A meeting will be held today at 5 p.m. at the Columbia-Marion County Public Library to discuss a new Friends of the Library group being formed.

The goal of the Friends of the Library group is to promote the public library’s role in the community.

The Thursday meeting will be an introduction to what the Friends of the Library program is about. Everyone is invited to come share their ideas on how to support the Columbia-Marion County Public Library, 900 Broad St.

If you have questions, call the library at (601) 736-5516 or go to www.smrl.lib.ms.us.

Columbia Presbyterian will hold its annual Missions Conference at the church Feb. 28-March 2. The public is invited.

The speaker will be Dr. Guy Richardson, president of the Reformed Theological Seminary in Jackson. Missionary guests will be David and Jan Thomae Allen Smith.

Conference schedule:

Sunday, Feb. 28: 9:45 a.m. Sunday school; 11 a.m. worship; 6 p.m. evening worship.

Monday, March 1: 6:30 a.m. breakfast meeting; 6 p.m. evening worship

Tuesday, March 2: 6:30 a.m. breakfast meeting; 6 p.m. evening service; 7 p.m. reception

An American Cancer Society Relay for Life meeting will be held tonight at D-Kay’s restaurant at 5:30 p.m. Anyone interested in participating in the Relay should attend.

Columbia mailman Bob Cook lives up to the U.S. Postal Service creed of "neither rain, nor sleet..."

Send us your snow day photos and we will post them on marioncountyinformer.com. Just e-mail them to marioncountyinformer@gmail.com.

The Relay for Life Team Captains meeting that was scheduled to take place tonight at D-Kay’s has been rescheduled to next Tuesday in the same location at 5:30 p.m. due to possible wintry winter.

A variety of wild game will be served up on Tuesday at the Expo Center for the Marion County Soil and Water Conservation District’s 19^th annual tasting.

The public is invited to the event and admission is free, but guests must bring a covered dish.

The event starts at 6 p.m. and the guest speaker will be Russ Walsh, a private land biologist with the Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks. Walsh will be discussing how landowners can improve habitat for wildlife.

Wild game such as deer, quail and turkey have been served at the event in the past. Those who cannot bring wild game can bring side dishes such as vegetables.

Work on the new Jack Morris Oil building is well under way.

Work is currently under way to get a building site ready for Walgreens, which is expected to go under construction in June.

The Walgreens will be located at the current site of Jack Morris Oil Co. on U.S. Highway 98 in Columbia. Construction is currently taking place on a new building for Jack Morris Oil Co. so Walgreens can take over the current site.

The new Jack Morris building will be located behind where the current one sits.

Last year's bluegrass show drew many bands.

From staff reports

 The Magnolia State Bluegrass Association Winter Show will be held at the Columbia Expo Center, MS Hwy 35, this Friday and Saturday.

Showtimes are Friday, Jan. 22 at 6 p.m. and Saturday at 1 p.m. Admission is free to all MSBA members and $5 daily for non-members. 

There will be a concession stand and it is advised that attendees bring lawn chairs. 

The MSBA Awards presentation is on Saturday night. 

Featured bands on Friday are Trugrass, Cross Ties, L & M Bluegrass, Harold & Ovaline Andrews.

Featured bands on Saturday will be The Soul Pickers, Volume Five, The Red Hills Bluegrass Band, Davo Crossing & The Southern Gentlemen.  Sound is by Butch Cooksey.

RV camping is available at $15 per night.  For more information call Doris Broom, treasurer of MSBA, at 601-736-5662 or Alan Sibley, MSBA Program director, at 662-617-3744.

The Marion County NAACP postponed its Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration until Jan. 30 because some of its members were out of town today.

The Jan. 30 event will be a tea and feature finger foods, a guest speaker and reflection on Dr. King. The event begins at 6 p.m. at John the Baptist Church, 500 Lumberton Road, Columbia.  The public is invited.

The Columbian-Progress reports that all local schools will be closed Friday due to winter weather warnings.

Columbia resident Lee Jacobs donates blood today.

United Blood Services is holding a blood drive in front of Wal-Mart until 4 p.m. today. Lee Jacobs of Columbia gives blood often, saying he wants to help others. “Someday I may be in a situation where I need help,” said Jacobs. There was a steady stream of people donating blood.

The Hattiesburg American reports that Bassfield Mayor Buford Blount passed away today at his home between 9 a.m. and 9:30 a.m.

He was 87 years old and in his 36^th year as Bassfield’s mayor, according to the American.

No official cause of the death had been made, but it appeared that Blount had a heart attack following a workout on his treadmill at home, the American article states.

There will be no garbage pick up on Christmas Day. Those who have their garbage picked up on Friday will receive pick up on Dec. 24. 

There will be no garbage pickup on Friday Jan. 1. Those customers will have their garbage picked up on Dec. 31.