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Costumes and candy are synonymous with Halloween. Individuals may spend weeks or months trying to come up with the perfect costumes for their trick-ortreating excursions or Halloween parties. Many children and adults also enjoy costume themes, in which they dress up to coordinate with others in their group.

“So, what I was saying was…” There was a crash in the background. Ten minutes later, I said, “So, anyway, I…” The person I am still trying to talk to is arguing with someone else. Five minutes pass and I say, “Back to that….” A child walked into the room with an urgent need for something that included tears, though the particulars are a little fuzzy today. This is my life. I am an easily interrupted person. It’s a multi-tiered problem. Firstly, it is very important to me that I paint a very clear and precise picture when I speak to someone, anyone. That translates into a few more adjectives than the average bear. I choose my words with the precision of a neurosurgeon, systematically analyzing and trying each one out in my head, making millisecond substitutions to maintain the utmost accuracy. Also, I am soft spoken. I was the only child at home for the entirety of my existence. It’s not that big of a deal. There was no one to talk to growing up. I entertained myself, often speaking out loud to a character in my head. I rehearsed the things I would need to say the next day in advance, trying out different pentameters, throwing in a few $20 words here and there. I learned quickly that rehearsed opportunities rarely pan out as you expect. People will still hear what they want to hear and interpret as they wish to interpret. Besides, I’m a mom. And, moms get interrupted.

“Halloween, a day when we get it right. Strangers come to us beautiful, ugly, odd, or scary, and we accept them without question, compliment them, treat them kindly, and give them good things. Why don’t we live like that?” –-Steve Garnass-Holmes This sentiment for Halloween is also shared by Public Education. Every child that lives in a school’s district is welcome to their school without question. By law, they are placed in the classroom and given tools to learn no matter what extra help they might need. That is the beauty of the Public Education system in America– every child who comes to the door gets a seat and an education.

IT’S HUNTING AND COOKING SEASON!

Texas State Parks received the 2023 National Gold Medal Award for Excellence in Park and Recreation Management.

On August 15, 2023, Forney City Council approved Ordinance No. 23-21 ordering a Special Election to be held on Tuesday, November 7, 2023, for the purpose of making several charter amendments. The city charter is the fundamental governing document for the city and outlines certain authorities and restrictions the city has over municipal affairs.

The month of October is filled with fun holidays that relate to the four endorsements that are available in Forney ISD for high school students in planning for their future readiness. The four endorsement areas are STEM, Business and Industry, Public Service, and Arts and Humanities. The days celebrate different elements of the culinary arts – pasta, coffee, dessert, vegetarian; areas of art and humanities – poetry, writing, books; different finance careers in business and industry – fair trade month and retirement security week; and in public service, different types of medical professionals – pharmacy tech, medical assistant, physician’s assistant; and different careers in education – teachers, coaches, and mathematics. How does the Forney Education Foundation fit into all of these different career pathways? By funding grant requests from teachers in all of these various educational areas, FEF gives the students in Forney ISD the extras that their teachers have researched to add to the classroom experience. From classroom novel sets in middle school English classes to mannequin blood pressure arms for medical assistant classes, the Foundation has funded these requests and have seen the students use these to learn skills that are directly applicable to being certified in their respective fields. Career and Technical Education certifications give students not only an opportunity for immediate employment, but they are also a way for students to begin earning and potentially paying for higher level education to further their career choices.

Meant for History Buffs and Other Inquisitive Readers!

The Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center (TFFC) is excited to announce the 2024 Texas division of Wildlife Forever’s Fish Art Contest is open for submissions. The Fish Art Contest, which is accepting entries until Feb. 28, is part of an international conservation education program designed to foster youth interest in fisheries and fishing.

Caught My Attention!

Corey Graves from Jackson Middle School was honored at the October Board of Trustees meeting. Last spring, Mr. Graves was selected as 1 of only 30 teachers to receive the Music Teacher of Excellence award from the Country Music Association Foundation. In September, he attended the official awards ceremony in Nashville. Congratulations, Mr. Graves!

The Pride of Falcon Nation is proud to announce that on Saturday, October 14th, they earned second place out of 24 bands at the Royse City Marching Contest, narrowly missing first place by two points. The Pride Of Falcon Nation Colorguard earned outstanding 6A colorguard, and the POFN Drum Majors (Owen Whisenant, CJ Ganal & Makayla Gutierrez) earned Outstanding drum majors in both preliminary and finals competition. The POFN would like to especially thank our band boosters and parents. Thank you for your constant support and encouragement, for feeding us throughout the day, and for being the very best cheering section! The Pride of Falcon Nation also competed in UIL Region competition on Tuesday, October 17th at Mesquite Memorial Stadium at 5:00 pm. Our potential UIL Area C prelims performance will be this Saturday, October 21st at Mesquite Memorial Stadium at 4:15pm. We hope that you are able to see our production of “Dream World” during our competitive season.

Many people will say that no movie marathon is complete without a big bowl of popcorn. Movies and popcorn have been linked for decades, but popcorn is more than just a must-have on movie night.