Kids rush into Heritage Park to gather goodies left behind by the Easter Bunny during the 34th Annual City Wide Easter Egg Hunt on March 30. John Starkey / Staff Photographer.

Rain may have dampened the traditional Easter egg hunt at Wagon Wheel Park in Coppell, but all was not lost as volunteers handed out eggs to children riding in cars during one of the area’s first ‘drive through’ Easter EEGstravaganzas. John Starkey / Staff Photographer.

Apr. 6 8 a.m.-12 p.m.

Coppell Farmer’s Market

The Coppell Farmers Market is making its mark in Old Town Coppell for the 11^th year. The opening day will kick-off the season of weekly Saturday markets, featuring over 30 vendors, some new organic farmers, along with the favorite familiar faces.

Apr. 6 10 a.m.-2 p.m.

Tudor Lane Block Party:

The City of Irving Housing and Human Services Department will host a block at the corner of Crandall Road and Tudor Lane (across from Lamar Middle School) to celebrate the Tudor Lane redevelopment. There will be door prizes, music, games, food and fun for all ages. Also, mortgage professionals will be available for interested homebuyers.

Apr. 6 7 p.m.

Honoring Women of Irving’s History

The 6th Annual Celebrating Irving: The City and The Man begins at the MacArthur High School auditorium, 3700 N. MacArthur Blvd. This program will pay tribute to the achievements of Jackie Mae Howard Townsell. Students from J.O. Davis and Jackie Mae Townsell schools will perform. Refreshments will follow the program. Reservations are required. To make reservations, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call (972) 252-3838.

Apr. 6 10 a.m.-2 p.m.

EcoCoppell Earthfest

Learn to “be green” by participating in the Keep Coppell Beautiful and City of Coppell’s annual Earthfest at Coppell’s Town Center Plaza! Stop by the educational booths to hear about different types of energy sources, as well as numerous other ideas to reduce our impact on the environment. Face painting, balloon artist and a live band featuring Def!nitely, Maybe!

Apr. 6 10 a.m.-3:15 p.m.

Discover Islam Course

Come and learn about the most asked and talked about topics in Islam, including Understanding Islam, Prophet Muhammad, Jesus and Mary in Islam, Women in Islam, The Qur'an, & Shariah Law, just to name a few. Please call 972-972-812-2230, ext. 1005 to RSVP.

Apr. 6 10 a.m.-2 p.m.

Environmental Fair

Bring your electronics recycling, your paper shredding, and any blankets, sheets or towels you want to get rid of (to be given to the Irving Animal Care Campus) to Googly Eyes & Craft Supplies. All families who recycle get a gift certificate to Googly Eyes, and bring an old T-shirt and we'll make a bag out of it!

Apr. 8 10 a.m., 2 p.m., 6 p.m.

Belt Line Corridor Plan Workshops

Join City of Irving staff, at the Irving Mall on the second floor above the Food Court, for a discussion of the Belt Line Corridor Improvement Plan. Public input is needed.

Apr. 8 7:30 p.m.

Jason Coleman Honors Floyd Cramer

Come to the Irving Arts Center to see Jason Coleman’s talent and personal stories of growing up with his grandfather, the infamous Floyd Cramer whose distinctive sound is still alive. Call the box office at 972-252-ARTS for tickets.

Apr. 8, 9, 11, 12 6:30-9:30 p.m.

Women Only Rape Aggression Defense (RAD) Class

This four day class is a program of realistic self-defense tactics and techniques. It is a comprehensive, women-only course that begins with awareness, prevention, risk reduction and risk avoidance, while progressing on to the basics of hands-on defense training. R.A.D. is not a Martial Arts program. For more information, contact Officer Jill Smith at 972-721-2544.

Apr. 10 7 p.m.

Interfaith Dialogue

Come to the Islamic Center of Irving for a learned Interfaith Dialogue on the Mechanics, Mode, Method and Meaning of Prayer, including, "Can and Should Jews, Christians and Muslims Ever Pray Together?" Free and Open to the public. All people of all faith backgrounds welcome to attend.

