Church hosting teacher luncheon

With the hustle and bustle of the new school year starting up this week, what better way to thank those responsible for educating local youth than a hot meal and some casual conversation.

The community at the Central Baptist Church will be showing its appreciation for the teachers and school staff members of all local schools on Friday at the Central Baptist Church building located at 2501 N. Norris with its annual teacher luncheon beginning at 11:30 a.m.

Whether you’re a teacher, principle, bus driver or any other staff member involved in education, you’re invited to come out and sit down for a meal of beef tips on rice, salad, green beans, dinner rolls and cake.

“We just want to show our appreciation for teachers in the local community,” said event organizer Anne Linville. “But it’s not just for teachers ... (it’s for) anyone who has a part in education. We invite all the public schools, the Christian school, we try to get everybody.”

Linville says organizers have gotten a pretty big turnout in recent years and expects between 600-700 people to stop by Friday.

“We think this has a big impact on this segment of our community,” she said. “This is our 24th consecutive year. We’ve been doing it for a really long time.”