The Boone County Leadership Institute and the Youth Leadership Academy  recently held their agriculture session. These leadership programs provide numerous opportunities for young people to connect with the local businesses from all sectors, learning more about the local business community. more

LITTLE ROCK — The Keep Arkansas Beautiful Commission (KAB) has announced the kickoff of the 2024 Keep America Beautiful Great American Cleanup in Arkansas. Arkansans are invited to register and host their own cleanups from March 1 through May 31. more

Lead Hill Student, Hunter Ricketts shot a 292 and finished 1st place in the High School Boys Division at the State Archery Tournament in Hot Springs! He will qualify to compete in the National Tournament in Louisville, Kentucky! Congratulations, Hunter! We are so proud of you. more

"Quilting is...A Total Eclipse of the Heart," is the theme of this year's Northwest Arkansas Quilt Workshop now underway on Thursdays through April 4. The workshops are being conducted at the Signature Bank Community Room in Harrison. Activities will include: 3D quilting, a free swap table, hands-on afternoon workshops and much more. more

The intersection of South Spring and West Central in Harrison has seen an increase in traffic lately and an increase in traffic accidents along with it. more

Lunch is served from 11:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. more

The members of the Marble Falls Sewer Improvement District Board of Commissioners met at the Newton County Library in Jasper Tuesday morning, March 5, and passed a resolution to enter into a memorandum of understanding with the Arkansas Department of Agriculture to accept and agree to pay off the debt on a loan from the department's Natural Resources Commission in the amount of $609,614. more

Mayor Jerry Jackson will host an informal time for citizens to ask questions and share ideas about the music venue the City and Convention & Visitors Bureau (CVB) have partnered to bring to reality. more

The Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee met on Tuesday, March 5, and heard a good report on the progress at the Creekside Community Center. “The construction companies are doing an excellent job," Parks and Rec director Chuck Eddington said. “The aquatic center will be completed sooner than the gyms, but we will have to wait and open everything at the same time because of the sprinkler system for the whole complex.” The sprinkler system's controls will be located in the gym area and cannot be operational until that building is nearly complete. more

Mayor Jerry Jackson presented his State of the City address to the community and City Council on Thursday, Feb. 22. He will make the presentation again at a presentation hosted by the Harrison Regional Chamber of Commerce and Black Hills Energy on Thursday, March 14, at 7:30 a.m. more

The Learning Center of North Arkansas officially opened its new facility in Jasper Tuesday morning, March 5. The Newton County Chamber of Commerce, led by Director Toinette Madison, held a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 10 a.m. at the 220 South Stone Street location next door to the Newton County Library. more

The Tuesday, March 5 Diamond City Council meeting ended with a seemingly much smaller city government as several stepped down from their positions unexpectedly. A follow-up meeting held on Thursday, March 7 saw many reinstatements to the vacated positions. more

The other evening, I was pushing my shopping cart filled with groceries across the Walmart parking lot when I saw a man about my age leaning against the back of my truck. He was holding what appeared to be a well-used kbar knife closely examining the 7-inch blade while he slowly ran his finger down the razor-sharp edge. more

• Mar. 9-10 Gun & Knife Show at Northwest Arkansas District Fairgrounds. $5 admission. Children 12 and under have free admission with an adult. Law enforcement officers are free with ID. Hours are 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday and 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Sunday. For more information, call Cindi (870) 221-1997. more

Central Ozarks Farmers and Artisans Market, with sponsorship from Quality Feed, is hosting a seed swap. more

Lisa and Paul Stewart had planned to purchase a home. But when they didn’t find what they were looking for, they decided to go a different route, and invest their money into a business they felt the community needed. more

HOT SPRINGS — Alpena High School claimed first place at the Archery in the Schools state championship in the Hot Springs Convention Center and Bank OZK Arena Saturday with their top 12 archers posting a decisive score of 3,358 out of a possible 3,600 points. The feat completed their steady climb to the top of Arkansas’s high school archery ranks, besting their second-place score of 3,276 last year and their third-place finish (3,250 points) in 2022. more

First Baptist Church (FBC) in Harrison will host internationally renowned author and speaker, Richard Blackaby, this weekend. Blackaby will give a program on March 8, 6:30 — 9 p.m. and March 9, 8:30 a.m. — Noon. Through this free program, informed by the popular book co-authored by Blackaby with his father — “Experiencing God,” he will explore how to “unpack the principles and realities of ‘experiencing God.’” more

This week’s Museum Musings is made up of some additions and corrections to previous Musings. more

Bradford pear trees have exploded in a flurry of white flowers this week. The pretty (and notoriously foul smelling) trees can be seen blooming along the highways, outside of businesses and in yards throughout the area this time of year. The appearance of their blooms is a sure sign of early spring in Arkansas. While the plentiful flowers are visually stunning, the trees are unwelcome in many ways. more