Tonight (Tuesday) is the graduation ceremony for the Central High School Class of 2009. The ceremony will take place at Bethany at 6:30 PM. The copmmunity is invited to come show our support for these seniors as they celebrate their educational accomplishment.

The last day of school for the rest of the Central High Students and the students at all other Central Community Schools is this Thursday, May 21.

The library has a summer reading program for every age group. This Thursday, May 21, all branches of the East Baton Rouge Library will have reading logs available for children, teens, and adults. These will be available through Friday, July 31, and the programs end on August 15. Each age group features a different theme and reading goals. There is even a “read to me” program for children who cannot yet read, where someone older can volunteer to read to the child to count toward that child’s reading goals. Each age group has the opportunity to win certificates and prizes by reading a certain number of books. This year’s reading programs also feature events at the library, including another round of Potterstock, a tribute to Harry Potter through rock music, for teens.

To learn more about the summer reading programs, contact the Central Branch Library at 262-2640, the Greenwell Springs Road Branch at 274-4440, or visit the Library Website.

This summer, the Central High School athletic department will be putting on several summer sports camps. These camps are generally geared toward kids ages 7-12. The following is a camp schedule and contact phone numbers for the coaches leading each of the camps:

Baseball Camp: May 26-29, Mitch Covington 439-0097
Basketball Camp: June 1-4, Wes Watts 324-8354
Football Camp: June 8-11, Frank Fresina 337-2443
Volleyball Camp: June 8-11, Heather Blanchard 978-1527
Girls Basketball Camp: June 15-17, Michelle Efferson 202-9978
Softball Camp: June 22-25
Be sure to call soon to get more information if you are interested.

Even after the taxes to repair and build Central schools have passed, one Central student has decided to do her part to help. Leah Howell, a fourth grader at Central Intermediate School, has made the first official deposit towards the new elementary school. Leah and her mother, Melissa, sold headbands and bows to earn the money, which will go to help with building costs for the school. A big thank you goes out to Leah and her mother for working hard to help with such an important cause.

Immanuel Baptist Church has announced that it will put on “Son Rock” Kids’ Camp Vacation Bible School from Sunday, June 7 to Friday, June 12. The camp will be from 6 PM to 8:30 PM. Children ages 5-12 are welcome to participate. Friday, June 12 will be parents’ night. The church is asking for some assistance with VBS in the form of various donations. The following items are still needed for this year’s Vacation Bible School: black pipe cleaners, large pieces of styrofoam, artificial trees, pup tents, large vegetable cans, two 8-foot wooden poles for the camp banner, and plastic jars with lids. Call the church office at 261-7420, or visit their website for more information.

The Central Community Theatre has announced its summer camps for this year. The theatre will be putting on four camps this summer, each with a different theme. The camps include “Annie,” “101 Dalmations,” “Big Screen to Broadway,” and “Musical Theatre through the Decades.” The camps will be three hours a day for five days each. The camps focus on teaching kids about singing, acting, and dancing in these different aspects of musical theatre. Call 938-7433 to register soon, as the first camp begins June 1st. For more information about both these summer camps and other upcoming events, visit the Central Community Theatre Website.

After a very close win over Copiah in the first game of the series on Tuesday, Central Private suffered a loss agasinst the Colonels Thursday to tie the series at 1-1. The game was a low-scorer, with Copiah scoring the only 2 runs in the game, defeating the Rebels 2-0. The 32-4 Rebels have the chance to take the series today in their final game against Copiah Academy at 6:00.

The annual American Cancer Society Relay for Life in Central will take place this year on September 25 at the Central High School track. Last year, members of the Central community showed tremendous support for this event and raised thousands of dollars to fund cancer research and treatment. The kickoff meeting for this year’s relay will be Tuesday, May 12 from noon to 1:00 PM in the meeting room at the Central Branch Library. This is your opportunity to find out more about the relay, as well as to learn how you can be a part as a team member, team leader, or volunteer. If you would like to attend this informational meeting, please RSVP to Katie Baron at 767-4557. A light lunch will be served at the meeting. To learn more about the American Cancer Society and Relay for Life, please visit their website HERE.

 The 58th Annual National Day of APrayer will be this Thursday, May 7th. The City of Central will observe this day for the fifth year in a row. This Thursday from 6:30 to 7:30 PM, everyone is invited to join in prayer for our churches, schools, and our city. The gathering will take place at the parking lot in front of Central City Hall, behind Capital One Bank on Hooper Road. The churches in Central are sponsoring this event, which has been officially declared by Mayor Mac Watts as a Day of Prayer in Central. The Bible theme for this day is Psalm 33:22: “May your unfailing love rest upon us, O Lord, even as we put our hope in you.”