The Italy Gladiators gear up to make a strong push on the grid-iron this season. 2-a-day practices are off to a solid start and team morale is higher than the hot temperatures.

Additional photographs covering the Baptist Church Builders of Texas constructing the new Mt. Gilead Missionary Baptist Church in Italy.

Italy ISD released their 2011-2012 school calendar. Classes will begin on August 22, 2011.  Its that time!  The school calendar is included here for your convenience.  Important dates will be added to the community calendar as soon as possible.

13U Waxahachie Cardinals select baseball is having tryouts on August 6th and 7th starting at 4:00 p.m. at the Patrick Field at the Optimist in Waxahachie.

Each year by July 1st community water suppliers are required to make public an annual water quality report (Consumer Confidence Report) that tells consumers where their water comes from and what’s in it. Any community water system that serves more than 100,000 people is required to make its CCR available to customers on a publicly accessible web site.  The City of Italy currently has this available on their website at http://www.ci.italy.tx.us.

With last night’s Midnight Madness workout behind them, the Lady Gladiators’ 2011 Volleyball season has begun.  The Lady Gladiators’ schedule is finalized and their commitment will be proven on the court. Make plans to attend games this year and support these hard working ladies and their coaches.

First Lieutenant Andrew Freeman, a former Italy student, went in harm’s way for his country and was injured last week in Afghanistan.  The following info is from his dad, Ray Freeman: 

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The First United Methodist Church excels in seeking the best pastor for the area and this time there is no exception. Pastor Leah Hidde-Gregory, sixth generation pastor from Oklahoma, is the new kid on the block and is loving every minute of her new appointment.

Once again it is time to celebrate birthdays of the residents of Trinity Mission. This time it is, of course, July birthdays and as always lots of fun for the residents and their families.

Meals on Wheels of Johnson and Ellis Counties have released their meals menu for August 2011. These meals are subject to change.

The Italy City Council will have a called meeting on Monday, August 1, 2011 at 6:30 p.m.  The council will discuss and consider necessary action(s) regarding the budget amount for the Certificates of Obligation Water Project Bond.  The meeting will be held in the Council Chambers at 105 West Main Street, Italy.

You all have seen the brown UPS truck zipping all over Italy. You have probably waved at the driver and you got a wave and a big smile back. Well, that man is Hal Cox and he has been running the Italy UPS route for about twenty four years. Cox, who has been with UPS for thirty years is retiring and today is his last day.

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Lady Gladiator volleyball coach, Heather Richters, is having a Midnight Madness event to kick off the 2011 season.  The Lady Gladiator volleyball teams (varsity, JV & freshman squads) will meet at midnight late Sunday night (technically August 1st) and have a conditioning workout and then a parent sponsored breakfast at 1:30am.  

The Italy ISD Board of Trustees will have a called meeting on Tuesday, August 2, 2011. Meeting time is set for 5:00pm and will be held in the Italy ISD Administration Office at 300 S. College. The agenda shows this meeting to be a Board training workshop.

From the IHS field house: Italy varsity football players receive their equipment throughout today and JV players receive their equipment tomorrow starting at 8:00 a.m.

After four tournament games to end their 2011 summer league experience, Italy’s select baseball team will be wiser, more skilled and extremely confident come spring. 

Lady Gladiator VB Camp 2011 began today with a great turnout of eager volleyball players.  New campers are welcome to come on Tuesday, July 26th for a reduced camp fee of $25.00. Girls in 4th thru 9th grade are invited to come and learn skills and drills to improve their game. Camp runs from 10:30am to 1:00pm thru Thursday, July 28th.  

The Italy EDC will have their monthly meeting on Monday, July 25 at 6:00pm in the Council Chambers of the Italy Municipal Building at 105 Main Street, Italy. There will be a presentation regarding small business grants as well as a full slate of other agenda items.

An alarming passenger bus fire also sparks a potentially dangerous grass fire along Highway 35 in Italy on Friday.

