MAIN STREET HARDY

Archive for March, 2010

 In late 2009, the city voted to close South Johnson Street in order to test out the new city amphitheater. To the delight of visitors and guests, the pavilian was used a few times to provide music on Main Street.

This year, the amphitheater will be used even more. And today the grounds surrounding received a landscaping facelift. The Mayor and her team were out with the ‘big boy toys’ to make ready for the planting of decorative grasses and new trees.

The Mayor and team spruce up the Amphitheater on Johnson Street

The city of Hardy is getting ready for a great summer season. Stop by the amphitheater on a summer weekend and be entertained by the great sounds from many of our local musicians.

submitted by Marc Herring, a Friend of Hardy Arkansas (FOHA)

A packed house at the Spring Gun and Knife Show

Its March 27th and I’m sitting with my mother in one of our favorite corners at Afterwords Cafe. The place is packed and the sense of De-ja-vu is incredible. Ernie and Madeiline Patton are in attendance and the music is superb. Greg and Beth Bess are meeting, greeting and taking care of all the guests who have turned out to hear music and eat great food. I had fantasticly prepared ribs and mom had pork tenderloin…both were wonderful.

This Saturday was a special day. Our annual Spring Gun and Knife show was a huge success and has ushered in the 2010 season for Hardy Arkansas.

The event was hosted by Main Street of Hardy, Inc. (which is named after our MAIN STREET) and is the first of many wonderful events that Hardy Arkansas will host. Donna Cruz, Kim Wilson and their crew of Main Street volunteers have done a wonderful job for this years event.

The Main Street Crew

The day in Hardy was very busy, on and off Main Street. Afterwords Cafe hosted 100 Christian Motor Cyclists from Jonesboro and Paragould, there was live performance on the Spit Shine Car Wash Stage. The band was cranking out classics like, Born to be Wild (in Hardy Arkansas), All Along the Watch Tower and other great tunes.

The Band who played great music today

Today was a great day in Hardy Arkansas and we (those of us who call Hardy home) say Welcome and Thank You!

See ya all soon…

Submitted by: Marc Herring-A Friend of Hardy Arkansas (FOHA)

Hardy, AR, the hometown of Teddy and Doyle Wilburn, is very proud of their native sons. Teddy and Doyle loved Hardy and returned on numerous occasions to help raise funds for their hometown. This small town has already honored the Wilburn Brothers by naming a street and a bridge after them. In addition, the town recently purchased several new billboard signs letting visitors know the Wilburn Brothers hail from Hardy, AR. Mayor Thornton and the city council put through a proclamation to declare the Saturday before Memorial Day every year as the “Wilburn Brothers’ Day”. Governor Mike Beebe has also issued the same proclamation on behalf of the entire State of Arkansas.

This proclamation must be renewed annually. On this Saturday every May, Hardy, AR holds a tribute to the Wilburn Brothers. The town brings talent from all over the country to Hardy to help pay homage to Teddy and Doyle. You can view our Community Calendar for the month of May to read more on the planned event at this link here. 

Doyle

With all of this, Hardy is still not thru letting the nation know how proud they are of the Wilburn Brothers. Hardy, AR has established a Wilburn Brothers’ 

Teddy

Museum Building Fund. It is the vision of Mayor Thornton and Jack Huffmaster to raise enough funds to build a museum for the Wilburn Brothers. Presently, they are seeking monetary donations as well as Wilburn Brothers’ memorabilia.  

We are thrilled that Hardy, AR plans to honor Teddy and Doyle in this manner and encourage all Wilburn Brothers’ fans to contribute to this worthy cause. Listed at the bottom of the page is the web site where you can mail your contributions. We would like to suggest you honor Teddy and Doyle on their birthdays, at Christmas, and on the date of their final homecoming. These dates are listed below as well. I am presently working on a book, “Sing Your Heart Out Country Boys, Tales of the Triumphs and Tragedies of the Wilburn Brothers.” To read more about the book, visit the book page. All the proceeds from the sale of this book will be donated to the museum building fund in Hardy, Arkansas.  

You can check out the Wilburn Brothers’ website at this link HERE  

There’s more to Hardy Arkansas that its visible Main Street, there’s 1st Street and many others. But our newest business is Spring River Tackle and it is C0-owned and operated by Jerry Messer. The store is located one street off Main on 1st Street. Jerry is no stranger to the business community in Hardy. He is also the #1 supporter and cheer leader to wife Rhonda Messer, Co-Owner of Hardy’s only Amishly focused shop called Kozey Candles Country Store. Spring River Tackle is located directly behind Kozey Candles.               

Spring River Tackle carries a full line of fishing gear and accessories, including tackle, rods, reels, lines and currently live worms.Spring River Tackle can be reached at 870-856-FISH (3474). The hours of operation are 8-5 every day (m-s).

If you have a question, please email Jerry at: springrivertackle@live.com

COMING SOON!!! Arkansas State Fishing Liscenses.

