The start of a new year is the perfect opportunity to kick old habits and create new ones. For those thinking about quitting tobacco, programs like the Oklahoma Tobacco Helpline can more than double the likelihood of success.

DURANT –– Although COVID prevented the usual pomp and circumstance, the Choctaw Nation Health Services Authority (CNHSA) held a ceremony to celebrate the Indian Health Service awards achieved by several departments for 2020 and 2021 along with service anniversaries for associates who have been with the Nation for 20 years or longer.

Years ago, songwriter Mac Davis penned the lyrics to a song about a tiny orphan girl who evidently longed to experience being loved. In the song, “WHOEVER FINDS THIS, I LOVE YOU,” she writes a note containing those words, and it into the wind. A lonely old man eventually found the note among the autumn leaves and read her plea for love. That was the beginning of a beautiful and warm friendship that both of them desperately needed.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has cut the amount of time it recommends people should isolate after testing positive for the Coronavirus, reducing the number of days from 10 to five. Health officials similarly reduced the amount of time a person should quarantine after coming into contact with someone who tests positive.

Every odd-numbered year, recognized political parties in Oklahoma are required to notify the Secretary of the State Election Board whether or not the party will allow registered Independents to vote in its primary elections.

Happy New Year from the Hugo News staff! The deadline for the Calendar of Events is 12 p.m. each Tuesday.

Choctaw County and the entire state of Oklahoma are going to get hit with a very strong cold front for New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day and bring a huge temperature drop from 70 degrees on Friday afternoon down to 21 on Saturday night. The temperature on Sunday will even struggle to get out of the upper 30s. A very cold beginning to 2022!

Friday, Dec. 31 Fish French Fries Pinto Beans Hush Puppies Fruit Salad.