By Stephanie Nelson
Andalusia Star News
Mayor Earl Johnson said Tuesday he hopes the crowd for the Absolutely Andalusia Homecoming 2010 events this week number in the thousands.
“With this being the first time, it’s hard to anticipate just how many people will visit Andalusia over the three to four day period,” Johnson said. “I think that – once it’s said and done – that number will be pretty significant.”
And with the increase in visitors one can expect an increase in sales tax collections.
“Those people are going to come to town and spend money while they’re here, which, aside from the homecoming and seeing everyone, is an added bonus to the event. People are going to eat here, shop here, buy gas and hopefully spend the night in one of our area hotels.”
Tomorrow will mark the start of the celebration with the 9 a.m. “All American Homecoming” parade at 9 a.m. Veterans will line up at 8:30 a.m. at Andalusia High School. The parade will begin there and travel Third Avenue onto East Three Notch Street, before ending at Veteran’s Memorial Park.
Following the parade, a ceremony and reception will be held at the Memorial Park. Activities also include a historical marker presentation, a reception, pictures with all participating veterans at Memorial Park and City Hall tours for everyone.
“A lot of times people give lip service about how appreciative they are for the service the veterans provided to our country,” Johnson said. “Thursday is a perfect opportunity for the community to show (veterans) how much they appreciate it. I hope our citizens and the community make the effort.”
a wreath at Veteran’s Memorial Park on Tuesday
afternoon. | Stephanie Nelson/ Star News
There are a “multitude” of events happening throughout the weekend such as walking tours, art shows and a musical.
This year’s annual Andalusia Middle School veterans’ day program will be held on Friday at 1 p.m. Because parking is limited at AMS, a shuttle service is being provided with pick-ups at 12:35 p.m. at the following locations:
• city hall;
• Johnson Park;
• First Baptist Church, Andalusia;
• First Baptist Church, Whatley Street;
• Cedar Grove Church of Christ;
• Coleman Center;
• Southside Baptist Church; and
• Harmony Baptist Church (Please call 222-8117 to schedule a pick-up at this location.)
There will be no parking at the school.
Johnson said he believes Saturday’s air show at the South Alabama Regional Airport performance by the U.S. Air Force A-10A Thunderbolt II West Coast Team will be the biggest draw of the event. The gates open to the general public at 9 a.m., and food vendors and various exhibitors will be on site throughout the day. Musical artists Scott Rogers and Phillip McClung perform at 11 a.m., and the Airshow begins at noon. Other ground entertainment includes a comical act from Greg Koontz & the Alabama Boys at 12:45 p.m. and country music artist and Opp native Martin McDaniel at 3:45 p.m., followed by fireworks from Bama Boys Fireworks.
At 3:15 p.m., the team will take to the skies with pyrotechnics.
No pets or coolers are allowed at the air show; however, attendees are encouraged to bring their cameras, lawn chairs and portable radios. The day’s events will conclude at 5 p.m.
“An event of this magnitude has never been done here before,” Johnson said. “I’d guess the crowd at 5,000 to 6,000, but it could go as high as 10,000. We’ll just have to see.”
By Staff Reports
Andalusia Star News
To say that Brig. Gen. Walter D. Givhan, Thursday’s featured speaker at the Covington County Veteran’s Day Ceremony, knows something about the military would be an understatement.
Givhan is scheduled to speak immediately following the parade, at approximately 10 a.m., at the Andalusia Veterans’ Memorial Park, located behind city hall. His address will be followed by a wreath laying ceremony with a 21-gun salute and the playing of “Taps” in memory of the nation’s fallen soldiers.
Givhan currently serves as the Commandant of the Air Force Institute of Technology at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio.
The institute supports national defense by providing graduate, post-graduate and professional education and research programs for Air Force, sister service and foreign officers and civilians in pertinent scientific and technical disciplines.
Givhan, a native of Safford, Ala., graduated from Morgan Academy in Selma and the University of the South in Sewanee, Tenn., where he was a National Merit Scholar. He served as the U.S. air liaison officer to the commanding general, French ground forces, for operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. He has commanded a combat training squadron, an operations group, an air base wing and an air expeditionary wing.
His previous staff assignments include deputy military assistant to the Secretary of the Air Force; Chief of the Congressional Action Division for Air Force Legislative Liaison; Chief, Combat Forces Division, Directorate of Programs; and Director, Secretary of the Air Force and Chief of Staff Executive Action Group, Headquarters U.S. Air Force. He was also a Military Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations. He is a command pilot with more than 2,500 flying hours in the T-37, T-38, T-1, AT-38, F-15 and A-10 aircraft.
Honors include a Bronze Star medal, Meritorious Service Medal with four oak leaf clusters, a National Defense Service Medal with bronze star, Global War on Terrorism Service medal, two Kuwait Liberation medals and a French Croix de Guerre with silver star.
Posted on Tuesday, November 9th, 2010 at 1:39 am.
