First Thursday event today; Fit, Fun & Fabulous debuts

The theme for today’s First Thursday event is “Stars, Stripes and Steals.”
“Although kids and parents don’t want to think about it, the start of school is just around the corner,” Mayor Raymond Harris Jr. said. “Students’ first day of school is Aug. 8. It’s time to start buying uniforms and shoes, and shopping locally for those items will benefit us all through the taxes generated and the jobs that are retained.”
Participating Main Street Merchants are: The Lamp Lighter, The Lamp Station, Chic and Shabby Collections, Texada’s Jewelry, Meyer’s Shoe Store, Fad’s News Stand, St. Mary Center of Hope Bargain Shop, Argus Spa, Girly Things Galore, Four Seasons, Nelvin’s Creations and Joe’s on the Bayou. The merchants will be open until at least 6 p.m. and there will be specials and refreshments.
The organizers of Fit, Fun and Fabulous in Franklin invites the public to come out to the Lamp Post on Main Street at 5:30 p.m. to be filmed doing the pink glove dance. Gloves will be provided. The filming is for the Medline Pink Glove Dance competition, which is in support of breast cancer awareness.
“We want as many people as possible to come out to be filmed doing the pink glove dance,” Dawn Kaiser-Melancon Director of Business Development and Marketing for Franklin Foundation Hospital said. “This is one of the events that will take place at Franklin Senior High School’s football stadium during Fit, Fun and Fabulous in Franklin this year, which is Thursday, Oct. 6. Yes, the filming is for the competition, but more importantly, it is to show our community’s unity and support for breast cancer awareness.”
Mayor Harris added, “I’m looking forward to this year’s 4F. I hope everyone will come to Franklin’s Main Street and support this worthy cause.”
For more information about First Thursdays and how to become a participating business, contact the Office of Community Development at 337-828-6345 or ashields@franklin-la.com. For more information about Fit, Fun and Fabulous in Franklin, please contact Dawn Kaiser-Melancon Director of Business Development and Marketing for Franklin Foundation Hospital at (337-355-1373 or Ed Verdin with Teche Action Clinic at 337-828-2550.
Chez Hope will host tours of its facility, and business owners who are not located in the downtown district and would like to participate in First Thursdays should contact Chez Hope at 337-828-4200 for a space inside or outside of Chez Hope. The spaces are offered on a first-come-first-served basis.
For more information about First Thursdays and how to become a participating business, contact the Office of Community Development at 337-828-6345 or ashields@franklin-la.com.