

Jim Priest is CEO of Goodwill Industries of Central Oklahoma and can be reached at jpriest@okgoodwill.org. I’m teaching a Sunday School series on the Seven Deadly Sins and the Seven Cardinal Virtues.

Comments to: andybowman839@gmail.com Coffeetimecolumn.com Life can be a lot like Gomer Pyles’ favorite saying - “Surprise, surprise, surprise!” When you are coasting along, never expecting the unusual, it happens. Just a week ago, on a quiet Saturday afternoon, Andy suddenly became nauseated, then Ellen the Elephant began doing her famous stomp dance on his chest.

Fall Sports Seasons begin The Holdenville High School sports seasons will begin in a flurry this week. The softball team will play three games this week! The cross country team will host an invitational meet! Football practice will begin! The band is practicing! Fall sports will officially begin! Softball season starts! The softball team will host Morris on Monday, make a return trip to Morris on Tuesday, and travel to Meeker on Friday! Wolverine softball coach, Rick Scott, is expected to put another excellent team on the field! The games should be exciting! Holdenville hosts Cross country meet The Holdenville High School cross country team will host the Wolverine Invitational on Saturday.

Holdenville has always been, to me, a magical place. A small town with a big heart, a small population full of big dreamers. I grew up in what seems now in my mind, a major motion picture. The cast of characters which made up my adolescence were people who were bigger than life. They were and are famous to me. Teachers like Richard Billingsley, Teresa Rothrock, Nancy Allford, and Jennie Davidson. Coaches like Butch Rawls, Larry Miller, Jerry O’Steen, and Mike Patterson. And upperclassman like Sterlin Harjo. Sterlin has always been famous in our small town. His creativity and artistic ability were noticed early on. None of us here in HOLDENVILLE are surprised that Sterlin is finally being recognized on the national stage for his work and contribution to the television and film industry. But I would argue that it is not simply his talent for creating and directing which has made him famous here in our town. Sterlin is one of the kindest, most inclusive people that you will ever meet. He has a smile that is contagious, a laugh that will draw you in, and a conversational style that will make you feel like you belong. He has a way of bringing people together and making them feel important. His new series Reservation Dogs to be released August 9 on FX on HULU captures the heart and soul of a culture and community in which Sterlin grew up. I had the honor of attending a screening of the first two episodes last week at The Cove in River Wind Casino. Sterlin and his family invited my friend Jackie Siegrest and me up to their box to spend an evening with them that I will never forget. Watching the way Sterlin interacted with his family and friends, making everyone laugh, talking about stories from our childhood, and cutting up with his brothers, it was easy to forget that he was now not only famous to me, but famous. It all started to sink in as they ushered him to the stage where the Muscogee Nation honored Sterlin for the work he has done and the difference he is making in the lives of Natives all across America. His new series, Reservation Dogs has not only created a culture onscreen which has never been portrayed before, but it has created a place for Native actors and crew members to take part in its creation. It is a work bigger than itself. It has sparked a movement which tribal members can be proud of and take part in. To help further the work which Sterlin has begun, the Muscogee Nation has created the Sterlin Harjo Scholarship. A scholarship for Native American film students who are looking for a career in the movie and television industry. FX thought so much of it that the network has agreed to add an extra $10,000 of its own money to the scholarship.