By Kendra Bolling
Andalusia Star News
Gage Theus, Matthew Beasley and Madeline Miller enjoy playing on the tire swing.
Children were found enjoying the newly renovated Dream Park Monday. The park will be dedicated Thurs., Nov. 11 at 2 p.m.
Gage Theus, Matthew Beasley and Madeline Miller enjoy playing on the tire swing.
By Stephanie Nelson
Andalusia Star News
Covington County residents will have an opportunity Sunday to see a first-ever event on two fronts – a performance by the nationally renowned Lily Cai Chinese Dance Com-pany.
It will be Cai’s first Alab-ama performance ever.
“I think that dance is about everyone’s life,” Cai said Tuesday. “A moving body constitutes dance. Think about it. When you laugh, your head is moving. That is dance.”
Cai and her six-member dance company are being brought to the area as part of the Covington Arts Council’s 2010-2011 season.
Cai moved to the U.S. from Shanghai in 1984, she said. Four years later, she established her dance company.
“The longer I live (in the U.S.) the more I realize that people know little about Chinese dance – Chinese food, yes; Chinese dance, no,” she said. “It is so unique. It is very rich. It has such beauty, such feeling. Most people who see it say they have never seen anything like it in their life.”
Most in Covington County have never had the opportunity to see such a performance, which was the exact reason Paula Harr, CAC executive director, leaped at the opportunity to bring the company to the area.
“I had looked at this company for a number of years, but the price was always a little out of reach for us,” Harr said. “This year, the tour was coming through the area and with the help of a grant, we were able to negotiate to bring them to Andalusia.
“This performance is just beautiful to watch,” she said. “Their technical ability is amazing. Even those who may not be into dance will enjoy the esthetic quality and beauty of their movement.”
Described as “Elegant, sensual and captivating,” the Lily Cai Chinese Dance Company “melds ancient Chinese forms with modern dance in an artistic and inventive marriage of styles. The Company bridges the continuum from past to contemporary – from spectacular court dances of Chinese dynasties to contemporary works fusing classical Chinese movement and ballet, complemented by dazzling costumes, original music and multi-media designs.”
The company will also host a workshop for area dancers on Saturday.
“Anytime that someone has the opportunity to see something outside their usual realm of dance experience, it only enhances their appreciation of the art of dance,” Harr said of the local tutorial.
Lily Cai will hit the stage Sunday as part of the
Covington Arts Council’s 2010-2011 season. | Courtesy photo
The 2 p.m. performance Sunday at the Lurleen B. Wallace Community College Dixon Center will serve as a close to the “Absolutely Andalusia” event. On display in the lobby will be a ribbon sculpture created by Cathy Powell’s gifted and talented students at Andalusia Elementary School.
“We want people to know that arts are alive and well in Andalusia and Covington County, and we’re very proud of it,” Harr said.
That’s also a message that Cai said she hopes to promote through each of her performances no matter their location.
“We want you to enjoy the beauty of happy and to see something different when come see us perform,” Cai said.
This performance of the Lily Cai Chinese Dance Company is funded in part by a grant from South Arts in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts and the Alabama State Council on the Arts.
General admission season tickets are $50 each; $25 for students. Family packages, which consist of two general admission tickets and two student tickets, are $125 for the season.
Tickets are available at Ansley Place or Brooks True Value Hardware and will be available at the door of the night performance for $15 each.
Posted on Tuesday, November 9th, 2010 at 12:01 am.
By Kendra Bolling
Andalusia Star News
“Stitches in time,” — that’s how one local group is celebrating “Absolutely Andalusia Homecoming 2010.”
The Covington County Quilters Guild is sponsoring a quilt show beginning Thurs., Nov. 11, from noon until 5 p.m. that will feature about 150 quilted objects, said publicist Jane Barber.
“We heard about the Andalusia homecoming event last January,” she said. “They were looking for participants this weekend, and we decided we would participate.”
Barber said the show, which will be held at the Johnson Park gym, is “just for homecoming” and the organization hopes to see people from all over stop by and see the works.
Barber said the quilt show features items for everyone in the family — jackets, purses, pictures made of fabric, Christmas wall hanging, and several examples of the mystery and challenge quilts the organization has worked on over the past couple of years.
“With our mystery quilts (quilts that have an unknown pattern or story), you will find that they are all similar, but all quite different,” she said. “We will have a wall for our challenge quilts. We all used the same fabric, but all very different.”
Barber said for those who may want to make purchases at the event, the organization will have an “extensive” gift shop, which will include crafts, books, magazines and even fabric.
Additionally, Barber said that organization is selling $1 chances on an opportunity quilt and all proceeds will go to the Dream Park renovation project.
“We agreed to buy two $400 tic-tac-toe boards for the Dream Park renovation,” she said. “Anything we have left over we’ll give to them.”
Barber said the chances will be sold until around 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, when the drawing will take place.
The event is free to the public, and it will also be open Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m.