Touchdowns, hot rods, an activity-filled open house and a little manual labor to help out Mother Nature highlight the weekend activities across the county.

By now, everyone knows the area high school teams kick off the football season Friday night. If you did not know, see today's insert in The Ironton Tribune. But, there are also several activities scheduled for Saturday that allow people to give back to the community, and see what the community can give to them.

The Lawrence County Board of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities' Early Childhood Programs will sponsor a "Cruise-In for Kids" from 4 to 8 p.m. Saturday at the Lawrence County Early Childhood Center, 1749 County Road 1 in South Point.

The event is free of charge. Registration is $5 for anyone who wants to display their cars, trucks or motorcycles.

The event is designed to raise money to purchase sensory integration equipment for the children at the Early Childhood Center.

Sensory integration disorders occur when children cannot process all the information that they receive from their senses, said Sue A. Vanderhoof, director of early childhood programs for the Lawrence County Board of

MR/DD.

This is a more common problem than many people believe. About 30 of the 90 children at the Early Childhood Center have some form of sensory integration problems, she said. Statistics show that nearly 30 percent of all children have some sensory disorders.

"We are starting to get some of the equipment, but it is typically very expensive," she said. "We are seeing more and more children that need this type of equipment."

Types of equipment the program still needs include weighted vests, therapy swings, water-filled sleeping pads, positioning equipment and more. It is important that the children start working with this equipment as early as possible, she said.

"Through successful early intervention, a young child will be better able to perform and they will become more productive citizens and members of the community," she said.

For more information about the Cruise-In for Kids or sensory integration for young children, please contact Vanderhoof at (740) 377-2356.

In other happenings, an open house at the Storms Creek Apartment complex on Lawrence Street Road Saturday will showcase the changes to the housing complex that include a computer lab, landscaping and more.

Prospective tenants can see available apartments and get all the information needed. The open house will be from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at building A.

Several other agencies will be there to provide information and entertainment including WLGC-Radio's Chuck Black, the WIC program and

Headstart. The Lawrence County Sheriff's Office will provide child fingerprinting and the Perry Township Volunteer Fire Department will have its fire safety trailer on display.

Also, the Wayne National Forest Service's Ironton Ranger District wants to invite the community to come out and join volunteers from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Lake Vesuvius to build fish habitats and clean up litter before the lake is refilled later this fall.

"When Lake Vesuvius was drained, we saw that habitat structure was lacking throughout the basin," Becky Ewing, fisheries biologist for the Wayne said in a written statement. "Plenty of trees had fallen along the shoreline, but there was no woody structure in deeper water areas."

Volunteers should meet at the Lake Vesuvius beach at 9:30 a.m. and bring work gloves, sturdy shoes and long pants.