Festival: James Burton celebrated his 75th birthday and kicked off the James Burton International Festival on Aug. 22-24. The threeday festival began with a birthday celebration for Burton. Tracy Atkins, Paul Shaffer, Ann Wilson, Mike Wolfe and Priscilla Presley were just a few of the stars who were on stage for the festival. On Aug. 24, the James Burton Foundation handed out acoustic guitars. To date, thousands of guitars have been given away, but a huge part of the funds that support the guitars for the children will come from the James Burton International Guitar Festival.
Multicultural: Guests traveled from
as far as Nepal to attend the Taste of Culture sponsored by the
Multicultural Center of the South on July 19 at DiamondJacks Casino. The
annual event celebrates a cultural tapestry through the flavor, sights
and sounds of the many ethnicities in Northwest Louisiana. Entertainment
included tinikling (traditional dancing) with bamboo poles, salsa and
Indian dancing. Food included German goulash and spatzle from
DiamondJacks; African peg salad; Haitian lasagna, rice and shrimp; Cajun
jambalaya; Mexican flautas; General Tso chicken; Korean kimchi; Greek
hummus; Turkish cous cous and Iranian kalam polo. Flags from all over
the world hung at the entrance to the event and served as centerpieces.
– Mary Ann Van Osdell
NICU: The
annual CHRISTUS Schumpert NICU Reunion was held July 20 in the
cafeteria on Margaret Place. Using circus as a theme, those attending
saw a therapy dog dressed like a clown and enjoyed popcorn, snow cones
and cake. There was also face-painting and crayons and coloring books.
Scrapbooks were on display from as far back as 1986.
– Mary Ann Van Osdell
Open House: Campus
Federal Credit Union held its annual open house July 31 at the
Pierremont branch located at 1555 E. 70th St. Guests enjoyed a food and
dessert spread.
– Mary Ann Van Osdell
Bridal Shower: Guests
were told to come dressed in their best 1950s housewife attire for a
bridal shower for Dr. Vicky Chesser on Aug. 2. It was held at the home
of Julia Brooks and co-hosted by Kelly Rainwater. Guests played a trivia
game of guessing who played famous housewives on TV and listened to
music on a jukebox. The hosts used records as food trays and soup cans
to display some of the snacks. Everyone wrote advice for the bride on
wooden spoons. Chesser will marry David Green on Sept. 27.
– Mary Ann Van Osdell
Commodores: The
Commodores had the crowd dancing at DiamondJacks. They taught the crowd
how to “bounce” two and three times to some of the songs. The famous
1970s funk and soul band held a meet and greet before the show Aug. 2.
– Mary Ann Van Osdell
Wine: Tastings of
European wines were provided Aug. 5 at an event on the behalf of CORK at
Chianti. The Italian, Spanish and French wines were accompanied by
specific food pairings to give a taste of Europe.
– Mary Ann Van Osdell
America: “A
Celebration of America,” a party held Aug. 23 off of Ellerbe Road,
celebrated 50 years of Louis Avallone’s arrival in the United States.
Held outdoors, commemorative fans were available and as were drinks from
Happy Belly’s. A band played patriotic music and Silver Star catered
the meal.
– Mary Ann Van Osdell
Birthday: Virginia
Israel hosted a 40th birthday celebration Aug. 6 for her daughter Paige
Reagan at the Israel Southern Trace home. Reagan embraced the event and
enjoyed the girls’ night out. Guests were encouraged to wear pink,
white or black. Wine Country catered.
– Mary Ann Van Osdell
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Or contact Mary Ann Van Osdell at mavo@softdisk.com or Mark Crawford at markcrawford1@aol.com for coverage.