AND DON”T FORGET…come by Spring River Tackle and get ‘hooked on fishin’

The Arkansas Department of Health requires Hardy Waterworks to supply their customers with a yearly Consumer Confidence Report or Annual Drinking Water Report. In the past years, they have posted the report in “The News’” but this year a copy was mailed to each customer in 2010. We here at Main Street Hardy Online are happy to provide this information to the public.

The Hardy Water & Wastewater Dept. is proud to announce that there were NO VIOLATIONS for the reporting year for 2009. A paper copy of the report is available in Hardy City Hall that can be mailed to you upon request.

We have attached a copy of the report here in a pdf file so you can easily view it here online by click the link below.

2009 Annual Hardy Water Report

Its now March 19th and the weather is delightful in Hardy Arkansas. We know that Spring is in the air as the flowers are beginning to pop, the trees are budding and Chico and Don Qualls are back on Main Street. Don and Chico have been a Hardy Main Street attraction for a number of years to the delight of locals, visitors and guests. Don and Chico will take you on a scenic ride around town and through Loeberg Park. There is no charge for the rides, instead one may make a donation to help offset Don’s personal expenses. Qualls says that he enjoys giving a ride to someone who remembers horse and buggy days or giving a ride to someone who has a disability just to see their face light up.

Qualls and Chico have visited nursing homes and brought joy to the elder generation, many of whom remember working and riding horses as a way of life. Chico and Don “The Man” have gotten quite a reputation and people have come to Hardy from all over the country to ride, having heard from others that riding with Chico and Don is a  ’must do’ event in Hardy.

The duo are also available for weddings, birthdays and church events.

If you’re around the Hardy area, stop by and visit with Don Qualls and Chico. They would love to give you a buggy ride that you’ll always remember.

Don Qualls and Chico (the Horse)

 This article submitted by:

Friends Of Hardy Arkansas (FOHA)

We here at Main Street Hardy Online are pleased to announce the newest addition to our online resource site…Live Chat !! This new FREE service will now give those in the community a way to interact and communicate with others in regards to questions, events, hobbies, business, etc.. You can go directly to the page from HERE.

Registration which is free is required to be able to login to the Live Chat system. However once you are logged into the main lobby (room) you will be able to view and respond in real time to others. This quicker method of communication hopefully will give you the community a new way to interact with others in the area and from far away too.

A nice feature is the ability to create your own room and even password protect it. This is a great feature for small groups who may wish to communicate in PRIVATE with others for various discussions. Additionally, since this new chat opens up in its own smaller window, you can even still surf the internet while chatting with others in the chat room.

Our site and is a extension of the Friends Of Hardy Arkansas “FOHA” organization who is dedicated to its “Unity In The Community” slogan.

In the future we plan to use our online chat to schedule live meetings for various groups. You then would be able to show up to the meeting (chat) along with others and then enjoy the ability to interact all from the comfort of your home or office computer!

  Here is the current local happenings for Hardy Arkansas  provided by the City of Hardy, Mayor Nina. It looks like its going to be a great year full of events. To view our new AREA COMMUNITY CALENDAR - CLICK HERE

We here at Main Street Hardy Online are looking for some folks who have always wanted to be a newspaper reporter !!  The job is a freelance position..well its not a paid position so we will just call it Freelance !!

We feel the area of Hardy has so many interesting things that take place everyday but is never reported. We want folks who are involved with the area to start to get that news about Hardy to us, so we can get it to YOU !!!

Hardy now has its very own ONLINE news resource site (this one) and it is here for our town Hardy, Arkansas. We want to report about, local sports, organization group happenings, local weddings, deaths, good news and even the bad are all important to the area. It’s time to stand own our own with our local news information and we are the place to view it.

All you need to do is submit your story HERE

Good news for our areas local Main Street Program which is part of the Historic Arkansas Preservation program. The local Main Street Hardy organization will be restructuring their board to better meet the needs of residents and to further improve upon the city of Hardy’s historic district. (Note: Main Street Hardy Online is not affiliated with this organization).

Main Street Hardy President Donna Cruse said in their Jan. 27 letter to the Hardy City Council, the organization communicated their intent to begin working on a adding new board members by March 1. Due to the large amount of inclement weather and illness, Cruse said the goal was not reached.

The Main Street Hardy Board met Feb. 11 and addressed the situation. They are currently providing resume forms for board members.  The board plans to have resume forms available at Hardy City Hall. Cruse said those interested in serving on the board should be committed to attend all meetings, to volunteer their time during events and fundraisers.

She said anyone interested should mail their completed resume to Main Street Hardy, P.O. Box 668, Hardy, AR 72542. She said the resumes will be evaluated both by the current board and the board at Little Rock will also review the applications.  Download Application Form HERE

Cruse said, “To ensure a successful transition of the addition of new board members and the continued success of the program, the current board will continue to serve until five new members are added. At that time, Rhonda Messer and myself will remain on the board.”

Current members include, Kim Wilson, Executive director, Donna Cruse, president, Joyce Ramsdale, Joella Vanhouten, Dale Maddox, Suzanne Frye and Rhonda Messer.

Resumes should be submitted by March 31 for consideration for a place on the Main Street Hardy Board. It is important to get qualifed and motivated individuals in as board members in order for the organiation to get back on track and moving forward.