It was a productive week in Vicksburg. The 80th anniversary season of “Gold in the Hills” opened Monday night and performances continued for the Guinness Book of World Records longest running melodrama Friday and Saturday. The Parkside Playhouse was not the only venue in town offering a live production. The Westside Theatre Foundation also opened “A Doll’s House” Friday with a second performance on Saturday night.

Both productions will be offered this coming weekend, too.

On Friday, members of the Little Misters and Little Mademoiselles clubs at Dana Road took a field trip to Shoney’s.

“Today we did etiquette training for the children. We wanted to show the young men how to pull out a chair for the young ladies,” assistant principal Arthur Jones said, adding students also were taught self-respect, how to order from a menu and about money and budgets.

Little Misters is open to young men who need to be mentored. Club members wear green bow ties and are taught about society, discipline, finances, public speaking and how to treat young ladies. They can even get free haircuts at the school.

Little Mademoiselles is a social and service club that meets monthly to focus on self-improvement and social skills.

On Saturday, the Vicksburg National Military Park participated in Park Day, where the public volunteers to help with the upkeep of monuments and landmarks. A group of 16 people volunteered to help spruce up Vicksburg’s greatest asset.

“We really couldn’t do what we do without the support of the community, and this is a really good example of that,” park superintendent Bill Justice said. “It’s great when people come out like this and help us.”

Volunteers in Vicksburg spent the morning painting cannon carriages on the first tour stop of the park called the Battery De Golyer.

The Church of the Holy Trinity held “Prayers in the Parking Lot” on Sunday. The event was an outdoor worship service, which included music and a jambalaya lunch.

“This is the third year in a row we have done this after Easter in the parking lot,” the Rev. Beth Palmer said.