Around OBKY

FARMERS’ MARKET WILL HAVE NEW GUIDELINES THIS SEASON

Things will look a little differently this season at the Owensboro Regional Farmers’ Market opens for the season. New procedures in places this year include: • Limited shoppers — the Market board recommends only one person per family • get out to shop if at all possible. Specific entry and exit points — shoppers must travel in one direction to help ensure distancing guidelines are followed. • Preferred use of cards instead of cash —

While it is up to each vendor on how to accept payment, Market officials said they are encouraging everyone to use cards. The market also has a credit card machine where people can swipe their card to get tokens, and all of the vendors accept those tokens. • Recommendation of shopping by looking rather than touching — Shop with your eyes more than your hands. While a lot of people want to pick up items and look at them to feel and smell, Market officials ask shoppers to limit that as much as possible. • Other safety measures include having hand sanitizer available and having spots marked on the pavement to remind people to stay 6 feet apart.

HOLIDAY WORLD TO USE VIRTUAL QUEUING THIS SEASON

Guests at Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari will be able to wait in virtual lines for rides this year, as the park is implementing a queuing technology to ensure safe distancing measures.

Holiday World had to delay the start to their season but announced opening day will be June 14.

In early May, the new queuing strategy was announced as part of an agreement with accesso Technology Group, a company that has long provided services such as online ticketing for Holiday World. This will be the first time the park has used the accesso LoQueueSMvirtual queuing service.

After selecting a ride or attraction on their mobile device, guests will be placed in a virtual queue and a countdown will begin. When it’s their turn to ride, guests will be notified to proceed to the attraction. Park attendants will conduct a contactless scan of the QR code on the guest’s smartphone to redeem the ride reservation.

The virtual queuing technology dynamically adjusts to unpredictable variables such as guest flow and operational changes, allowing venues to employ real-time capacity optimization and realtime communication with guests via their own mobile device.

DCPS, OPS ANNOUNCE SUMMER FEEDING PROGRAM PLANS

Both Daviess County and Owensboro public schools have summer feeding programs provided free to any child less than 18 years old. Both districts will provide breakfast and lunch for two days at a time, with meals available to pick up on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Social distancing guidelines still need to be followed at all times.

DCPS Pick-up sites (11 a.m.-12:30 p.m.): • Burns Elementary School – 4514 Goetz Drive • Meadow Lands Elementary School – 3500 Hayden Rd. • Sorgho Elementary School – 5390 KY 56 • Daviess County High School – 4255 New Hartford Road

Mobile routes: • Gemini Drive Apartments – 2260 Carpenter Drive • Chuck Gray Court Apartments – 650 Chuck Gray Court • Towne Square Court Apartments – 4825 Towne Square Court • Town and Country Mobile Home Park – 418 Reid Road • Colony Mobile Homes – 2016 Arlington Park Boulevard • Riverbend Pointe – 501 Office Lane

OPS Drive-thru sites (11a.m.-12:30 p.m.): • Cravens Elementary School — 2741 Cravens Avenue • Estes Elementary School — 1675 Leitchfield Road • Newton Parrish Elementary School — 510 Byers Avenue • Owensboro High School — 1800 Frederica Street

Mobile routes: • 10:50-11:05 a.m. — Greentree Apartments • 11:10-11:25 a.m. — Fifth and Hale streets • 11:30-11:45 a.m. — Third and Hale streets • 11:55 a.m.-12:15 p.m. — Cadillac Motel • 11-11:20 a.m. — Dixiana Court Apartments • 12:25-12:45 p.m. —

Chesterfield and River roads • 11:30-11:45 a.m. —

Eighth and Jackson streets • 11:50 a.m.-12:05 p.m. —

Sixth and Hall streets • 12:15-12:35 p.m. —

Seventh Street and J.R. Miller Boulevard

TEACHER SPOTLIGHT

Steve Bratcher

Newton Parrish Elementary School principal Steve Bratcher was named the new Owensboro Public Schools Chief Academic Officer.Bratcher has been with OPS for 27 years. During that time he has served as a classroom teacher at Cravens and Newton Parrish Elementary schools, as a curriculum facilitator at Cravens, and for the past 16 years as principal of Newton Parrish. After so many years leading Newton Parrish, Bratcher is excited for a new challenge in a district leadership role.

Amy Rodgers

Amy Rogers is a special education teacher at McLean County Middle School. Rogers, who has been a teacher for five years, runs the PASS program, which stands for Positive Approach to Student Success. “I help students who struggle, not always academically, but specifically socially,” Amy said. Most recently, Amy has been serving others by making masks during the Covid-19 crisis. As of mid-May, she has made a total of 623 masks. “I’m not charging for them because I just want to help,” she said. “I want anyone who wants a mask to have one. I wouldn’t want someone to not get one just because of the cost.”