Tagged: Datebook

A happy birthday to French writer Alexandre Dumas. He was born in poverty as the grandson of a French nobleman and a Haitian slave and became best known for The Count of Monte Cristo and The Three Musketeers. 210 years is also how long it may take to finish reading all 1,500 pages of Monte Cristo.

It’s Tuesday, July 24

A foster care and adoption fair is set for Saturday at the Owensboro Christian Church.  The fair will be held from 10 to 2.  Experienced foster parents and social workers will be available to share information and answer questions.  For more, call 1-877-994-9970.

Happy Birthday to our Indian counterparts, All India Radio (AIR) turns 85 today. AIR is India's public radio outlet for long-form news, documentaries, and world music.

It’s Monday, July 23

Murray-Calloway County Hospital’s Health Express stops at the Marshall County Senior Center in Benton tomorrow morning from 9 to 11.  The Health Express provides free screenings, including blood sugar and blood pressure checks.  For more information, call (270) 762-1348.

Gregor Mendel was an Austrian scientist and friar who gained posthumous fame as the founder of genetics. He demonstrated that certain traits in pea plants followed particular inheritance patterns. Mendel's work largely went unnoticed until the rest of science caught up to him in the early 20th century. You never know what you'll discover when looking into your salad.

It’s Friday, July 20

The Marshall County Animal Shelter hosts the Dog Days of Summer Adoption Drive tomorrow from 10 to 2.  Adopt dogs for $15 or cats for $5.  The shelter is at 839 Benton Briensburg Road in Benton.  For more information, call (270) 527-0954.

Allen Collins was one of the founding members of Lynyrd Skynyrd, and a guitar prodigy perhaps best known for his blazing solo in "Free Bird." Though he survived the plane crash of '77, he was later injured in a car crash, which caused complications leading to his death in 1990. 'Cause I'm as free as a bird now, And this bird you cannot change... Is this not the stuff of legend?

It’s Thursday, July 19

The McCracken County Public Library remembers U.S. Vice President Alben W. Barkley tonight with a special program by Kentucky Court of Appeals Judge Shea Nickell. This year marks the 135th anniversary of Barkley’s birth. The program starts at 7 in the Upstairs Meeting Room. 

He'd absolutely hate to be 75 today. Louisville native Hunter S. Thompson was an eccentric gonzo journalist and author of notable works: Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and The Rum Diary. He garnered a strong cult following among literary and drug circles, one that continues to grow after his death in 2005. At his funeral, his ashes were shot out of a cannon stuffed with fireworks - a grand tribute to the extravagant mind that  made the second half o f the 20th century a little more interesting.

It’s Wednesday, July 18

The Friends of the McCracken County Public Library host a used book sale this Friday and Saturday at St. Paul Lutheran Church, located on South 21st Street in Paducah.  Hours are 9 to 7 on Friday and 9 to 1 on Saturday.  See more at mclib.net.