For the Progress-Times

An open house at the new Mantee City Hall will be this Saturday from 1 until 3 p.m.

Mantee was able to acquire Ludean Martin's grocery store building and has renovated it for its city hall. Mantee officials would also invite you to see all of the beautification work around town that has taken place during the past year.

In addition to the open house at the new city hall, Mantee Baptist Church will be having its centennial celebration. The celebration will begin at 5 p.m. Saturday with a cookout and fellowship. The celebration will continue on Sunday at 10:30 a.m.

WCDC Meeting

The Webster County Development Council will have its quarterly meeting Monday at 7 p.m.

In addition to the business meeting and updates on ongoing projects Bubba Weir with the Mississippi Technology Alliance will be on hand to discuss the impact of broadband on the rural economy. I hope that you will make plans to attend.

Fall Decoration Contest

The temperature outside has begun to cool down from the 100-degree weather of July and August; the crops are being harvested and fall is definitely on the way. To help get everyone throughout the county ready to celebrate the coming of fall the Webster County Development Council is sponsoring a Fall Decoration Contest.

Everyone is invited to participate by decorating the exterior of your home, business or office. If you would like your exterior decorations considered in the judging contact the WCDC office at 258-7835 and let me know. Judging will take place on Oct. 20. Winners from each of the communities in the county will be recognized in The Webster Progress-Times.

Christmas Market

Preparation Begins

The first planning session for the Christmas Market Festival was Sept. 7 at the Depot. The Christmas Market Festival will be taking place on Dec. 1 and 2.

The planning committee hopes to get as many civic groups, church groups, school groups and others involved in the preparation for and activities that will be taking place in conjunction with the festival. The next meeting for the planning group will be Oct. 10 at 6 p.m. in the Depot. If you were not able to attend this meeting and would like to be involved, mark you calendar and plan to come.

Plans are for the Miss Merry Christmas Pageant to be held on Dec. 1 at 6 p.m. with participants ranging in age from 1 to 17. Be looking for more pageant details and entry forms in the near future.

In addition to the vendors, the pageant and the parade, we are planning to have a Christmas Lighting and Decoration contest throughout the county. Details about participation will be coming out soon.

For the past two years, the festival has been very successful with at least three businesses opening in downtown Eupora following participation in the festival. As a result, we are having a really good problem in having vacant buildings in downtown to house the vendors for the day of the market. If you have a building that you would like for us to use, please give me a call at 258-7835.

If you are interested or know of someone who might be interested in participating in the Christmas Market Festival as a vendor, the applications are available at the Webster County Development Council office in the Depot. You can either stop by and pick one up or give me a call at 258-7835 and I will get one to you.

Strategic Planning

Sessions Conclude

On Tuesday, we wrapped up the last of the strategic planning sessions with the elected officials in each of the municipalities and the Board of Supervisors. Each of these meetings has been very productive and I really appreciate the time and effort that has gone into the sessions.

As a result, these sessions have given me a better idea of what I can do as the director for the Webster County Development Council to be of assistance to each municipality and the county Board of Supervisors.

New Manufacturer

Coming to Mathiston

The much-anticipated arrival of a new manufacturer to occupy the former Red Kap building in Mathiston is finally going to take place. Front Line Apparel Group is in the process of moving equipment from Connecticut to Mathiston.

It hopes to be up and running very soon and is looking for qualified applicants. For more information on putting in your application, you may contact Jerry Riggan at 263-4294.

County Cookbook

Work Session

Work is continuing on the county cookbook. A work session to compile the recipes is today (Thursday) at 9 a.m. in the Depot.

We are still collecting recipes so if you have any you would like to see included they can be dropped off at the Depot, mailed to the WCDC at P.O. Box 542; Eupora or e-mailed to me at webwcdc@bellsouth.net.

Got an E-Mail Address?

One of the fastest ways I have to be able to get information out to everyone is by e-mail. If you have an e-mail address and would like to be added to my list just e-mail me at webwcdc@bellsouth.net. I look forward to hearing from you.

Farmer's Market

Many of you have taken advantage of having our Farmer's Market during this summer. Despite the dry weather and its adverse affect on the produce being grown, we have had a good response.

On behalf of the producers and the Webster County Development Council, I want to thank you for your support of this endeavor. We look forward to the market growing and getting better each year.

Wilson is executive director of the Webster County Development Council.