Downtown Georgetown Assn.

This Saturday is Market Days, and the celebration is all about Summer Vacation! Join us on the streets around the courthouse as craft vendors display their wares, live music fills the air and our shops offer unique treasures in air conditioned comfort. And watch for information about our special July Market Days themed as “Operation Brave Hearts!” We have a great group of merchants who have taken the initiative to help make this an over-the-top salute to the men and women who serve our country. Get ready to don your red, white and blue and join us for a Market Days like no other on July 10^th!

We had a wonderful crowd at last week’s First Friday street dance! Here are some photos of the event, courtesy of Gwen Green, photographer. We estimate that about 250 folks showed up to hear our marvelous swing band: Lone Star Swing Syndicate.

Our Winery Initiative is in high gear. We are more than two weeks into gathering the required signatures. While we are almost halfway there with the number of signatures we need, we need a huge push to reach our goal. We are looking for volunteers who are willing to help for an evening or two or more. You can earn $1 for each verified signature you collect. All you need to do is plan to meet at the Chamber of Commerce Parking Lot for the month of June on these days:

Just show up and you will be given instructions and a designated area to cover to collect the signatures. If you have any questions and/or wish to volunteer, please contact Charles Carter at cell number: 512-217-7508.

The Palace Theatre presents their next production: “The Queen of Bingo” opening on June 18 for a 4-weekend run of bingo interspersed with gossip, laughter, memories, and plain ol’ fun! The play follows Sis and Babe (two sisters ‘on the other side of 50’) as they dish the dirt with the many off-beat, colorful regulars they meet at the bingo tables. While they’ve been doing this for years to add some fun to their lives, on this one particular night secrets are revealed! Join us for this hilarious and touching show, and you might just win a turkey or a ham. (Yes, really! This is bingo, after all. A turkey or a ham will be given away at each performance!) Ticket prices are $20 General Admission, $18 Seniors (55+), $12 Students (16-22) and Active Military, and $8 Children (15 and younger).

Franklin & Company Fine Jewelers received a nice surprise. They were rated in the top 1% of websites visited on Google for December, 2009 through February, 2010! How cool is that? In the letter notifying himof this, Frank received a sticker for his window that is imbedded with a link to smart phones that have a QR reader app. This allows the phone to connect to the Franklin Jeweler website. Georgetown is going high tech. Congratulations to Frank. Well done!

We noticed an item on an email from Wonderful Things that really caught our interest and we wanted to pass it along. In addition to information about some of their great merchandise, there was this report: “In May we received notice from Brighton that The Caring Place in Georgetown had been selected to receive funds from a foundation established by Brighton Owner, Jerry Kohl. The foundation was formed to help relieve the burden of caring for those folks who fell on hard times because of the economy. Jerry asked his jewelry designers to create a collection of accessories and the sales from those pieces were donated to the foundation. As customers made their purchase, they were asked to nominate an organization that fulfilled the criteria to help those less fortunate. It was YOU, our wonderful customers that helped to nominate The Caring Place and make this award possible. This award was given to nominees from across the nation! It's proof once again that it's TOGETHERNESS that creates Wonderful Things! A check in the amount of $3,000 was recently presented to John Stock, Executive Director of The Caring Place because of those nominations.” This is what community is all about. Well done, Sharon and staff.

A Floral Expression is making big changes! Debra has a new partner, Paula Miller and they are changing their name to Garden Path Flowers & Gifts. AND they are moving to a new, larger location at 817 S. Austin Avenue, next to Brazos Collection (the old Georgetown Winerylocation across from the Palace Theatre.) Stop by the new digs on July 1^st, and check out the salsa tasting bar hosted by Mark Ridley. This is a great new addition to the mix of offerings in downtown. Be sure to check out the discounts during their “moving sale” happening now. All the best to Debra and Paula as they embark on this new venture!

If you were around the Square on First Friday, you may have noticed the new “art gallery” in the foyer of ScentChips of Georgetown, located next to the Exchange at Anarella. Janet and Christopher are displaying art pieces from local residents. If you have not had a chance to view them, you will want to stop by. We see more and more local artists being showcased in our shops and restaurants. This is a wonderful display of support for the arts here in downtown.

Have you noticed that Sweet Serendipity has added ice cream to their inventory? If you have not checked it out, be sure to stop by. They are offering several flavors of Bluebell ice cream in sundaes and several types of cones. Just in time for the Texas summer and what a delicious way to cool off! We know this has been something Bev has wanted to add to her shop for a long time, so congratulations on figuring out how to make it happen!