Red River Parish Schools will be closed for the Labor Day holiday beginning Thursday, August 28, through Monday, September 1. Students will return to class on Tuesday, September 2.

Mayor Ashanti Cole has announced a Parish-Wide Prayer in the Park to be held on Friday, August 30. The event is a call for the entire community to come together in unity and prayer.

The Natchitoches-Northwestern Symphony Orchestra will celebrate its 60th season with five concerts, as a part of the annual Christmas Gala and collaborating with Northwestern Theatre and Dance during its 2025-26 concert season. The theme for the orchestra’s season will be “NSU Symphony Diamond Jubilee: Celebrating 60 Years of Music.” and will feature the world premiere of a work, a patriotic concert, winners of the NSU Concerto Competition and a performance with the NSU Symphony Chorus. Dr. Douglas
Bakenhus is musical director of the Natchitoches-Northwestern Symphony Orchestra. Symphony concerts will be held in Magale Recital Hall and begin at 7:30 p.m. Tickets can be purchased by mail at Natchitoches-Northwestern Symphony Society, 107 South Drive, PMB No. 113, Natchitoches, LA 71457 or online at https://nnssla.org/. There is an added charge for buying tickets online. For more information, email NSUsymphony@gmail.com. 

The Louisiana Art & Science Museum invites everyone to celebrate its next Free First Sunday on September 7, from 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM, featuring free general admission generously sponsored by ExxonMobil, as well as a special $5 unlimited pass for all shows at the Irene W. Pennington Planetarium. Don’t miss this exciting day of exploration, inspiration, and fun for the whole family—right in the heart of downtown Baton Rouge. For more information about upcoming programming at LASM, visit lasm.org. 

Northwestern State University’s Department of Fine and Graphic Arts is hosting a show featuring the work of ceramic artist Gretchen Murchison to honor her induction into NSU’s School of Creative and Performing Arts Hall of Fame. The show will run through Sept. 11 in NSU’s Orville Hanchey Gallery. A reception to meet the artist will be from 6-8 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 28. The public is invited to attend.

The Keep Louisiana Beautiful State Conference is Sept 22-24 at the Crowne Plaza Executive Center in Baton Rouge. Over 300 local and state leaders, businesses, non-profits, enforcement agencies, universities, tourism entities, and individual citizens. Hear from experts on best practices for litter prevention, recycling, beautification, education, and sustainability efforts in Louisiana.

ESPN has named Jim Hawthorne, the legendary former Voice of the LSU Tigers, as the top play-by-play announcer in the history of American sports broadcasting, an accolade that cements his legacy as not just a Louisiana legend, but a national icon in the world of sports media. 

Swimming legend Michael Phelps has officially accepted an invitation from the United States Sports Federation to become the head coach of the US swimming team for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

The DeSoto Quilters will host a quilt show October 3 & 4 from 9am until 4pm at Emmanuel Baptist Church, 1314 Polk Street, in Mansfield. It is a free event.