Lady Gladiator head volleyball coach, Heather Richters, invites players to participate during ‘Lady Gladiator Volleyball Camp 2011’ which begins Monday, July 25 and concludes Thursday, July 28.

Italy’s select baseball team will be riding a wave of confidence going into their final tournament of the summer on Friday.

If you drive to the corner of Clark and Harris Streets, you might be pleasantly surprised. There is a building being erected that appeared out of nowhere. One day it was an empty slab and the next day it was the beginning of a new church. On Monday morning, strangers moved into town to give Mt. Gilead Missionary Baptist Church an awesome present.

Sydney Lowenthal and Kimberly Hooker are performing in the play Aesop’s Foibles at the Southwestern Assemblies of God University. This will be Sydney’s third play with the Waxahachie Community theatre and Kimberly’s first.

The Italy ISD Board of Trustees will have their regular monthly meeting on Monday, July 18, 2011. Meeting time is set for 7:00pm and will be held in the Italy High School band hall at 300 S. College. The board will have a full agenda of items to consider.

Wyatt Ballard is just a cute kid, just by looking at him you would not know what challenges he faces. Wyatt is autistic. With lots of love, patience, hard work by his parents and teachers he is thriving. He is now ten years old and is going into the fourth grade.

The Italy City Council will have a called meeting on Tuesday, July 19, 2011 at 6:30 p.m.  The council will discuss the Water Project Bond and hear presentations regarding bond options as well as other agenda items.

The Cheerleaders from the Italy HS and JrHi are having a bake sale booth at the Waxahachie Lions Club’s Annual Mini Grand Prix this Saturday, June 16.  The cheerleaders have been working hard and would really appreciate any support they can get.  

Registration is still open!  Incoming 4th graders through incoming 9th graders are invited to participate in the Gladiator Summer Football Camp being held at the IHS Football Field July 20 – July 22.

Final IYAA cheerleader sign-ups AND uniform fittings will be this Saturday, July 16 from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. inside the Italy City Council Chambers.

The jr high and high school youth groups of First Baptist Church are selling Gladiator Flip Flops. The flip flops have black fabric straps, gold text with white outline and the Italy Gladiator logo embroidered onto the strap. They are very comfortable with thick foam rubber soles and contoured arch supports.

There will be an emergency meeting of the Italy Economic Development Corporation on Wednesday, July 13 at 5:00pm.  The meeting will be held in the council chambers at 105 West Main Street in downtown Italy.  The agenda states that the demolition project of the Community Center at 100 and 108 Main Street constitutes an unforeseen threat to public safety that requires immediate action.

At the City Council meeting Monday evening Diron Hill was sworn into office as the new Police Chief of Italy. The room was full of the new chief’s family and friends all there supporting him as he was sworn in.

The IYAA (Italy Youth Athletic Association) is currently accepting football/cheerleading sign-ups.

On Friday, the IHS School Board called a special session to consider the hiring of two new school employees. After the final motion passed, Italy High School had a new FCCLA teacher, a new science teacher and the Lady Gladiators had a new head basketball coach.

The Italy City Council will have their regular monthly meeting on Monday, July 11, 2011 at 6:30 p.m. The city’s new police chief, Diron Hill, will take his oath of office during the meeting.  The agenda slates the usual department reports as well as a regular session item regarding the re-appointment of Joyce Hobbs to the Italy EDC.

The Waxahachie Cardinals 12u Boys Select Baseball Team will be traveling to Round Rock, Texas to participate in the 2011 Super Series Baseball World Series starting July 19.

Fourth of July at Trinity Mission meant hot dogs, beans, chips, ice cream and red, white and blue streamers! The residents had such a fun time celebrating the Fourth of July and remembering the soldiers that fought and died for our freedom.

The Italy Gladiator Regiment Band will hold a car wash at Chicken Express in Waxahachie Saturday morning.