Larry Whaley on Market Square

Aug 04, 2010 01:13 am

Durant Main Street has announced this week’s feature for Music on Market Square will be Larry Whaley. Activities begin at 7 p.m. on Thursday. The public is invited to hear traditional country music in a relaxed, small town atmosphere. Larry Whaley will be performing on the outdoor stage at First and Evergreen in downtown Durant.

  Larry Whaley sings and plays traditional country music. His music is strongly influenced by bluegrass, gospel, and old country. Larry sings and plays acoustic guitar and harmonica. There is never a dull moment with the various instruments Whaley plays. Larry performs original songs as well as traditional country and has CD’s available.   Larry Whaley has performed in the Branson, MO area and has had original songs recorded and released nationally. These songs include “You’re Still Every Note I Play,” and more recently, “The Last Country Song.” Larry was raised in Northwest Texas and Southern Oklahoma. He currently resides near Burneyville, Oklahoma with his wife Ellen.   The weekly Thursday night concerts are free, and attendees are encouraged to bring their lawn chairs to enjoy a stress-free time in downtown Durant. For more information, contact Durant Main Street at 580-924-1550  

Phillips Selected as Main Street President

Jul 24, 2010 09:42 am

 Greg Phillips, owner and agent for State Farm Insurance, was recently selected as President of Durant Main Street. He replaces Cindi Gill who served two terms during 2008-09 and 2008-09 as the chair of the Board of Directors. Phillips represents the Durant Historical Society/Three Valley Museum on the Board.

            Phillips and his wife Marti truly support the Downtown. It is common to see them with their son Mason enjoying all the Downtown has to offer. Marti can be seen having fun shopping in a photograph often used for promotional purposes. Greg is active in the community and service clubs. He was on the planning committee for The Smithsonian Exhibit at the museum where he also serves on the Board. He is a 2010 graduate of Leadership Oklahoma.               Durant Main Street Program Manager Donna Dow looks forward to working with Phillips. “Greg is very enthusiastic, and he has some fresh ideas that complement our current board makeup and needs.” During Gill’s leadership, the Main Street organization has seen a membership boost. The organization was able to bring the ice rink to Market Square for our community to enjoy, and it was a great attraction for tourists as well. During her leadership, we also brought the Smithsonian Exhibit “Journey Stories” to Durant working in partnership with the Three Valley Museum.   Dow was appreciative of Gill’s time served. “Cindi was great to work with. She believes in our Downtown and has worked extremely hard for our organization. I’m glad she will continue to serve on our Board.” Durant Main Street is part of the Oklahoma Main Street program, a Downtown revitalization program providing training, resources and technical assistance to 41 active Main Street communities across Oklahoma. Main Street's preservation-based approach to business district revitalization has been scaled to the resources of small cities and urban neighborhood business districts. The Four Point Approach (Organization, Promotion, Economic Restructuring, and Design) is used, and committees represent each point. Starting with many small changes taking place over a period of years, Main Street builds local leadership and local commitment to care for and manage the area for many years. The groundwork laid by the local leadership demonstrates that the district is active and vital, attracting more and more investment into the area.