The sun is expected to make an appearance this coming weekend in Troup County, at least for a moment.

To kick off the weekend, the wooden bleachers of the LaGrange High School’s gym will fill with community members, friends, family and students from all three schools to watch basketball. 

However, on Friday, it won’t be the basketball teams getting the cheers.

Instead, the stars of the night will be special needs students from the three local high schools, Troup, Callaway and LaGrange.

It’s the third edition of the Special Night for Special Grangers, and this will be the first-time students from a school other than LaGrange will be involved.

When the game tips off at 7 p.m. on Friday, special needs students will get an opportunity to show their skills on the basketball court.

Mitzi Norton, the organizer of the event, is a part of the exceptional-education team at LaGrange High.

“I get to come in every day and spend my day with these kids, and they truly teach me. They do. I learn from them,” Norton said. “It’s just like the night of the event, you leave feeling so uplifted, and that’s how it is every day here. They really are just an amazing group.”

During the game, members of LaGrange High’s basketball teams will be on the court, encouraging their classmates, and in some cases physically assisting them.

Also, on Friday night Americana duo The Honey Dewdrops – Laura Wortman and Kagey Parris will perform at Pure Life Studios Friday at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $20. Contact Maggie at Pure Life for more information at maggie@purelifelagrange.com.

On Saturday, young women throughout Troup County will once again compete for the chance to become Miss Troup County, Miss LaGrange, Miss Troup County’s Outstanding Teen or Miss LaGrange Outstanding Teen.

“[It teaches] being able to handle yourself in a pressured environment, such as an interview a job interview,” CEO of the Miss Georgia Scholarship Competition Trina Pruitt said. “Learning that feeling, and obtaining confidence in what you do and how you present yourself, and then, of course, the scholarships. It gives us girls the avenue to present their talent, which makes the Miss Troup, Miss Georgia and Miss America so unique because of the talent competition.”

Candidates will participate in a 10-minute private interview with a panel of judges, an onstage interview immediately following the opening number and evening wear attire with a social impact statement that summarizes a candidate’s platform mission. The women will also compete in a talent portion that makes up 40 percent of their score.

Miss Troup’s Executive Director Judy Neighbors said it’s all about confidence and poise.

“If it was just about judging evening gowns, we could roll them out on a rack and have the judges pick the prettiest one they like,” Neighbors said.

Miss Georgia, Victoria Hill of Canton, Georgia, will emcee the event.

This year’s competition is hosted at the Troup High School’s Fine Arts Auditorium. Admission costs are $20 at the door and $10 for students who present their student ID.

The City of Hogansville will bring the weekend to a close with its sixth annual Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration on Sunday at 4 p.m. 

This year’s program will be hosted at Hogansville Elementary School, and former Hogansville councilman George Bailey will be this year’s keynote speaker.