Ms. Kiyoka Iida,19, and Ms. Mayo Sakai, 18, of Irving, TX returned from their 21 days of overseas service work in the South American country of Argentina. Ms. Iida and Ms. Sakai were volunteers with Generation Peace Academy, which is a program of the Unification Church. In Argentina, Generation Peace Academy worked with the local Unification Church community in Buenos Aires and the Rotary Club. Iida and Sakai helped to renovate a monastery and repaint a pool for the Argentine church youth. In Ciudad Evita, with the Rotary Club, they assisted in cleaning a park and participated in the education of sustainable environmental gardening. Iida and Sakai also painted the building and worked with the children of Lobos at “Por una Sonrisa”, a small center that provided free meals for the children in the neighborhood. Later in Santa Fe, where the indigenous Mocovi tribe resides, Generation Peace Academy helped construct wooden dome structures for shelter and played with the kids there. The final project was centered in Tigre, at an Evangelical church, where they helped paint rafters for the ceiling and connected with the local youth.

Kiyoka Iida and Mayo Sakai graduated from MacArthur High School in 2012. Ms. Iida was involved in varsity Orchestra and Peer Assistant Leadership for two years, and in National Honor Society during her senior year. Iida was preparing to attend the University of Arlington, but decided she needed to create a solid foundation in her values and beliefs before attending college. She delayed her plans and joined Generation Peace Academy because she felt she needed to strengthen her character through service and the opportunities GPA provides. Ultimately, Iida wanted to improve her life of faith, to truly have ownership, and to become more confident in what she believes in.

In high school, Sakai was involved in Academic UIL activities, art competitions, and held the position of secretary for National Honors Society during her senior year. Ms. Sakai was preparing to attend the University of Texas at Arlington, but, like Iida, decided she needed to solidify her core beliefs and values before attending college. Having served through her church youth group and other organizations, Sakai felt the desire to expand her horizons and serve on an international level. By changing her college plans and joining Generation Peace Academy, Sakai hopes to improve her character to positively impact and give back to the world.

Iida and Sakai are first year participants of the program and through all the experiences until present, they have discovered more about themselves and have become inspired to continuously improve and give back. After returning home, Ms. Iida hopes to attend North Lake College to start basic courses, then transfer to University. Ms. Sakai hopes to attend University of Texas at Austin to explore and find the best means to make a lasting contribution to the community and world.

Iida felt so inspired after her experience overseas, saying, “This trip has shown me that, despite language barriers, we can still reach out and create loving relationships. Our value does not come from our environment or situation; we all have the unique value as children of God.” Sakai adds, “Suddenly the world seems smaller, because we have created relationships, and I care for their well being, as if we were a family.”

Sakai and Iida felt extremely grateful for the support of theirs parents and siblings, friends, and past teachers. Sakai goes on to say, “I can never thank God enough for everything that I have been blessed with, a loving family, an accepting church community, and all the friends and mentors that have encouraged me through life, that all I can do is offer that love to those that I meet and to the world, to help create one global family.”

Information provided by Irving Weekly.

John Starkey / Staff Photographer

By Jess Paniszczyn

The Irving Elks’ Lodge rolled out the welcome mat for some very special guests on March 20. Every high school student named as Student of the Month during the past year was invited to dinner along with their family members, high school counselors and principals. The evening’s festivities recognized the outstanding achievements of some of the area’s brightest young minds and culminated in the announcement of the coveted Teenager of the Year Award.

“To even be considered for Teenager of the Year, students must have an extremely high SAT or ACT score,” said David Jordan, the Elks’ Youth Activities Chairman. “They also have to be active in school as members of several different groups, hold office positions, receive honors and all these things add up in a points system. They also have to be involved in extracurricular activities and hold offices in various programs.

“We give two scholarships for the Teenager of the Year away a year, one to a young man and one to a young lady. It is a four year scholarship for $1,000 a year,” Jordan said.

In the top 10 percent of his class, Adrian Burciaga of Irving High School plans to use his vocational grant to learn about diesel technology.

“I am planning to attend UTI to become an automotive diesel technician,” Burciaga said. “I am going to use this money to help me finish school, so I can be the first person in my family to get some kind of education and give the best I can to the world.

“I found out about this yesterday after school, and I was shocked. Once I came here, I felt so out of place. But I want people to know that a guy who may not be going to college or may not be very smart can win something. Because that is who I am right now, I’m not smart. I do good in school, and all that hard work paid off, because I won something.”

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